According to a report done by Detroit Free Press, The average purchase prices of new cars has risen from $28,160 in 2009 to $29,217 in 2010, an increase of about 3.75%.  This is due to several factors, including new technology, different buyers and less incentives.

These reasons all make sense, since generally, only the most qualified buyers are buying cars right now, as they are the most economically stable.  In addition, BlueTooth, GPS navigation and iPod integration are some of today’s most popular options, which many automakers have been striving to add or improve in their cars.  Click here for a list of many of today’s options and how they work.

2010 Ford Fusion Hybrid

Meanwhile, since sales volume is down, automakers have to concentrate on selling better-equipped models to make up the difference, which has also led to higher quality cars.  Options, and option packages, are the biggest profit makers when selling a car.  Whereas the profit margin on a base model family sedan can be under $2,500, the profit margin on an option package including a moonroof, upgraded stereo and GPS navigation for about $3,000 adds another $1,500 or so to the bottom line.

The real winners in this new report are the Detroit 3 – Chrysler, Ford and GM.  While their competitors are all below the industry average, Ford and GM are well above it.  Chrysler is only $7 per car short of the average, but still $2,256 higher than rival Toyota.  This can be attributed to better quality and glowing reviews to many new Ford and GM models, while Toyota’s recalls have forced them to increase incentives to buyers to keep from losing them.

2011 Hyundai Sonata

Catching up is what Hyundai has been doing for years, and a 6.4% increase in their purchase prices from 2009 to 2010 means they get the “most improved” award.  With the new 2011 Sonata sedan and 2011 Tucson SUV, Hyundai is poaching competitor’s buyers left and right.

With sales looking to be higher in 2010 than in 2009 by a significant margin, and new models being delivered by all of the companies included in the report, look for these purchase prices to continue rising, especially for Ford, GM and Hyundai.

by John Suit

Source: Detroit Free Press; Image Source: Edmunds.com

Related posts:

1. Surprise! Hybrid Lincoln MKZ Price matches Gas version
2. Chevrolet Volt Pricing, Fuel Requirement
3. 2011 Ford Explorer configuration site gives away pricing

Well, the numbers are in, and they don’t look good.  May kicks off the summer sales events for automobile manufacturers, and June is truly the kick-off for the industry.  Convertible and sports car sales usually get into full swing this time of year, but not this year.  While almost all of the manufacturers’ sales were down from May, BMW, Jaguar/Land Rover (owned by Indian company Tata), and Hyundai had their sales increase.  Of those three, Hyundai was up about 3,000 cars, Jaguar/Land Rover was up 800, and BMW was up about 1,300.

The significance of this shows up when you look at May’s sales figures and realize that this is more than a 33% increase for Jaguar/Land Rover month-to-month, and I believe it was fueled by the recent release of the all new Jaguar XJ sedan.  Hyundai, of course, is just continuing its meteoric rise, owing to the new 2011 Sonata sedan and Tucson SUV.

Meanwhile, the current Big Three, namely GM, Ford and Toyota, in that order, each had over 20,000 less sales in June than they had in March.  The troubling part is that it wasn’t their luxury brands which lost out, but the bread-and-butter brands of Chevrolet, Ford and Toyota, respectively.

Sales in June were down a little over 119,000, and only 2,000 higher than sales in April.  This is disconcerting, especially as I hear that our economy is supposed to be flat or improving.  It makes sense when the number of unemployment applications went up 13,000 last month.  People are scared to spend new-car kind of money right now, which does not bode well for the automotive industry this year.  Hopefully things will start to improve in July and August, because if they don’t, there are gonna be a TON of 2010 models sitting on dealer lots when the 2011s start arriving in force this fall.

Year-to-Date, GM continues to lead, but only by 100,000 vehicles over 2nd-place Ford.  Honda and Chrysler are battling it out for 3rd place, with Honda in the lead by almost 70,000 cars.  Nissan and Hyundai are within spitting distance of each other, and they have a huge gap over Volkswagen and everyone else.

by John Suit

Related posts:

1. Sales Figures: January, 2010
2. Sales Figures: May, 2010
3. Sales Figures: April, 2010

I’ve had my 2010 Nissan Maxima SV for a little over 3 months now, so it’s time for the first update!  With over 4,000 miles on the odometer, I’ve spent a lot of quality seat time in the car, and have plenty of observations.  Some of these parallel the review, which was posted last week, and some are new.  Read on for what’s been going on for the last 3 months.

