Car Talk
08-30-2006, 10:30 AM
#3
Senior Member
Join Date: 04-19-2006
Location: Arvada CO
Posts: 5,065
With Buick skewered, Mom should look at the Chevy HHR
This article was in our local paper as well.
With Buick skewered, Mom should look at the Chevy HHR
By Tom & Ray Magliozzi
Dear Tom and Ray: My mother was in a single-car accident in a Buick Century that happened because she passed out. She hit the beginning of a guardrail. The rail hit the engine, proceeded through the glove compartment, passenger seat, back seat and out the trunk. She was blocked from exiting the driver-side door because of a large highway sign and was taken out of the car through the roof. She sustained only knee abrasions from hitting the dashboard. She did not realize how fortunate she was until she saw pictures of the wreck. Now she needs a car. She has always loved the PT Cruiser. I am sure no car could have protected her from this kind of accident, but just how safe is the Cruiser? I would love to see her get her PT Cruiser, but I don't want to encourage her if it has a bad record. Thanks.
- Sheryl
Tom: Well, we looked up the government crash-test rating for the "Guardrail Piercing Through the Entire Car" test, and for some reason, there are no results listed.
Ray: You're right that no car is going to save you if a guardrail bisects it at 60 mph. And we certainly hope that your mom is looking into what caused her to pass out - that's more important than which car she gets.
Tom: But when considering her next car, you want to look at how a car performs in more common types of accidents - front-end, offset and side collisions.
Ray: The Chrysler PT Cruiser's ratings in those categories are good, but not great. Government crash tests give the PT Cruiser with side air bags four out of five stars.
Tom: That might sound good, but there are a lot of cars that get five stars.
And we recommend that people choose five-star performers whenever possible.
Ray: If you want a vehicle that's similar to the PT Cruiser but gets five-star ratings, have your mom take a look at the Chevy HHR. It's in the same general class as the PT Cruiser - that is, an economy car with cool, retro styling and a very flexible interior.
Tom: But your mom might love it. There's a lot to like. It's comfortable (it has a high roof and nice, upright seating position), economical (with a choice of four-cylinder engines and mileage in the mid-20s), reasonably safe (once you pay for the optional anti-lock brakes and side-curtain airbags) and stylish. We'd feel even better if we saw electronic stability control in this car, but I guess you can't have everything.
Ray: And interestingly, it's not that expensive. The HHR starts at around $16,000 and goes out the door fairly loaded in the low $20,000s. That's important, because you don't want your mother to see the sticker price and pass out again, Sheryl.
Listen to the Car Guys in the metro area on 1340 AM and 1490 AM at 10 a.m. Saturdays and noon Sundays. Write in care of The Denver Post, 1560 Broadway, Denver, CO 80202.
With Buick skewered, Mom should look at the Chevy HHR
By Tom & Ray Magliozzi
Dear Tom and Ray: My mother was in a single-car accident in a Buick Century that happened because she passed out. She hit the beginning of a guardrail. The rail hit the engine, proceeded through the glove compartment, passenger seat, back seat and out the trunk. She was blocked from exiting the driver-side door because of a large highway sign and was taken out of the car through the roof. She sustained only knee abrasions from hitting the dashboard. She did not realize how fortunate she was until she saw pictures of the wreck. Now she needs a car. She has always loved the PT Cruiser. I am sure no car could have protected her from this kind of accident, but just how safe is the Cruiser? I would love to see her get her PT Cruiser, but I don't want to encourage her if it has a bad record. Thanks.
- Sheryl
Tom: Well, we looked up the government crash-test rating for the "Guardrail Piercing Through the Entire Car" test, and for some reason, there are no results listed.
Ray: You're right that no car is going to save you if a guardrail bisects it at 60 mph. And we certainly hope that your mom is looking into what caused her to pass out - that's more important than which car she gets.
Tom: But when considering her next car, you want to look at how a car performs in more common types of accidents - front-end, offset and side collisions.
Ray: The Chrysler PT Cruiser's ratings in those categories are good, but not great. Government crash tests give the PT Cruiser with side air bags four out of five stars.
Tom: That might sound good, but there are a lot of cars that get five stars.
And we recommend that people choose five-star performers whenever possible.
Ray: If you want a vehicle that's similar to the PT Cruiser but gets five-star ratings, have your mom take a look at the Chevy HHR. It's in the same general class as the PT Cruiser - that is, an economy car with cool, retro styling and a very flexible interior.
Tom: But your mom might love it. There's a lot to like. It's comfortable (it has a high roof and nice, upright seating position), economical (with a choice of four-cylinder engines and mileage in the mid-20s), reasonably safe (once you pay for the optional anti-lock brakes and side-curtain airbags) and stylish. We'd feel even better if we saw electronic stability control in this car, but I guess you can't have everything.
Ray: And interestingly, it's not that expensive. The HHR starts at around $16,000 and goes out the door fairly loaded in the low $20,000s. That's important, because you don't want your mother to see the sticker price and pass out again, Sheryl.
Listen to the Car Guys in the metro area on 1340 AM and 1490 AM at 10 a.m. Saturdays and noon Sundays. Write in care of The Denver Post, 1560 Broadway, Denver, CO 80202.
08-30-2006, 12:00 PM
#4
Senior Member
Thread Starter
Join Date: 04-19-2006
Location: Westborough, Ma
Posts: 163
Originally Posted by Firewatcher
Darn it! I read the same thing but it wasn't posted on their website, hence I wasn't able to post it here. You Westborough folks seem to be at an advantage when it comes to on-line news.
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