Hi Everyone:

My name is Mike, and I am the owner of a new 2005 HCH CVT. I have had the car one month since this last Saturday. I have my own computer repair business and bought the car due to economic reasons. I traded a 97 Corvette for it. Now, y'all may say I did the right thing, and green stuff and all that, but in actuality, the vette for what it is, is a very fuel efficient vehicle, getting me 20 to 22 in the city and 30 on the hwy at 85 with the air on (I live in Miami, so air is mandatory for most of the year.)

I can truly say I do like my HCH. So far, in the Month I have had it, I have used 5 tanks of gas over 2000 miles of travel vs 10 tanks in the vette (I do about 100 to 150 miles a day). When gas for the vette got over $50/tank, it was time to make the plunge. I do miss my vette, but with what I save in gas, I should break even in the dollars depart or be negative about $50 to $100 (gas expenses vs car payments, the vette was paid for.)

So far the avg MPG shows about 37mpg in the HCH. I think the computer penalizes you rather heavily if you cannot keep auto stop on, as I try to drive with most of the tricks (I don't like the idea of FAS) on this board. I know it will get better once winter rolls around down here and I can shut the air conditioning off. Trying to do some of the tricks on this board is tough since Miami has the absolutely worst drivers in this entire country (and I have travelled quite a bit around the US.) It seems that when I try to get things smoothed out, some idiot consumes your space and forces you to adapt to keep from running up their rears.

I would have like to get more accurate fuel consumption numbers, but Katrina threw all that into the trash basket. Since I had to top off the tank (2 days after my second fill up) and buy fuel for the generator (20+ gals), I used the generator fuel to fill the car up as my tank ran dry (It is not exaclty 5 gallons per can as they can hold a bit more). Since I think I will have some time before the next storm, I can probably get a more accurate read here, given that the car is now broken in.

I hope to have some spirited exchanges with some of you, and stop the SUV bashing, feel sorry for them, as they put $80+ in to fill the tank while you enjoy cruising by the gas stations. BTW, Miami is the largest market for SUV's and one of the top Markets for H2's. I would think that the economics of the situation will eventually force many of these idiots to trade these in. I honestly think that many people buy SUV's down here is due to the perception of safety. Again, you have to drive in Miami, to understand how bad people drive down here.

Mike V.

Welcome abord Mike.

My hydroponics experiment

You ever notice how hard it is to lip read cartoon characters?
"Crazy is what the sane call Delta Flyer"

Thanks for the welcome aboard.

Hey Welcome I see u got a HCH CVT, that a nice car. What other hybrids were u looking at before u decided that u wanted the HCH CVT.

Hi:

Well, I was considering a Prius, I have seen several of them around, but did not test drive one. The Toyota dealer down here is a shark, and they always ask a premium on all their cars. My daughter gots hers first, I went with her to help her buy it, and was really impressed by the car. I had to convince my wife to let me get one, and my daughter worked on her.

When the last tank in my Vette went to $50, I decided at that point I had to get one to help my business survive. One thing that I noticed with the Hondas, is that the dealers were willing to deal on them, and there was no waiting to get one. The price on the car is right, and the difference between the Prius and Honda in milage is not that great. I know Honda has a good reputation for quality and I can understand why after getting this car.

I got the automatic, since my Vette was a six speed, and I was tired of having to shift all the time in the brutal traffic that we get down here in Miami at times, so I figured it was time to give my left leg a break.

Mike V.