Stats:

Time Period: 3/15/2010 – 6/15/2010
Miles Driven: 4,225 / 4,225 (this update / total)
Average MPG: 21.6 mpg (reported by on-board computer)

Costs:

Service Costs: $0.00
Maintenance Costs: $0.00
Total Cost (non-fuel): $0.00

Services Performed:

3/20/2010 – Non-operating sunroof.  Dealership performed the sunroof reset procedure and oiled the sunroof tracks; malfunction wasn’t reproduced.

3/24 – 3/26/2010 – Car was brought in again for sunroof on the 24th, returned on the 26th after replacement of the sunroof motor.

Summary:

After the sunroof debacle, no more issues have been found with the Maxima, although some Internet users are reporting problems with noise from the sunroof, CVT noise, iPod connectivity issues, and front seats that “rock” during acceleration or deceleration.  Overall, the Maxima has proved to be fun to drive and a willing participant in back-road corner-carving.  So far, so good!

Dated Notes:

• 3/20/2010 – Moonroof’s automatic functionality has disappeared.  Using the online Factory Service Manual to do a reset on the moonroof worked.  Complaint was lodged with the dealership the car was bought at.
• 3/24/2010 – The sunroof has lost its automatic functionality again, as well as its tilt feature.  The car was dropped off this afternoon at the dealership, and I was provided with a rental car.
• 3/26/2010 – Got the Maxima back from the dealership.  Interior is clean and free of smudges/stains/rips, which bodes well for this particular dealership.  Moonroof is working as expected.  Service advisor reports that the moonroof motor was replaced, due to an intermittent short.
• 4/6/2010 – Although the Maxima is supposed to be “sporty,” the vibration and noise from the exhaust is a bit much.  I took the afternoon to apply sound-deadening material to the trunk, in order to quiet down some of said noise.  Results were good.
• 4/10/2010 – Nav system has trouble with long trips, it seems. (275 miles)  Refused to figure out a route.  Finally worked about 65 miles into the trip, but crashed the whole audio system several times during the road trip.  Very disappointing.

General Observations:

• Heated steering wheel is great on cold mornings, keeping the driver’s hands from freezing after the car sits outside all night.
• Heated seats work quite well, and the cooled driver’s seat is a lifesaver on hot days, which the Washington, D.C. metro area has had a lot of this spring.
• The Navigation system needs some new software, to keep it from crashing the entire audio system.  This is inexcusable on a $40,000 car, especially since this isn’t Nissan’s first nav system.
• The dual-panel moonroof is nice, with a very large opening.  Since the front glass pops up and slides back instead of sliding horizontally to open, it presents quite a bit of noise at highway speeds, but is fairly quiet when driving on local roads.  Both the front and rear power sunshades open at the same time, so you’ll want to leave them closed if your rear passengers don’t want all the light.
• Car handles fairly well at its limits, with plenty of warning before the front or rear loses traction.
• Acceleration is wonderful, allowing the car to quickly maneuver around traffic.  Better-than-average steering feel helps as well.
• CVT takes some time to get used to, but provides nice, smooth acceleration.  For a more traditional feel, push the gear shift lever to the left to enter “Drive Sport” mode, where “Ds” shows up on the instrument cluster.
• On trips of more than 4 hours, the driver’s seat side bolsters can dig into one’s shoulder blades, leading to some discomfort, although thigh support is especially nice in these situations.
• Trunk is big enough to swallow a load of groceries from Costco – impressive!
• Automatically lowering mirrors (in reverse) are nicer than previously thought, easing parallel parking situations.
• Crisp, clear backup camera is a boon in tight situations.
• Infotainment buttons are set up quite well, allowing oft-used features to be accessed via buttons instead of always having to look at and use the touch screen.
• BlueTooth is nice, but some extraneous noise exists with certain phones (iPhone 3GS paired with the Maxima).
• Steering wheel controls are well-designed and laid out, easing use at night.
• Paddle shifters are a fun diversion, when traffic allows.  Proper setup (left = downshift, right = upshift) works well.  With the paddle shifters, the gear shift lever’s manual-mode operation is redundant.
• “Distance To Empty” function is interesting, as it doesn’t just count down, but when on the highway, will rise as well.  Thoughtful.
• Rear audio controls are superfluous, but fun for passengers.
• DVD player is clunky in its use, but works.  Requires both being in Park and the Parking Brake be engaged.
• iPod integration is wonderful, with no problems reported.
• Tires (Goodyear Eagle RS-A) are very loud and transfer a lot of road noise into the cabin.  Not a great amount of grip either.  Nissan should have equipped the Maxima was proper sporting tires, instead of the more pedestrian RS-As.  Apparently, some Altimas are equipped with Michelin Primacy MXV4 tires, which would’ve made a much better choice.

