It looks like the first iPhone app to bring us real-time traffic alerts, and that comes with offline maps, will be the Navigon MobileNavigator (Earlier CNET review. iTunes Store link.)
The AT&T Navigator (CNET review) also has live traffic data, but takes more time to download maps as you go, and while initially free, has a $10 monthly fee. Navigon has a steep $90 price tag, and you’ll pay $20 or $25 for the live traffic upgrade, but if you use it for more than a year, it’s already cheaper than the AT&T version.
(I’d like to take a moment to congratulate both Navigon and AT&T for sensibly choosing just one business model – monthly fee, or upfront fee – instead of both. Too many companies these days get away with a charge upfront and also making you pay monthly. I’m sure they have their reasons, but as a consumer, it just seems wrong.)
I’ve already recently cut at least 5 minutes off my daily commute by utilizing traffic data of other drivers. This is a win/win, since bad traffic throws me in a rage faster than anything else, and I’m not the most defensive driver. If I can have a tool with me that warns me of upcoming traffic problems, and helps me navigate around them, so much the better.
On the other hand, it seems I’m always driving to the same ten or twelve places. I’m not what marketers like to call a “road warrior” (isn’t this just a euphemism for salesperson?), so I don’t think I can justify the cost just yet.
Have you used the Navigon or AT&T apps? What do you think?
The “Cash for Clunkers” program that we told you about on June 19 has received a shot in the arm in almost-last-minute actions by the House and Senate. They approved an additional $2 billion to continue the unexpectedly popular rebate program through Labor Day.
Opponents of the program feel like:
Richard Shelby, the top Republican on the Senate Banking Committee, said the program “has squeezed months of normal activity” into a short period of time.
And though rebates are reportedly difficult to process, dealers and automakers love the program:
“There is no question that ‘cash for clunkers’ has succeeded,” said Dave McCurdy, chief executive of the Alliance of Automobile Manufacturers, the chief trade group for General Motors Co, Chrysler LLC, Ford Motor Co, Toyota Motor Corp and other big carmakers.
Have you participated? If so, were you going to buy a new car, anyway?
Yesterday the U.S. Senate passed a War funding appropriations bill that paradoxically included a piece of legislation popularly referred to as the “Cash for Clunkers” program.
So that’s the first thing that doesn’t thrill me about the Clunkers program. The second is the name. A “clunker” is a car that doesn’t work anymore. Yet, this program only applies to used cars that are still in drivable condition.
More importantly, I think it offers too much for too little. There’s a $3,500 credit for trade-ins that improve your mileage by 4 MPG, and $4,500 for a 10 MPG upgrade.
I would’ve liked to see a program that required the new car to get at least 30 MPG, a number high enough to actually make some kind of impact on our dependence on foreign oil. Maybe I’m too accustomed to getting 45 MPG, but I view mileage over 30 as easily achievable with any kind of car, and it seems ridiculous to entice someone upgrading from, say, 14 MPG to 24 MPG.
So, much like the new energy efficiency tax credits, I think this is a case where if you were already considering trading in your car for something that requires fewer trips to the gas station, there’s never been a better time.
I’ve said it before, but here it is again: even if you don’t agree with a new law, if it makes sense for you to save some money under it, you might as well take advantage of it.
After a few years of not catching onto consumers’ shifting tastes towards more environmentally friendly vehicles, General Motors has teamed up with Segway to develop the PUMA, or Personal Urban Mobility and Accessibility, a tiny self-balancing, two-wheeled vehicle powered by electricity. The PUMA can reach speeds of thirty-five miles per hour.
It’s an interesting concept, but much like the original Segway, I don’t think it will catch on except in unique circumstances. The only place I see Segways are in shopping malls, where they drivers are part of the facilities security or police. I have had my own personal experience with a Segway; several years ago, I rode one of these devices in Disneyland’s Tomorrowland exhibition.
Dean Kamen, the inventor of the Segway, created massive hype before unveiling the Segway, promising it would revolutionize urban transportation. He would have predicted that these personal transportation devices would be ubiquitous by now, particularly in cities. That hasn’t come to pass yet. In fact, Segway is judged to be a failure.
How the PUMA device is heading in the same direction. But perhaps there is room for success; I have seen an increasing number of Smart Cars on the roads and in parking lots.
Here’s a video of GM and Segway’s collaborative PUMA vehicle. Can you see yourself in one?
If you have not been aware of the recent news, General Motors and Chrysler have asked the government for more money, but the Obama administration is pushing back. The government’s task force has determined that the restructuring plans submitted by the companies in return for continued financial support are inadequate.
