Beat the fuel blues with a V8

[aussiemuscle]

i had to post this to hearten those with a v8 dodge.... Light hearted article in the Daily Telegraph 12 july. Makes good sense especially to those not interested in the new car market.

Beat the fuel blues with a V8.

Tim Blair

July 12, 2008 ::::


LET'S say you're among the one million or so Australians who'll buy a new car this year.

With the cost of living and fuel prices, economy will be a major concern.

But you also need something big enough to haul the spouse, kids and - if you live out Gosford way - unlicensed NSW Education Minister John Della Bosca, should he flag you down on the way home from another action-packed night on the town. (he lost his license - k)

Assume you've got 40 grand to play with, including trade-in dough.

Also assume your spouse at one time suffered a serious head injury, so he/she has lately been into you about the environment.

He/she rates windchimes as a more useful invention than the internal combustion engine. He/she should take a good look at him/herself.

Your entanglement with this person may lead you towards a Toyota dealership to test a petrol/electric hybrid Prius.

Now, the Prius is plenty roomy inside. Prime Minister Kevin Rudd chose a Prius as his government car, so the compact Toyota is clearly big enough to sleep in.

And very economical! According to official figures, a Prius only drinks 4.4 litres per 100km. That's less than would be consumed by a Dubbo rugby league team on an end-of-season trip to Coffs Harbour.

But before you slam down 40 large on a Prius, do your sums.

Money is tight in 2008. Can you afford to blow all your cash on a $40,000 Gaia-powered oestrogen wagon?

Is earning street cred from people who think cars should be illegal anyway really worth such a massive investment?

Shouldn't that spouse of yours be outside cleaning the yard instead of downloading the Garnaut Report?

So pause a while. Examine all your motoring options.

Compare prices for new and used vehicles. Analyse fuel prices. Scan every available chunk of econometric data you can possibly access. Once you do, you'll discover this:

The only rational choice for the budget-conscious motorist is a gigantic V8.

The Daily Telegraph recently ran a story on local car dealers who are struggling to sell big V8-engined cars.

One dealer, Allan Homsi of Everlast Autos, had a sweet 5.7-litre V8 Commodore SS on his lot for sale at just $9990.

That's about six grand below market valuation.

I called Allan this week. He'd subsequently sold the well-maintained 2000 Holden, but only after slashing another thousand off the advertised price.

Someone in Sydney is rumbling around in a rockin'-hot V8 sold new for around $45,000 and bought just eight years later with loose change.

Let's say - it's a big assumption, but stay with me - that this canny buyer was in our category of potential Prius purchasers.

By opting for the unwanted V8, he saved about $31,000 off the list price of a new hybrid.

At current pump prices, that means he's got enough left in the bank to buy 19,375 litres of petrol _ sufficient to propel that Commodore for 161,458km, given its estimated 12l/100k fuelconsumption.
Australian motor vehicles are driven an average 14,600km per year, according to the Australian Bureau of Statistics.

The Commodore buyer has saved enough on purchase price alone compared to the Prius to cover - get this - 11 years of driving.

Moreover, he's covered those 11 years while owning something that doesn't scream "gender reassignment surgery'' every time he rolls down the street.

Now let's look at this fellow's neighbour, who we'll assume votes Green and doesn't own a calculator.

He bought a Prius. Covering the same distance annually, he'll have to drive that thing for about 25 miserable hybrid years before he sees an economic advantage over the V8 owner.

It'll be 2032 - deep into Prime Minister Rudd's ninth term - by the time Mr Prius is in front.

If the PM truly cared about the national economy, he'd have all his ministers stomping about in big-arse second-hand Holdens.

Obviously, you don't have to use all your V8 savings on petrol.

You could spend some of it on a massive plasma screen TV to keep that yappy spouse quiet while you ponder the other benefits of cheap V8 ownership:

You save thousands while laughing in the face of bossy old hag Mother Earth. Win/win!