by John Suit

Related posts:

1. New Road Reality Feature: Owner’s Log
2. How-To: Quiet your trunk (featuring the 2010 Nissan Maxima)
3. Review: 2010 Nissan Maxima SV w/Premium and Tech Packages

Well, despite a lot of automakers learning from Toyota’s previous recall mistakes, it seems the automaker’s luxury segment didn’t learn a lesson from Ford’s mistake in the 1970′s, the Pinto fires.  According to Jalopnik, Lexus is recalling their 2010 HS250h luxury hybrid sedan, due to excessive fuel leakage resulting from a rear-end collision.

The NHTSA runs a test where a deformable moving barrier strikes the rear end of a car at about 50mph, and during the test on the Lexus HS250h, it was found that more fuel leaked than regulations allow.

Lexus NCIR Filing

While the report hasn’t yet hit the NHTSA’s Recalls & Defects site, it appears as though Lexus is going to try and get in front of this recall, although as of this writing, the manufacturer hasn’t devised a solution for the roughly 13,000 affected vehicles.

Stay tuned to Road Reality for updates as they become available.

by John Suit

Source: Jalopnik

Related posts:

1. PedalGate Update: Recall on 2010 Prius / Lexus HS
2. Official: Lexus Engine Recall affects 138,000 vehicles
3. Surprise! Hybrid Lincoln MKZ Price matches Gas version

Over the past few generations of Nissan’s sedans, the Altima and Maxima, a lot of people have started to wonder why both continue to be built.  Whereas the Maxima used to be a bigger sedan than the Altima, it had actually become smaller.  Then a redesign of the Maxima in 2004 made it bigger again, but it lost some of the sporty demeanor it has been known for.  In 2009, Nissan redesigned the Maxima again, this time trying to get back to its 4-Door Sports Car (4DSC) roots.  Smaller than its predecessor, but wearing much more sculpted sheetmetal, how does the new Maxima drive?  Read on for my impression.

For many years, the Nissan Maxima has been marketed as the 4-Door Sports Car (4DSC).  It’s been offered with a manual transmission, plenty of power and great handling.  It came with everything you’d expect from a sports car, but with two extra doors and a proper trunk.  In 2004, Maxima fans balked at how big their sporting sedan had gotten, even though it was built with Nissan’s corporate V6, the “VQ” and a manual transmission.  They got even more upset in 2007, when the manual transmission was ditched in favor a Continuously Variable Transmission, or CVT.

That last statement may have you scratching your head and asking what a CVT is, so I’ll give a quick explanation.  A Continuously Variable Transmission replaces the standard gears in an automatic or manual transmission with a pair of pulleys and a belt that rides between them.  Split vertically, these pulleys feature a deep “V” shape to them, which the belt rides in.  By changing the depth of the “V”, the CVT gets its gear ratios. (for a great article on CVTs, head over to HowStuffWorks.com).  What this leads to is  faster and very smooth acceleration, gentler overall operation and increased fuel efficiency.

