Projo Cars Blog

Well, I experimented with driving slower this week and found I can definitely save money.

My 1999 Volvo has readouts that tell me my miles per gallon at any one moment and also for a preset trip. I found I could average 32 mpg at around 60 mph over the 30 mile trip from Jamestown to Providence compared with 27 mpg on a more normal, faster run.

(Even at 60 mph, I guess I was exceeding the speed limit. But that is the speed in the slow lane and cars drive were driving around me.

It reminds me of the time an officer pulled me over in a 25 mph zone. I make no defense for the speed I was going, but have you actually tried driving at 25 mph? It is remarkably slow!)

Getting back to my experiment, I should point out that I was driving most of the time on the highway. City driving in a heavy Volvo quickly brings the fuel economy down.

But all in all, there is no question that a lighter foot on the pedal will save money – and lives.
Meanwhile, as if to confirm that fuel economy is on all our minds, J.D. Power and Associates announced that “drivers of new cars were less satisfied with their vehicles this year for the first time in at least five years due mainly to rising fuel prices.”

It noted in its annual survey of vehicle owner satisfaction that part of the problem is that gas prices have risen dramatically over the last 12 months while fuel economy has basically stayed the same.

And the latest Auto Pulse Survey conducted by the Consumer Reports National Research Center shows more than 77 percent of consumers cited the government’s failure to implement an effective energy policy as a root cause for high gas prices.

It also found that nearly 80 percent of car shoppers intend to buy a vehicle with better fuel economy, with 80 percent considering a diesel, flex-fuel, or hybrid vehicle.

Indeed, 31 percent of new-car shoppers said fuel economy was the most important consideration. That is nearly double the share recorded in 2007.

And 54 percent said they would pay more for a more fuel-efficient vehicle while 74 percent are driving less due to fuel costs.

- Peter C.T. Elsworth

No sooner did I blog the decision by Speedcraft to close its Chrysler-Dodge dealership, than Paul Bailey Chrysler-Dodge takes out an ad in the South County edition of The Providence Journal welcoming “the customers of the former Speedcraft Chrysler-Dodge.

“We invite you to bring your vehicles to our totally renovated facility in North Kingstown for service, maintenance and collision repairs,” the ad reads.

Actually, Speedcraft general manager Harry Garabedian said the Chrysler-Dodge service department will remain open to service customers.

Speedcraft may lose some customers, but it would probably not begrudge Bailey the business. Speedcraft, after all, has just made over its Volkswagen dealership and that is where its focus is now directed.

And with five new models coming out this year, including the exciting clean diesels Jettas, there is good reason to believe that VW sales will be up as the year progresses.
But what of Chrysler?

The company is crippled with almost no small cars at a time when they are what people want, and has been offering all sorts of promotions – including the famous $2.99 a gallon gasoline for 12,000 miles for three years – in face of awful sales declines and rumors of imminent bankruptcy.

So good luck to owner Maureen Bailey and general manager Larry Cronin, good folks we profiled back in February of last year. I fear they may need it.

- Peter C.T. Elsworth

The Detroit auto industry appeared to be imploding Thursday, according to USA Today.

Shares of General Motors (GM) stock hadn't traded so cheaply since the 1950s. Ford Motor (F) stock was at a 52-week low. Privately held Chrysler doesn't trade but still felt compelled to deny a rumor that it will file for bankruptcy protection.

NEW YORK -- Oil futures climbed briefly to a new record above $142 a barrel Friday on expectations that the weakening dollar, a major factor in crude's stratospheric rise, will extend its decline and add to oil's appeal, according to the Associated Press.

Retail gas prices inched lower overnight, but are likely to resume their own trek into record territory now that oil futures have broken out of the trading range where they had been for nearly 3 weeks.

Saturday morning we plan to upgrade the active projo blogs to a new version of the Movable Type software. All blogs will remain available during this process. Afterwards you’ll see a new look and some new features, and we’ll welcome your comments about them.

NEW YORK -- Oil futures shot above $140 Thursday after OPEC's president said crude prices could rise well above $150 a barrel this year and Libya said it may cut oil production, according to the Associated Press.

The advance raised the likelihood that gasoline prices would also extend their march higher, and that prices of goods and services throughout the economy would also keep rising.

Light, sweet crude crossed the $140 level minutes before the New York Mercantile Exchange closed Thursday, then retreated slightly to settle up $5.09 at a record $139.64. In after-hours electronic trading, prices rose as high as a record $140.39.

NEW YORK -- Oil futures shot up to nearly $139 a barrel Thursday after OPEC's president said oil prices could rise well above $150 a barrel this year and Libya said it may cut oil production, according to the Associated Press.

Light, sweet crude for August delivery rose as high as $138.95 a barrel shortly after the New York Mercantile Exchange opened before retreating some to trade up $3.59 at $138.14.