Instead of killing Michael Stipe - almost run over by a silent hybrid while crossing a Los Angeles street in 2004 - your rumbling V8 will alert the enigmatic REM lead singer to the presence of traffic, thus allowing the planet to enjoy his band's latest album Accelerate.

Which I'm told is excellent.

Hybrids are notoriously complicated and difficult to repair. By contrast, all you ever need to fix a V8 is a hammer, some wire and maybe a lump of wood.

Some V8s appreciate. Last year a 1971 Ford Falcon GTHO Phase III sold for $750,000. Economy cars rarely increase in value.

An eight-year-old V8 is much cheaper to insure than an expensive Tsutsumi voltbox. More savings.
When time comes to send your simple V8 to the wrecker, you won't need a team of trained experts wearing HAZMAT outfits to deal with various chemicals, toxins, exotic metals and other mutant-creating battery poisons.

Frenchman Leon Levavasseur took out a patent on the V8 engine in 1902. He lived for 59 years _ not bad for his era.

This week it was reported that a Japanese engineer designing a hybrid Toyota Camry died at just 45 from stress.

Don't join him.

Buy a V8.

[aussiemuscle]

posted in reply to above article
Ha ha ha! He failed to mention though that the lifespan of the battery is about 5 years, and costs several thousand dollars to replace (at more cost of the environment, as this new battery has to be manufactured). Technically speaking, a prius will NEVER be in front economically...

[craigandlynda]

i am excited to find i am not the only one who can logically evaluate the situation. kudos!

[Brock Samson]

  Has Bull seen this?.. 

[G-man]

That there works if you couldnt buy little Hondas for 5-10 000.

And for us Charger owners doesnt work cause a Charger to buy costs 20-30 000 and then to fix it up to be reliable costs another 20 000 or so, and then it STILL eats up petrol ontop.

That only works if you already have a car, and then instead of spending 20 000-40 000 you stick it in petrol. However, spend 5000 for a honda and still your better off.

So Yeah... Sorry to spoil it. 

[dodgecharger-fan]

That there works if you couldnt buy little Hondas for 5-10 000.

And for us Charger owners doesnt work cause a Charger to buy costs 20-30 000 and then to fix it up to be reliable costs another 20 000 or so, and then it STILL eats up petrol ontop.

That only works if you already have a car, and then instead of spending 20 000-40 000 you stick it in petrol. However, spend 5000 for a honda and still your better off.

So Yeah... Sorry to spoil it. 

Well, that's not really a spoiler, is it?
What you propose is pretty much the same plan - but you end up in a Honda instead of "rumbling V8."
I think the big difference between your Honda and say, the Holden SS is the fuel economy. The purchase price could be the same depending on what you buy. That Holden in the srticle went for $8999 - well within your $5K to $10K range.

So, sure you'll probably drive it longer before running out of petrol money, but it's still the same underlying concept as laid out in the article"
"Instead of buying a Prius at $40K, buy a regular car, save a bunch of money to pay for gas and maybe even put some of that saving back in to the economy by buying stuff."

That works with a V8 Holden and a 4 cylinder Honda. With the price of Hummers these days, it works for them as well - but just leaves a little less money for gas.

As for having a car already, I think the "including trade in" was just to cover every thing off for the sake of discussion rather than starting everyone down the path of "Well, I have $40K plus this car for trade in." Everyone would end up with a different end value and the discussion goes out the window because we're no longer focused on the underlying plan in the article.

If you don't have a car already, then for the sake of the math in the article, assume you have $40K in cash.
If your trade-in value is $10K, then you have $30K cash.
If your trade-in value is $6K, then you have $34K in cash.
See? Everyone ends up with $40K and everyone can follow along with the math in the article.


As for classic cars like our Chargers. I don't think that was the point of the article at all. They are talking about buying a daily driver. Otherwise, you'd be deciding between a Prius or a classic Dodge Charger. If you have to think about that for a fraction of a nanosecond, hand in your man card. 
They mention the 71Ford Falcon to make the point that the 2000 Holden SS MAY go up in value at some point in the future whereas, typically speaking, econo-boxes rarely appreciate in value.

