Quoted from ethous

But dont ever let them break because f*** they cost allot.
If you dont have a civic or corrolla get ready to pay.
Ok mine is not Japanese but Korean and that bastard hurts when it breaks.
Hyundai Santa Fee not bad on gas for a 2.7 6 bang 80 litter tank Highway maybe almost 600km thats not bad city 400 tho

Your argument is true and false. Yes indeed they cost a lot when they break but how often do they need fixing compared to american cars? Comparatively i found the cost of repairs to be almost the same after a fews years. Either you fix it many times that cost less or a few times that cost more. What has to be looked at is what breaks down and those are stats I do not have.

Things I have dealt with in some of my american cars are wiring breaking in door joints, stupid computers becoming unprogrammed and corrosion in wires that are supposed to be sealed. Things I have never even thought of with my Jap cars. Suspension, brakes and other things wear out on both of them alike but other things shouldn't even be a thought unless the car is over 10 years old and then some.

Unfortunatly due to cost I still went with an american car.

Welcome to the wonderful world of supply and demand!

I feel for those of you hit hard in the wallet from the high energy prices, but I think in the long run this is the only way that those of us in the developed world can become more efficient both in terms of technology and in behaviour.

Personally, I'm glad I went for a downtown condo instead of a suburban house. I have to fill up my gas tank every 1.5 months and my IS300 is a gas guzzler.

this one should be cheap ...  

Should I drive with my window open and save on AC, or closed and save on drag?

I tend to keep the window open if I'm driving ~40kph, and closed if I'm driving faster. Mostly for comfort, less for fuel consumption.

I watched a good episode of myth-busters and they proved (and several engineers agreed) that driving with the windows down actually burns more gas. The difference is not very significant. Best solution - drive with the windows up and sweat it out. The drag coefficient is ALWAYS the winner when it comes to this. A very small improvement in the drag coefiicient will always give better improvements in performance.

Ever wonder why motorcycles can not break 300 mph whereas race-cars and exoctic sports cars have no problem doing this.

All this being said, I go to pick up my Honda Pilot on Monday afternoon. Well at least I am trading in my Chev P/U 5.7L V8. My wife figures I will have a much more difficult time picking up pins this way.  

bought the civic LX...