As a result, the Chairman and CEO of General Motors, Rick Wagoner, is resigning from his position and Chrysler is heading towards a possible merger with Fiat. With GM, the government will provide the company with the funds it needs to operate for sixty days. There is a possibility that General Motors will not survive in its current form two months from now. Chrysler, on the other hand, will only have thirty days to turn around a plan for moving forward.
Bankruptcy may be the answer for both companies. To prevent consumer trepidation about buying a car from a company that might not support its obligations like warranties and maintenance, the Treasury Department has stepped in. The government plans to back warranties on all GM and Chrysler vehicles purchased while the companies exist in their current state of collapse or restructuring.
If you typically buy cars from GM and Chrysler, would you be more or less inclined to purchase a vehicle right now? Are you confident your car will receive the support it needs from these companies or the government throughout its usable life?
There’s a toll-free number on the back of my driver’s license labeled “Roadside Assistance”. I’d never noticed it before today, when a co-worker was telling me how she used the number to get her tire changed on the dangerously-busy Tollway.
“For free?” I asked. “Of course,” she said.
So I started to wonder if I’d been paying AAA for services that I could be getting for free. I did some Googling and found this:
The toll-free line has been operated by DPS since 1989 for motorists to use when reporting non-life-threatening situations … If a tow truck is ultimately dispatched, the motorist is responsible for any costs incurred. Some cities and agencies do have courtesy patrols and roadside trucks to provide non-towing services and they may be dispatched by the local agencies when appropriate.
Examples of when a motorist should call the Roadside Assistance Hotline include: stranded with car problems, hazardous road conditions, debris in the roadway, suspicious activity at a rest area, and obviously intoxicated or dangerous drivers.
So, to summarize: we want you to call us if you’re having trouble or see something dangerous. We might send help, and it might be free.
My state isn’t the only one with a free (?) State-run roadside assistance program. If part of the recession means not renewing whatever service you use for emergency roadside assistance, check online to see what’s available for free.
Consumer Reports leaves little to the imagination when in the April issue, the editors state emphatically, “The best vehicles are built by Honda, Subaru, and Toyota.” Yet, if you are feeling patriotic, you want to single-handedly save an entire domestic industry, you’re not worried about future service from a company that may no longer exist, or you want to do your part to try to save thousands of American jobs, you may ignore this and buy an American car. For you, CNN has parsed Consumer Reports’ ratings to find the highest ranked domestic vehicles.
Family sedan: Chevrolet Malibu at $21,605, 30/22 mpg
Small car: Ford Focus at $15,520, 35/24 mpg
Upscale sedan: Lincoln MKZ at $32,695, 28/18 mpg
Luxury sedan: Cadillac DTS at $46,280, 23/15 mpg
Small SUV: Ford Escape Hybrid at $29,645, 31/34 mpg
Mid-size SUV: Ford Taurus X at $28,270, 24/17 mpg
Pick-up: Chevrolet Avalanche at $35,460, 20/14 mpg
Green car: Ford Escape Hybrid at $29,645, 31/34 mpg
Consumer Reports admits, as they have been for the past few years, that the quality of American cars is increasing and that the fact that a car is produced by a Japanese company doesn’t automatically guarantee reliability.
The testers at Consumer Reports do not receive cars directly from factories as other publishers do. Rather than reviewing a superbly tuned and tested vehicle, designed specifically for those who write reviews at other publications, Consumer Reports publishers buy cars from dealers just like a typical consumer would. They visit the dealerships and buy the car directly without mentioning their association with Consumer Union. This ensures they’re seeing the same product the typical auto consumer would see.
Fuelly is a new, free online service which helps you track your mileage. It pays attention to what kind of car you’re driving, how much you’re spending, and creates helpful charts to let you know whether your mileage is improving or declining over time.
It has great support for mobile browsers, which is exactly what I needed, since I can’t be bothered to keep a notebook and pen anywhere sensible in my car. What’s more, it also has a social networking aspect so you can invite your friends to compare mileage trends. There are also dozens of tips for improving your driving style, as well as a user discussion forum.
But I think the neatest aspect is the vehicle browser. For example, this list and graph of Toyota Priuses (Prii?), tells me that some combination of factors is forcing my mileage below the average of Fuelly members. Still, it’s a lot better than my friend’s pickup truck, who just clocked in at under 14 MPG…
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I’ve already recently cut at least 5 minutes off my daily commute by utilizing traffic data of other drivers. This is a win/win, since bad traffic throws me in a rage faster than anything else, and I’m not the most defensive driver. If I can have a tool with me that warns me of upcoming traffic problems, and helps me navigate around them, so much the better.
It has great support for mobile browsers, which is exactly what I needed, since I can’t be bothered to keep a notebook and pen anywhere sensible in my car. What’s more, it also has a social networking aspect so you can invite your friends to compare mileage trends. There are also dozens of tips for improving your driving style, as well as a user discussion forum.