[Charger74]

Not to mention the fact that the Holden is also a little more roomier for us larger and taller folks that most Hondas and toyotas.  Unless you get a minivan or accord, those cars are not very comfortable for us especially for longer runs.  My wife used to have a Civic, me being 6'2", it wasn't very comfortable since my head pretty much touch the roof unless I had the seat heavily reclined...

[craigandlynda]

i hit a deer in my dodge ram at 70 mph. dented the bumper a little.
we hit a deer in a minivan at 15 mph. $2700 damage. the deer laughed as it ran away.

what's your life worth?

[68charger383]

I had a similar argument with a friend in work who bought a prius for $28,000 and I bought a Corolla for $11,500. He gets around 46 MPG and I get 35MPG. After buying the $16,500 in gas based on the difference in price, he would have to drive about 300,000 before he would be at the break-even point with me. 

[hutch]

I love this electric car debate.  Where do people think the power comes from to charge up an electric car?  They are just getting involved in a shell game so they can say they "think" they are saving the planet.  Just wait, in 10 years we are going to see a big impact to our drinking water because of all the battery waste along with all the mercury in our land fills because of this new light bulb some states are mandating over your standard light bulb.

[Charger74]

I love this electric car debate.  Where do people think the power comes from to charge up an electric car?  They are just getting involved in a shell game so they can say they "think" they are saving the planet.  Just wait, in 10 years we are going to see a big impact to our drinking water because of all the battery waste along with all the mercury in our land fills because of this new light bulb some states are mandating over your standard light bulb.

That's a good one Hutch.  I have always thought the same way.  Put some people are just to ignorant to understand the difference.

[hutch]

I love this electric car debate.  Where do people think the power comes from to charge up an electric car?  They are just getting involved in a shell game so they can say they "think" they are saving the planet.  Just wait, in 10 years we are going to see a big impact to our drinking water because of all the battery waste along with all the mercury in our land fills because of this new light bulb some states are mandating over your standard light bulb.

That's a good one Hutch.  I have always thought the same way.  Put some people are just to ignorant to understand the difference.

You can always bet, that if the Government gets involved in anything, they are going to make things worse.  If you love what they did for our education system, just wait till they get ahold of energy and health care.  It dont matter who is in charge, dem or rep, its always the same old stupid government telling people what they think is right.

[MichaelRW]

And how about in a few years when a gazillion battery powered cars all go to plug in for their overnight charge and the electric grid goes into meltdown? California is already at it's limit many times during the summer with brownouts and blackouts. I haven't heard of any planning regarding this. Not surprised though.

[Mike DC]

     
Worldwide demand for bullets is higher than supply can continue to support at these prices.  But our economy runs on cheap bullets.


So they'll raise the price of guns, clips, sights, targets, earplugs, and gun licenses 2-3x over.  And we'll still think we're not paying anything more than before, just because the price of bullets stayed low. 

[charger_mike75]

i had to post this to hearten those with a v8 dodge.... Light hearted article in the Daily Telegraph 12 july. Makes good sense especially to those not interested in the new car market.

Beat the fuel blues with a V8.

Tim Blair

July 12, 2008 ::::


LET'S say you're among the one million or so Australians who'll buy a new car this year.

With the cost of living and fuel prices, economy will be a major concern.

But you also need something big enough to haul the spouse, kids and - if you live out Gosford way - unlicensed NSW Education Minister John Della Bosca, should he flag you down on the way home from another action-packed night on the town. (he lost his license - k)

Assume you've got 40 grand to play with, including trade-in dough.

Also assume your spouse at one time suffered a serious head injury, so he/she has lately been into you about the environment.

He/she rates windchimes as a more useful invention than the internal combustion engine. He/she should take a good look at him/herself.

Your entanglement with this person may lead you towards a Toyota dealership to test a petrol/electric hybrid Prius.

Now, the Prius is plenty roomy inside. Prime Minister Kevin Rudd chose a Prius as his government car, so the compact Toyota is clearly big enough to sleep in.