Nissan, finally returning to the 4DSC roots of the Maxima, redesigned the car for 2009.  With the new model comes a slight increase in weight and slightly smaller exterior dimensions.  It also comes with the addition of more power, better handling and a driver-oriented “cockpit”-style interior.  The weight increase can be attributed to the new European pedestrian safety laws, which have affected nearly every automaker, as they change the front ends of their vehicles to be safer in pedestrian collisions.  The extra pounds are also explained by the added standard and optional features found in the Maxima.  While it’s a rare sight to see a new car be smaller than its predecessor, the Maxima succeeds in that regard, compared to the 2004-2008 model it replaces.

When viewing the Maxima, it’s best to take in all the surfaces.  The front end evokes mental images of Aston Martin’s current offerings, while the rear fenders seem to be taken from Ferrari.  The entire body has an hourglass figure to it, letting the front and rear fenders flare out from a somewhat thinner midsection – the passenger cabin.  Besides the two side rails, which run from the base of the windshield to the trunk, there is no metal on the Maxima’s roof.  It’s merely five pieces of glass, all of which come together to make up the dual panel moonroof/sunroof that has become popular for higher-end vehicles, including crossovers and some SUVs.  High-intensity (HID) headlights and LED taillights round out the Maxima’s exterior, the former becoming main stream, the latter just starting to appear as factory equipment on some vehicles.  The LED, or Light-Emitting Diode, has been around for many years, but has recently seen use in new cars and trucks, as a longer-lasting taillamp, and in some cases, headlights as well.  LEDs typically outlast traditional bulbs by a factor of 10, which means that they don’t need replacing nearly as often.

Listed as an entry-level luxury sedan, the Maxima has features you’d expect of it, such as keyless entry and push-button start, and with that comes a button on the driver and passenger door handles to unlock them.  Sliding into the driver’s seat, you’ll notice a fair amount of depth to the seat – the side bolsters work hard to keep you firmly planted in the bucket seat.  Looking around, all the seats are buckets, even though the rear seat is supposed to seat 3.  I’d say a small child could sit there, but no adult will be happy riding in the middle seat for very long.  Rear passengers have a decent, if not commodious amount of headroom, which is somewhat limited because of the coupe-like design of the roof.  Leg and hip room are about average for a mid-sized car, but larger passengers definitely won’t be as comfortable, given the sporty seats.  On long drives, a driver who is wide in the shoulders will notice that the side bolster on the right wants to cut into his or her shoulder, and because of their firmness, the seats can become tiresome, leading to fidgety driver and passenger.  The front seats are both power operated, with plenty of adjustability, including a manual thigh extension for the driver.

Back up front, the center stack looks like it was ripped directly from the Infiniti G37, and it was.  The recessed and hooded navigation screen sits above the controls for the audio and navigation, and further down, the climate controls.  There’s a nice flow to this design, one that Honda could learn a lot from.  My only gripe with this area of the dash is that the volume knob and driver’s temperature control knob are lined up vertically and are the same size, shape and feel.  They are a few inches apart, and after a few drives, I no longer reach for the wrong one.  The steering wheel is comfortable, wrapped in leather, and the up and down-shift paddles mounted on the steering column are easy to use as well.  Given this car’s sporty premise, it’s no surprise to see the paddles, but the gear shift lever also features a manual mode.  Regardless of how you operate it, the CVT only approximates the 6 gears it lets you control.  Drivers have actually found that driving in standard “D” mode is the fastest, but using the gear shift lever or paddles to control the transmission has a better seat-of-the-pants feel.

Overall, the fit and finish and material quality in the cabin of the Maxima is very good.  Hard plastics are used sparingly, and the soft touch materials all have a pleasant texture to them.  The designers also used wood veneers in certain areas, complementing the black leather very well, although it shows all dust and dirt, and seems to be a magnet for it!  The steering wheel-mounted controls, which include the voice-activated navigation and audio, are easy to use and are different in shape and texture, making it easy to use them at night and without looking.  The arm rest on the center console is a bit too firm, leading to fatigue during a long drive.  If Nissan had added another quarter-inch or so of padding underneath its leather, the arm rest would be quite comfortable.

