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I wanted a new car equipped with all the bells and whistles. Tod needed something more practical for his wife and new baby. Dwayne wanted a more fast and furious car. And Mauricio needed something a bit more rugged and roomier. With this in mind, sales associate Fermin Trompeta at Pearson Honda in Midlothian assisted us in determining which Honda would best suit our very different lifestyles. Framin took us one by one and asked us questions that helped narrow down his search. We were then allowed to test-drive a car that Framin specially selected for each one of us. I test drove a Civic Coupe; Tod drove an Odyssey; Dwayne, a Si sedan and Mauricio, an Element. Continue reading and find out what we felt about our rides. —Isabel Ramos

Isabel's Civic Coupe I volunteered to be the first potential buyer; mainly, because I was eager to test drive the upgraded Civic Coupe.



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Dealerships go extra mile to sell cars Smaller, fuel-efficient vehicles draw buyers

In this tight economy, it now takes a little more to seal the deal for a new or used car.“I'm getting the same amount of people in the door, but there are less people buying on impulse," said Jason Johnson, co-owner of Desert Wind Auto and Cycle. “They're looking for deals, and doing their homework."A slowing economy — nationally, statewide and locally — has consumers watching their wallets more than ever before. And while people are still buying cars, many consumers appear to be gravitating toward smaller, more fuel-efficient vehicles to offset big jumps in gasoline prices. Others are choosing used vehicles over new.“Some of our customers are looking to downsize," said Rick Roberts, managing partner of Anderson Chrysler Dodge Jeep. “I would say that there's more customers that are coming in that gas mileage is a priority to them."Roberts also said that his certified pre-owned vehicle sales are up.



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OUTLOOK Halfords seen reporting solid full-year sales

LONDON (Thomson Financial) - Halfords Group Plc., the car parts and bicycle retailer, is expected to again illustrate its defensive qualities in a tough UK trading environment when it updates on full-year sales on Thursday.

For the year to March 31 2008 analysts at Citigroup are forecasting total sales growth from the 450-store group of 7.3 percent, with like-for-like sales up 4.7 percent and gross margin down 10 basis points.

For the second-half period they expect like-for-like sales growth of 2.5 percent, excluding Easter.

Analysts at UBS expect full-year total sales of 800 million pounds, up 7.5 percent, with like-for-like growth of 4 percent and gross margin flat. For the second half they also expect like-for-like sales growth of 2.5 pct.

"We view Halfords as a relatively defensive stock within the retail sector, mainly due to its 30 percent exposure to car maintenance products," they told clients.


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Six Waukee students compete for top mileage

The pit crew doesn't know how many horsepower their engine will produce. They don't much care how fast their car will go. In this race, only one statistic matters - gas mileage.

Six Waukee High School students are working to build two ultra-efficient contraptions for the Ultimate Mileage Vehicle Competition, set May 9 in Altoona. With the help of industrial technology teacher John Kotz, the students will try to engineer their cars to go farther than the competition on just 8 ounces of gasoline.

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Ten technologically advanced green cars

It's no secret rising gas prices have consumers searching for more fuel-efficient vehicles that can reduce toxic emissions and pain at the pump.

Take the 1.8-liter, four-cylinder Nissan Versa. Last year its sales jumped 259% from the year before. No wonder: It's got an Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) miles-per-gallon rating of 26 city and 31 highway. The Honda Fit, a similar vehicle with near-identical mileage, was up 101%.

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Automakers struggle to balance power, fuel-efficiency

VANCOUVER - Automakers are facing a strange dilemma these days: Consumers say they want green fuel-sipping, eco-friendly vehicles.

But those who can are still plunking down their money to buy high performance cars and SUVs that have the carbon footprint of a sasquatch.

"I think we can all observe what's happening," says Barry Engle, who took over as president of Ford of Canada in February.

"Up until now there certainly seems to be a preponderance of consumers who, on the one hand express interest in being more environmentally friendly and on the other hand are completely unwilling to give up any performance."

Perhaps it's not surprising after all. Public opinion polls have suggested people are concerned about climate change and want to do something.


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Thailand approves Toyota, Mitsubishi, Tata eco cars

BANGKOK (Reuters) - Thailand has approved plans by Toyota Motor, Mitsubishi Motors and Tata Motors to build fuel efficient cars in the country, the state Board of Investment (BOI) said on Wednesday.

The projects meant a combined investment of 16.67 billion baht ($528.7 million), the board said in a statement.

The Thai unit of Japanese carmaker Toyota would invest 4.64 billion baht in a plant with the capacity to assemble 100,000 so-called eco cars a year expected to start production in 2012, it said.

Half that production would be for export, mainly to Southeast Asia and the Asia-Oceania region, it said.

Mitsubishi Motors (Thailand) would spend 4.7 billion baht on a plant with an annual capacity of 107,000 eco cars, 88 percent of them for export, with production scheduled for 2010, it said.



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