MAR.
D Car Care Snapshots
Keep your car running for years Storage
If you have a garage, make it your car’s permanent home. Reserving a garage space for your car instead of household items that could be stored elsewhere will help you avoid the accelerated wear and tear caused by prolonged exposure to the elements. If you store your car in a partially protected carport or use a car cover, regularly inspect underneath your hood for signs of vermin. Scheduled maintenance
Your car’s maintenance, engine oil, radiator antifreeze and other components might differ significantly from your last car. Following the maintenance schedule laid out in your owner’s manual is important to protect your vehicle. Making sure items like filters, struts and brake pads are replaced when needed will help protect other components, saving you money and unnecessary wear. Drive smart
Stopping or cornering too quickly can prematurely wear out your brakes and suspension. If you’re starting your car in the cold, take it easy at first - letting your car idle won’t help protect your car, but driving a little more methodically than usual while your car warms up will. Drive less
You don’t need to cut out the annual family road trip - highway miles are among the easiest miles you can put on your car. But eliminating unnecessary trips in everyday life can have noticeable results since the starting and stopping associated with short trips can be tough on your car. If you can cut down on driving by 5 miles per day for 10 years, you’ll save 18,000 miles of driving. Taylor estimates that those miles are worth $4,000 in parts, depreciation and gas.
Tire tips for winter driving Here are some ways to promote safety as you venture out in the snow: ■ Buy your loved one a set of winter tires: The Hankook Tire Winter Gauge Index revealed that 84 percent of Americans would not mind receiving tires as a gift and 35 percent would actually love it. ■ Plan accordingly: Winter tires are optimized specifically for icy, snowy conditions, providing enhanced traction to prevent skidding. Put snow tires on your car one to two weeks before the first anticipated snowstorm. ■ Have a kit handy: Keep in your car a winter driving kit consisting of a spare tire, ice scraper, snow shovel and brush, booster cables, a flash light and a blanket. ■ Check your tire carrying capacity and speed rating: Never overload your vehicle and when replacing tires, the speed rating of the replacement tires must be equal to or greater than that of the tire being replaced.
ONTHEROAD
THURSDAY, MARCH 22, 2012 Special Advertising Section
2012 Honda Ridgeline
Sporty, tough T
he 2012 Honda Ridgeline four-door pickup takes advantage of innovative truck body construction and a steel reinforced composite bed to deliver true truck like capabilities like towing and honest-to-goodness cargo hauling. Equipped to the gills with innovative features and pickup truck firsts, the Ridgeline’s most unique feature is an In-Bed Trunk. Accessed by lifting up the hinged rear portion of the cargo bed floor, the In-Bed Trunk features 8.5 cu. ft. of secure, lockable and water resistant storage space. The spare tire is stored in a sliding tray inside the trunk and can accommodate a full-size spare tire. The Ridgeline half-ton pickup truck receives styling upgrades and improved highway fuel economy for 2012. Available in RT, RTS and RTL models, the Ridgeline adds an all-new Sport model for this model year. The new Ridgeline Sport adds the following features to the Ridgeline RT: exclusive black 18-inch aluminum alloy wheels (+1 inch from RT steel wheels); exclusive black honeycomb grille with black surround; leather wrapped steering wheel with audio controls; auxiliary audio input jack; fog lights; rear privacy glass; all weather floor mats and black headlight and brake light housings. Power for the Honda pickup truck is generated by a 3.5L V6 engine with torque communicated through a five-speed automatic transmission and fully automatic four-wheel drive system. The Ridgeline’s standard Variable Torque Management 4-Wheel Drive System (VTM4WD) is designed to transfer up to 70 percent of available torque to the rear wheels. Under normal conditions the VTM-4 system
THE 2012 HONDA RIDGELINE adds a sport model to its family, above, a 3.5L V6 engine, as seen above, and increase storage for hauling equipment.
