2002 Toyota Tundra SR5 from North America - All Comments

The Solstice really isn't a good car. I've heard a lot about its lack of fit and finish and quality control.

The Corvette is an epic car that can indeed get good mileage if driven correctly, but it's beyond most peoples' price range.

I'm selling my GM SUV and getting a '99 Buick Regal, which gets 30mpg+ on the highway, and is not expensive at all, while doing 0-60 in 6-7 seconds. Not to mention the engine is a bulletproof design that should last 200k+ miles.

All you have to do is a lot of research, and find out which car has the right balance of mpg, power and price.

I think you'll have to do a lot better on MPG than switching to a $50,000 Corvette; that might get 20MPG.

The fact is that the future of cars and trucks as we know it, will be that the 30MPG standard of yesterday is no longer the gold standard. People are going to start buying vehicles that get 35-40, and even 50MPG+ from now on.

As of now, there are very few cars or trucks that get that kind of economy. But all this will change with time. All automakers have new vehicles coming out that will accomplish this.

Once more, Toyota and Honda have a leg up over GM and Ford because they've been building hybrid vehicles in mass quantities for almost 10 years, while GM and Ford barely have anything. I suspect the outcome will be much the same, with the Big Three playing catch-up and doing a lot of copy-catting.

My wife has been involved in a study of financial efficiency and planning for the past few weeks. Car buying was discussed last week. I was not at all surprised to find that the financial experts teaching the classes regarded the absolute best buy for low cost of ownership and maintenance to be a 4-year-old Ford Taurus. If you look at the overall cost to own, nothing beats a new or used Ford, Chevy or Dodge.

Oh no, Toyota isn't terminating the Sequoia and Tundra! They are simply "cutting back production." Yeah, cutting back production to zero, and closing the plant!

So, when Toyota terminates models, it's a minor cutback in production due to high gas prices, but when Ford and GM do actually just scale back production, it's an "indication of poor sales because of lack of quality."

I love convertibles... people caught up in the mpg focus trap could perhaps own a Corvette rather than pay $300-400 more a month on less fuel efficient alternatives. I wonder what qualifications the Tacoma owner has on the 2008 Corvette V8.

I'd rather work a bit harder maybe take the train partially to work and own a great new American sportscar. If I owned a blah boring ugly tiny sedan, I think I'd have zero incentive to drive anymore. My insurance rate at 50 is not really a difference, my home is paid for, and I am not driving little crappy vehicles.

GM has been building MORE 30+ mpg vehicles for a decade than Toyota has. That is the primary reason their sales are not down as much as Toyota sales. They have more to offer, and 3 times the factory warranty.

And as for "little crappy vehicles", "little" does NOT mean "crappy". I'm a big guy and I'm much more comfortable in a good-handling smaller car that gets decent mileage than in a hard-to-park, gas guzzling aircraft carrier. Granted, no Japanese maker builds sporty small cars, but GM and Ford still do, and some of them get decent mileage.

16th Jul 2008, 15:47

Oh no, Toyota isn't terminating the Sequoia and Tundra! They are simply "cutting back production." Yeah, cutting back production to zero, and closing the plant!

So, when Toyota terminates models, it's a minor cutback in production due to high gas prices, but when Ford and GM do actually just scale back production, it's an "indication of poor sales because of lack of quality."

Once again read for comprehension not selectivity. The plants are staying open and the Tundra and Sequoia will go back into production after a three month delay in production. There is no termination of models. Please recheck the article and you will see that you are mistaken.

As far as the loss of sales for GM and Ford, it started well before the high gas prices. Both have been seeing a drop in their sales numbers for the last 10 years, as they lost customers to other brands, not just Toyota and Honda. If you want to look at failed and terminated models, you need to look no farther than Ford and GM.

"I love convertibles... people caught up in the mpg focus trap could perhaps own a Corvette rather than pay $300-400 more a month on less fuel efficient alternatives."

Oh yes - me and my Wife are so "trapped" by our fuel efficient car. We drive a older Prius that regularly gets over 50MPG. We drive 40+ miles each way to work. A typical car getting 20-30MPG would cost us around $80 per week to drive for gas alone. This one costs us around $35. That's a BIG difference. Plus, one thing you forgot to mention is that insurance on sports cars is prohibitive.