And very economical! According to official figures, a Prius only drinks 4.4 litres per 100km. That's less than would be consumed by a Dubbo rugby league team on an end-of-season trip to Coffs Harbour.

But before you slam down 40 large on a Prius, do your sums.

Money is tight in 2008. Can you afford to blow all your cash on a $40,000 Gaia-powered oestrogen wagon?

Is earning street cred from people who think cars should be illegal anyway really worth such a massive investment?

Shouldn't that spouse of yours be outside cleaning the yard instead of downloading the Garnaut Report?

So pause a while. Examine all your motoring options.

Compare prices for new and used vehicles. Analyse fuel prices. Scan every available chunk of econometric data you can possibly access. Once you do, you'll discover this:

The only rational choice for the budget-conscious motorist is a gigantic V8.

The Daily Telegraph recently ran a story on local car dealers who are struggling to sell big V8-engined cars.

One dealer, Allan Homsi of Everlast Autos, had a sweet 5.7-litre V8 Commodore SS on his lot for sale at just $9990.

That's about six grand below market valuation.

I called Allan this week. He'd subsequently sold the well-maintained 2000 Holden, but only after slashing another thousand off the advertised price.

Someone in Sydney is rumbling around in a rockin'-hot V8 sold new for around $45,000 and bought just eight years later with loose change.

Let's say - it's a big assumption, but stay with me - that this canny buyer was in our category of potential Prius purchasers.

By opting for the unwanted V8, he saved about $31,000 off the list price of a new hybrid.

At current pump prices, that means he's got enough left in the bank to buy 19,375 litres of petrol _ sufficient to propel that Commodore for 161,458km, given its estimated 12l/100k fuelconsumption.
Australian motor vehicles are driven an average 14,600km per year, according to the Australian Bureau of Statistics.

The Commodore buyer has saved enough on purchase price alone compared to the Prius to cover - get this - 11 years of driving.

Moreover, he's covered those 11 years while owning something that doesn't scream "gender reassignment surgery'' every time he rolls down the street.

Now let's look at this fellow's neighbour, who we'll assume votes Green and doesn't own a calculator.

He bought a Prius. Covering the same distance annually, he'll have to drive that thing for about 25 miserable hybrid years before he sees an economic advantage over the V8 owner.

It'll be 2032 - deep into Prime Minister Rudd's ninth term - by the time Mr Prius is in front.

If the PM truly cared about the national economy, he'd have all his ministers stomping about in big-arse second-hand Holdens.

Obviously, you don't have to use all your V8 savings on petrol.

You could spend some of it on a massive plasma screen TV to keep that yappy spouse quiet while you ponder the other benefits of cheap V8 ownership:

You save thousands while laughing in the face of bossy old hag Mother Earth. Win/win!

Instead of killing Michael Stipe - almost run over by a silent hybrid while crossing a Los Angeles street in 2004 - your rumbling V8 will alert the enigmatic REM lead singer to the presence of traffic, thus allowing the planet to enjoy his band's latest album Accelerate.

Which I'm told is excellent.

Hybrids are notoriously complicated and difficult to repair. By contrast, all you ever need to fix a V8 is a hammer, some wire and maybe a lump of wood.

Some V8s appreciate. Last year a 1971 Ford Falcon GTHO Phase III sold for $750,000. Economy cars rarely increase in value.

An eight-year-old V8 is much cheaper to insure than an expensive Tsutsumi voltbox. More savings.
When time comes to send your simple V8 to the wrecker, you won't need a team of trained experts wearing HAZMAT outfits to deal with various chemicals, toxins, exotic metals and other mutant-creating battery poisons.

Frenchman Leon Levavasseur took out a patent on the V8 engine in 1902. He lived for 59 years _ not bad for his era.

This week it was reported that a Japanese engineer designing a hybrid Toyota Camry died at just 45 from stress.

Don't join him.

Buy a V8.

I figured this stuff out years ago.  I only spend  a couple hundred bucks a month in gas for my old 73 crew cab, and I have no monthly payment    cheaper insurance as well