channels all power to the front wheels. In case you might think that the Ridgeline is some sort of compromise under the skin, guess again. Honda engineers designed the truck to handle the kinds of towing and off-road duties most common to truck users. Standard equipment dedicated to this purpose includes transmission and power steering coolers, standard trailer hitch, a dual fan radiator, heavy-duty brakes and an exclusive fresh air intake system. The solid foundation of the Honda Ridgeline starts with a fully integrated truck frame with two longitudinal frame rails and seven high-strength steel cross members that create a fully boxed, deep channel ladder frame structure full integrated into the upper body of the vehicle. The Honda pickup truck boasts a
four-wheel independent suspension system with MacPherson struts in front and a multi-link setup with trailing arm at the rear. Inside the airy cabin, the interior takes advantage of Honda’s unit-body packaging efficiency to deliver full-size interior space dimensions while maintaining a garage-friendly, mid-size exterior footprint. The driving position provides ergonomically comfortable access to large and easy-touse controls. Ridgeline’s large multi-function
console features a sliding armrest and sliding lower tray – each with a hidden storage area. Other console storage areas accommodate items both large and small like mobile phones, beverages, compact discs and portable digital music players. The 60/40 lift-up rear seats feature a storage area underneath large enough to accommodate a golf bag. Plus, the rear seating area can quickly convert for cargo duty by lifting the seats up to create enough room for a full-size mountain bike with the front tire removed. A low step-in height is combined with hand grips in the “A” pillar and “B” pillars for front and rear passengers facilitates cabin entry and exit. The front doors also have an oversized hand grip designed to pull the doors closed easily.
2012 Toyota Prius v Wagon
Functional and efficient BY KEN CHESTER JR. Motor News Media Corporation
F
or 2012, the “v” in Prius is for versatile with the launch of a wagon version of the automaker’s popular hybrid vehicle. As the newest entrant in a growing Prius family of hybrid vehicles, the Prius v delivers an unparalleled blend of versatility and fuel efficiency in a comfortable, mid-size package. A new evolution in hybrid vehicles with excellent cargo space, the new Prius v will meet the needs of growing families with active lifestyles while providing the same attributes traditionally found in the Prius DNA. “The Prius v brings leading-edge hybrid technology to customers who need more room and provides more cargo space than 80 percent of all small SUVs,” said Toyota Division Group Vice President and General Manager Bob Carter. “And because it’s a Prius, it produces 66 percent fewer smog-forming emissions than the average new vehicle and will have the best mileage ratings of any SUV, crossover, or wagon sold in America. We think that’s a win-win for everybody.” With a balance between outstanding spaciousness, refined style, and smooth aerodynamics, Prius v has a low 0.29 coefficient of drag, which does not inhibit the vehicle’s convenient packaging. It is a new vehicle designed from the ground up, with a shape that evolved from Prius rather than being an elongated version. Keeping air resistance low is the familiar triangular Prius silhouette, adapted to a larger size. A flush surface from the front of the vehicle through the front pillar works with side “aerocorners” for exceptionally clean
airflow. The smooth front sheetmetal blends into a carefully designed roof and cabin, leading to an optimized cabin-end shape that acts to converge side and roof airflow. Wheels and wheel caps are designed with aerodynamic effects in mind. These measures and others also have the beneficial effect of suppressing wind noise. Offered in Prius v Two, Prius v Three and Prius v Five trim levels, power for the Prius v is generated by the same Hybrid Synergy Drive system as the current third-generation Prius. The system uses two high-output motors, one 60kw (80 hp) unit that mainly works to power the compact, lightweight transaxle and another smaller motor that
mainly works as the electric power source. As with current-generation Prius cars, Hybrid Synergy Drive is a series-parallel hybrid
See PRIUS, Page 6D
New cars focus on efficiency this year Technology driving fuel economy, better performance Today’s drivers are paying more attention to gas prices than ever before. Families are trying to save money wherever they can, and they’re discovering that one of their biggest monthly bills often comes at the gas pump. ●●●
That’s why today’s new cars are focusing so much on fuel efficiency. Not too long ago, car manufacturers were caught up in a horsepower war, bragging about who made the biggest, most powerful V8 engines. Today, though, they’ve changed their tune.
See NEW, Page 6D
HYUNDAI VELOSTER ●●●