It’s 2010, and while some manufacturers (I’m looking at you, Mazda) refuse to wake up and add decent infotainment packages to their offerings, Nissan has embraced the MP3 player, giving owners the flexibility to plug darn near any USB drive or music device into their Maxima.  They went so far as to include the USB port, an auxiliary input (1/4″) jack, and the red/yellow/white ports for RCA connectors.  When in Park with the parking brake engaged, you can watch DVDs on the 7″ touchscreen used for the navigation, or video off of the RCA connectors, which is a nice touch I haven’t seen in too many places.  Nissan’s infotainment system is a looker, too.  It makes full use of its color range, showing some nice graphics on the screen, depending on which mode it’s in (Satellite Radio, iPod, AM/FM, CD, etc.).

Speaking of the navigation system, it works decently, but is not nearly as good as Ford’s SYNC.  The map display, however, is better.  It uses a less-muted color scheme than the SYNC system, and has some 3D representations of landmarks.  Regardless of its look, most drivers care about its ability to help you navigate unfamiliar areas, and in this regard, it falters.  The system is slow to recalculate if you miss a turn, and in some cases has required me to re-input my destination in order to get it to recalculate.  The menu-driven interface is fairly intuitive, but for certain functions, a thorough scanning of all the menus is required.  If you’ve already got a handheld GPS navigation system and don’t care too much about the other features in the Tech package (namely, Bluetooth audio, DVD playback and XM NavTraffic features), go ahead and get the Monitor package, which includes the rear-view camera, 7″ touch screen, and USB port.

The rear view camera on the Maxima is a standout feature for technology lovers.  It is crisp, clear, and provides both a green/yellow/red delineator for distance, but also takes steering input and shows where the car is heading.  This is greatly helpful for parallel parking so you don’t run into the curb with the 18″ painted wheels, leading to an expensive repair.  The auto-tilt side mirrors help in this regard also, tilting down when the car is put into reverse for a better view at whatever is next to and below you.

All this talk, and we haven’t even driven the Maxima yet?  True, but the car is packed with goodies, and the window sticker almost requires supplements!  Putting your foot on the brake pedal and pushing the Engine Start button brings the dashboard to life, turns on the infotainment system, and after a few seconds, fires up the 3.5-liter 6-cylinder powerplant.  Good for 290 horsepower, the Maxima has a leg up on some of its competition, and coupled to the CVT, gets better fuel mileage too.  The engine comes to life with a throaty snarl, another clue to its sporting side, and settles down quickly into a quiet idle.  Getting out onto the road, one of the first things you notice is a lack of gear changing, because of the CVT.  When you press on the gas pedal, the car simply starts accelerating, with no fuss.  While cruising, a stab of the accelerator leads to a bark from the exhaust, followed by almost instantaneous acceleration.  Since the transmission doesn’t need to shift, the car’s drivetrain is quite responsive.  When using Sport or Manual modes on the transmission, its responses seem even faster.

The transmission makes for a more engaging drive, but how does it like going around corners?  It’s supposed to be a sports car, remember?  Well, it won’t disappoint in that regards, unless you’re used to driving a rear-wheel drive sports car.  Given that the front wheels are driven in the Maxima, it’s not going to handle as well as a BMW at the limit, but it will hang with most of its competitors.  The Maxima’s handling can be described as competent, even above average.  Driving through corners at high rates of speed, the suspension is forgiving, letting drivers who are getting beyond their skill level know that what they’re doing won’t end well, and the tires and traction control system help in this regard.  If you try to over-drive the car, it will step in and help you out, and the tires will give an audible clue as to what’s going on at road level.  Steering is fairly communicative, working with the suspension to let you know about 90% of the bumps in the road surface, but without being too harsh over expansion joints and bigger disruptions.  Should all this fun need to come to a quick halt, the Maxima’s got you covered, with very responsive brakes, another nod to its sporty intentions.

Since it’s a sedan, you’d expect a decent-sized trunk as well, and you definitely won’t be disappointed.  The large trunk opening makes all that space easy to access, even though you won’t be folding the rear seats down in any “SV” model Maxima, since it eschews the 60/40 split fold-down rear seats for a small pass-through and fixed rear seats.  Still, enough room for your groceries, golf bags, or whatever luggage you might need for a week-long vacation.

