ECONOMY CARS: Shaken, Not Stirred

I’m just back from a good old fashioned road trip. Our family of four drove 1200 miles in our new RAV4, safely and economically. Safely in that we had no “incidents”, economically in that we went from the 20 mpg of our old Windstar Van, to nearly 30 mpg with the RAV4. Thanks to last summer’s Cash for Clunkers, we drove in the near luxury of a relatively new vehicle, and saved precious dollars in fuel expense. We felt good about having helped the economy and the environment. So everything was peachy, right? Well, not quite.

On this extended trip, we experienced first hand the sacrifice that is made by trading to economy. We were shaken and stirred. Regardless of design and technology, the short wheelbase that comes with economy vehicles translates to shortcomings on the highway. At the end of our 500 mile drive, mostly on interstate highways, the whole family was exhausted. We were shaken by every expansion joint, stirred from each frost heave, and swayed after hours of wind buffeting. We realized that we had sacrificed comfort for fuel economy.

Another sacrifice also became evident. Our “greener” vehicle needed to stop to refuel. In the past, our Windstar’s 26 gallon gas tank would take us door to door, with some gas left over. Now, despite the RAV4’s more miserly manners, its comparatively miniscule 16 gallon tank could only manage half of our 500 miles. Valuable travel time was needed to refuel, at inflated interstate gas prices. It seems like a small thing, but it’s a sacrifice just the same.

Is there a vehicle that can deliver the best of both worlds; fuel economy and smooth highway driving? Mid-sized, four cylinder cars like the Ford Fusion, Chevy Malibu, Honda Accord or the Toyota Camry would probably offer compromise with less sacrifice. On the other hand, we’ll be passing them next winter with our four wheel drive engaged.

We have no reservations about our decision to downsize. After all, how often do we drive 500 miles in one day? With normal driving, we get to enjoy the fuel and operating savings throughout the year. The RAV4’s tighter suspension, shorter wheelbase, and lighter weight; all of the items that contribute to the jostling on the highway, are actually the things that make the RAV4 so much fun to drive and park around town. So, we’ll shake a bit on an occasional road trip, but we will not be stirred from the handling and dollar savings that our RAV4 offers. We think that the good far out weighs the bad. We may have been shaken, but we are certainly not stirred.

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CELEBRITY CARS: Don’t Buy Flash, Buy to Drive

You would if you could, I know I would. They can, so they do; and boy, do they. I’m talking about celebrities and their cars. With money to burn, and the desperate need to flaunt their good fortune, celebrities have the cars and trucks that you and I can only dream about. From rapper to rocker, to sports heroes and Hollywood’s elite, they all say who they are through their cars.

It seems that the majority of this privileged nouveau riche buys for flash, to show that they’ve made it. I bet that few are actually car people, or have any idea of what they buy and drive. They buy image, without a clue of what’s under the hood and chassis. Do you think that Kim Kardashian knows what she’s really driving when she climbs into her custom Bentley? She knows that it attracts attention, costs a lot of money, and has a prestigious name. On the other hand, a true car guy like Jay Leno knows exactly what he’s driving when he gets into his Bentley.

Leno’s Bentley:


There are celebrities that do buy and know what they drive. In addition to Leno, I think of fellow comedians Jerry Seinfeld and David Letterman, along with guitarist Jeff Beck and the late actor Paul Newman. These are (were) genuine car people who live and breathe cars. While they buy exotic because they can, they buy the car, not the image. Jay Leno has been into cars since his days growing up in Andover, MA. His collection now includes some 200 different cars of all kinds, shapes and sizes, many stored in his private climate controlled southern California garage. Jay does not collect these cars to show them off as a museum, but he tinkers with them, along with his staff of professional mechanics. The cars don’t sit around and collect dust; he drives them for the fun of driving. Check out some of his toys:

http://www.jaylenosgarage.com

http://www.popularmechanics.com/automotive/jay_leno_garage/1302826.html

Jerry Seinfeld is another genuine celebrity car guy. He is reputed to own and drive well over 40 unique Porsches. He has many 911s from a variety of years, at least 10 different colored Boxsters, and a choice 1955 Porsche 550 Spyder, the same model and color that James Dean was driving when he died. Seinfeld has so many cars that he used to rent an aircraft hanger to store them at Santa Monica’s airport. When he moved back to New York, Seinfeld built his own multi-million dollar climate and security controlled garage in Manhattan to store some of his collection. Like Leno, Seinfeld is not collecting cars for show; he buys and drives, because he knows and loves them.

Seinfeld’s Manhattan Garage:
http://www.thesmokinggun.com/archive/0527041jerry1.html


Guitarist Jeff Beck leaves the stage for years at a time, to stay home and play with his custom hot rods. He has been a car guy since his youth, just about as long as he has been playing guitar. Jeff Beck is not buying cars to show off. Beck works on them, and drives them. His has the history of accidents behind him to prove it. Jeff Beck is a car man through and through.

Jeff Beck:
http://www.carcrazycentral.com/VideoResults.aspx?query=jeff%20beck

David Letterman and the late Paul Newman were cast from the same mold: celebrities that buy to drive. They love cars to the point of buying ownership in professional racing teams, all for the love of cars. Off the track, nothing is more conservative than a Volvo station wagon. The story goes that Newman talked Letterman into buying a Volvo station wagon from the Maine company, Converse Engineering. Converse converts stock Volvos into screaming street machines by adding performance engines inside Volvo’s conservative facade. Check out David Letterman’s bittersweet telling of the story, all in memory of Paul Newman.

Letterman's detailed Newman story from You Tube (Cue in to 3:42)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nCO22jxMrrQ

The Letterman/Newman story:
http://www.swedespeed.com/news/publish/Features/printer_33.html

Letterman telling the story to Jon Stewart:
http://daddytypes.com/2008/10/05/all_i_smell_is_raw_power_and_speed.php


If I was a wealthy celebrity with money, I wouldn’t buy flash. I too would buy to drive. I would have an Aston Martin V12 Vantage for around town, a Maybach 62 for the highway, a BMW Z4 for sunny summer days, and my wife’s RAV4 to be safe in the Maine snow. With an inventory like that, I would certainly enjoy the ride.

Follow these links to see what other celebrities choose, some for flash, and some for the drive:

http://www.celebritycarsblog.com/
http://www.ridelust.com/50-celebrities-their-cars/
http://www.driverside.com/auto-library/top_10_surprising_cars_that_celebrities_drive-540
http://www.myride.com/content/shared/articles/templates/index.cfm/article_page_order_int/1/article_id_int/4004

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