So we don't feel "trapped" in the least. But I bet there's quiet a few people out there driving as far or farther, and are getting pinched pretty badly driving their gas-guzzling SUVS, trucks, and sports cars.

Besides - beauty is in the eye of the beholder, and in my opinion, Corvettes have to be about the ugliest looking sports cars out there, and they tend to get uglier with each redesign. I actually test drove one of these at a GM sponsored event. Considering how expensive these are, I was blown away at how cheap and plasticy the interiors are on these.

"Once more, Toyota and Honda have a leg up over GM and Ford because they've been building hybrid vehicles in mass quantities for almost 10 years, while GM and Ford barely have anything."

Actually, GM builds (and has for a decade) more 30+ mpg cars than Toyota. Last year one of GM's hybrid vehicles, the Tahoe Hybrid, was Green Car of the Year. The highest mpg SUV is the Ford Escape hybrid. The only hybrid Toyota has built for "almost 10 years" is the Prius. Likewise, the only hybrid Honda has had for any length of time is the little 2-seater model (I forget the name).

10:16 producing high mpg hybrids is the focus. I cannot wait to see what the repair bills are going to be when they are a few years old with different batteries, complex computer systems. Try fixing one on a back road yourself when that occurs.

The new Tahoe by the way received the "2008 Green Vehicle of the Year", exceeding Camry's mpg if you can afford one. One does not need to buy a new Corvette, but at least come out with some sharp aerodynamic styling, convertibles etc. to address the driving appeal factor as well. I might buy one if it was appealing.

The only new small affordable 4 cylinder I liked was my co workers new black Solstice convertible. He has a 30 mile daily commute and loves it.

The Prius has been built since 1997. So it's been built for almost 12 years.

The Ford Escape hybrid uses technology licensed from Toyota. The Escape is basically a Mazda anyway.

The little claim that GM "Builds more cars that get 30MPG" than Toyota isn't totally accurate either, since they build numerous models that are exactly the same, only with different badges slapped on the hood. If Toyota wanted to, they could take a Corolla and slap a Lexus badge on it and then voila - more models!

"10:16 producing high mpg hybrids is the focus. I cannot wait to see what the repair bills are going to be when they are a few years old with different batteries, complex computer systems. Try fixing one on a back road yourself when that occurs."

Well, seeing as how the Prius has been produced for almost 12 years, with many on the road in the US with well over 200,000, there has been extremely few problems with them. The rate of battery failure has been incredibly low, as in perhaps a handful nationally. We have a 2002 Prius and so far, the car has been problem-free. Not bad for an almost 7 year old car.

I have a 39 year old car with only 20,000 miles on the clock. Age is not as descriptive as sales volume/usage (mileage). Must be incredible batteries 7 years never needing replacement on your imports.

A recent news article about the high cost of repairs on hybrids, reported on one Prius customer who had problems with the transaxle just out of warranty, and the repair cost was HALF the new purchase price of the car. Comment 05:38 is right on about this.

Not long ago while in line at my bank I heard a Prius owner discussing how his battery pack had failed, and that he was looking at re-manufactured batteries because a new battery was over $2000. Some companies are now starting to LEASE batteries!!

The cost of hybrid repairs FAR outweighs the fuel savings, and in addition, the disposal of the highly toxic batteries poses a threat to the environment second only to nuclear waste disposal. A high mpg conventional engined car is a far more eco-friendly and sensible alternative.

13:49 Why did you drive one? As far as comparison, you will spend 2-3 times for an equivalent performing import. It never fails with the economy oriented crowd; the emphasis is on interiors and cup holders and the like.

The first Vipers did not have actual operative windows, but absolutely did not detract from its performance and race inspired frame. I am surprised the new Vette does not cost more.

As far as looks, nothing is more hideous in my mind than a Prius or the many boring potato shaped little econo vehicles, of which in all fairness there are domestics included in that comment. The only excitement I can see is the thrill of attaining and getting out at the destination. I prefer driving.

Sorry that driving a new 6 speed Vette 0-60 in slightly over 4 seconds does not give you the excitement present in your new Toyota.