Conclusion:

So what did I think of the Maxima?  I don’t think it qualifies as a sports car, with both front wheel drive and the CVT.  I think the 4DSC moniker that Nissan has given it is misleading, and the car should be re-designated 4-Door Sporting Car.  Close, I know, but here’s why.  The Maxima has the power, seats, controls, steering, suspension and brakes of a sports car, but its transmission, tires and being front-wheel drive scream “family sedan.”  I know that some of you will disagree with me, and that’s ok.  If Nissan were to at least go back to a rear-wheel drive platform, they might have an easier time getting people to believe the Maxima is a sports car, but then it would compete even more directly with their own Infiniti G37 sedans, and that makes no sense.  If and until that day happens, the Maxima will go on, selling enough to keep itself viable, but serving a niche market who like it for what it is: a sporting car with room for 4 or 5 people and enough bells and whistles to keep you busy for a while.  It also makes a cheaper alternative for those looking at the Infiniti G37 sedan.

Competitors: Acura TL, Acura TSX, BMW 3-Series, Buick LaCrosse, Chevrolet Malibu, Ford Fusion, Honda Accord, Hyundai Azera, Hyundai Sonata, Infiniti G37 Sedan, Mazda Mazda6, Saab 9-3, Subaru Legacy, Volkswagen Passat, Volvo S60

As-Tested:
Year: 2010
Make: Nissan
Model: Maxima SV w/Premium Package

EPA Fuel Mileage: 18/26 City/Highway

Base Price: $36,640

Options:

$1,840: Premium + Tech Package (Hard Drive, Nav, 7″ Touch Screen, XM NavTraffic, XM NavWeather, Zagat Survey, BlueTooth, DVD Playback)
$180: Carpeted Floor Mats (2 Front, 2 Rear, 1 Trunk)

Total: $38,670

Destination: $750

As-Tested Price: $39,420

Gallery:

by John Suit

Related posts:

1. Owner’s Log: 2010 Nissan Maxima, Update 1
2. Review: 2010 Chrysler 300 Touring
3. How-To: Quiet your trunk (featuring the 2010 Nissan Maxima)

The review for the 2010 Nissan Maxima that I bought in March is still forthcoming … I promise!  It’s been one hurdle after another to get some good pictures of it.  The wording is all ready to go, but alas, it’s been mostly crappy weather here in the DC Metro area, and when the weather IS nice, I’ve been too busy or the camera’s batteries weren’t charged.  But enough excuses, I’m at least going to start the “Owner’s Log” section of the web site!

Much in the way that the major magazines have their long-term test fleets of cars, I will be featuring all the services, gas mileage averages, notes from both myself and passengers, and anything else I can think up.

The purpose of this section of the site is to track the reliability and Total Cost of Ownership for whichever car(s) I happen to own, or yours if you’d like to join.  I encourage any of you out there who keep track of gas mileage, repair costs or other data relevant to car ownership, to email me and we will set up your own vehicle as part of the Owner’s Log.  This may include interviews (via phone or email), pictures of your car, repair/maintenance bills.  With privacy in mind, any license plates in pictures will be redacted, and no actual receipts will be posted on the site – only the bottom line figures.  Also, names can be omitted as well, if you’d like.

Come back soon for the first Owner’s Log entry, on my 2010 Nissan Maxima, after 3 months of ownership.

The format for the Owner’s Log updates will be as follows:

Stats:

Time Period: Start Date – End Date
Miles Driven: Miles Driven during Time Period / Total Miles on Car (this update / total)
Average MPG: Average MPG over the lifetime of the car

Costs:

Service Costs: Service Costs
Maintenance Costs: Normal Maintenance Cost

Total Cost (non-fuel): Total Non-Fuel Costs

Services Performed:

A list of all Services performed during the Time Period

Summary:

Summary of overall experience during the time period

Dated Notes:

A list of notes which were logged on a certain date

General Observations:

List of general observations, by driver and/or passengers

by John Suit

Related posts:

1. Owner’s Log: 2010 Nissan Maxima, Update 1
2. Welcome to the new Road Reality site!
3. How Road Reality Reviews are Conducted