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A friend who was recently riding in the Prius with me commented on how far away the odometer was from the driver's seat. While it didn't bother me at first, I've noticed that I find it hard to pay attention to the speed I'm going at. When I was testing our Honda Civic, I commented on how much I liked seeing my speed digitally displayed right in my face, and what a great incentive it was to keep it reasonable.

And while the display is also digital on the Prius, the fact that the numbers are tucked so far away from the steering wheel seems to take away the benefit of the digital display. In the Civic it was in your face, in bright blue numbers. In the Prius it's tucked away, smaller and a subdued green, and the effect is not the same. I keep forgetting to check how fast I'm going.

This is just another feature that seems to have been added for the mere purpose of making the Prius so uniquely designed, without necessarily serving a purpose other than being different.

I was working the XL7 hard last night. First I brought some furniture over from my parents place using the Suzuki. With 4 seats folded down, you can fit a decent sized wall unit in the back. After that I loaded it up camping gear. It will have the difficult task of carrying 3 people and their gear 3 hours north this weekend. Here are some pictures.

While the Prius is a very, very quiet vehicle on the outside, which des add to the pleasure of driving it, I can't get used to the fact that it talks to me when I least expect it. I find that quite distracting!

Recently as I was entering a grocery store parking lot, someone was pulling out of a spot without looking and was about to back up straight into the Prius so I pressed hard on the horn and next thing you know, the car was saying something. I was too busy recovering from the near collision to even pay attention to what it said, but I wondered why honking the horn would trigger the on-board computer to talk to me!

Then I was at the Tim's drive-thru just about to order, and I pressed the button that looked IDENTICAL to the mute button in the Suzuki XL 7 (which I was testing last week), in an attempt to mute the radio while I placed my order. Well, if I was hoping for quiet, I got the opposite effect - the computerized lady started talking to me again! I was startled again and had to wait for it to shut up before I could order.

For a car so quiet on the outside, it sure is chatty on the inside!
(and no, I haven't found the REAL mute button - that's still driving me crazy!)

Getting back in to the XL was a joyous experience. It was the first car I got to test drive and now that I've driven a few more and know what to expect, I have to admit that the XL7 is an amazing vehicle for the money. Its roughly the same price of the Prius but that’s the only thing the 2 cars have in common. For one, XL7 is a lot of fun to drive. When you hurl something this big and heavy so fast in the straight line, you are bound to have fun. Looks wise, I have to admit that the looks have grown on me and I think it is quite a good looking brute. Handling wise, this car is great. I think this car actually has less body lean in corners than the Prius. And that’s really surprising considering that the suspension feels like it could absorb the Grand Canyon. The only negative things I still see with this sport SUV is that the interior is not very sporty and feels kind of cheap to be considered luxury. Its not nice enough to be shown off to friends, yet it doesn’t look durable enough to be spilled coffee on.

The only aspect of this car I haven't tested is the off road capability but this weekend will change that as I'm going camping. It will be interesting to see how it performs off-road but if this car does as an SUV should, it will be head, shoulders, chest, knees and feet above anything you can get for 30,000 dollars (base model).

I really like that, in addition to being able to move the seat forward and back and to recline it, the driver also has the option of moving their seat up and down. I find that I am most comfortable when the seat is low to the ground but close to the dashboard. Just nice that the seat can be positioned around a driver's particular preferences.

I think our drivers are finding that any vehicle is a series of compromises, and the Toyota Prius is no exception.

Case in point: the electric power mode. It means you’ll spend about half of what you would normally, but you won’t be getting anywhere as quickly as you might otherwise. It also does have its limitations, however, and the battery find itself in need of a recharge more often in temperature extremes when electrical power is accessed more frequently by air-conditioning or defrosters.

People are also taken by the quietness of the vehicle under electric power ... mesmerized, you might even say. So much so that they often forget that cyclists or pedestrians might panic when they find a car they didn’t hear coming about to pounce on them.

Another is the extensive onboard diagnostic and navigation system that keeps track of maintenance, addresses, phone numbers, etc. but requires you to accept the terms and conditions every time you get onboard, and won’t allow touch-screen access to certain things while driving.

Total km driven: 6,668 km
Total fuel used: 369.192 litres
Average fuel economy: 5.6 litres per 100 km
Best fuel economy: 2.5 litres per 100 km
Worst fuel economy: 9.4 litres per 100 km
Cost of fuel: $383.70
Maintenance: none
Maintenance costs: none
Things gone wrong (fix): nothing

Our drivers have questions about the Suzuki XL7 and they aren’t really easy-to-answer ones, but I’ll try.

Q: For such a big vehicle, why are the cup-holders so tiny?
A: Probably because drink-makers keep coming out with bigger and bigger containers for their beverages, so it’s hard for car-makers to keep up.

Q: Why are the myriad buttons in the cockpit not labeled in English?
A: It’s a usability thing for countries where the primary language isn’t English. It is also not cost effective to make new buttons in the many languages of the world. Besides, do you know how big the button would have to be to fit the German word “Fensterentfroster” (defroster)?

Q: Why are there 500 stations on XM satellite radio and only three worth listening to?
A: Primarily because music today sucks, but I’d suggest contacting 500 other people who use satellite radio. If all goes according to the law of averages, you should find at least three other people who have the exact same taste in music as you do.

Q: What kind of mileage is it getting?
A: Ah, finally an easy one to answer. See below.

Total km driven: 8,661 km
Total fuel used: 1,107.643 litres
Average fuel economy: 12.7 litres per 100 km
Best fuel economy: 9.5 litres per 100 km
Worst fuel economy: 16.0 litres per 100 km
Cost of fuel: $1,151.74
Maintenance: none
Maintenance costs: none
Things gone wrong (fix): intermittent squeak from middle seat (not looked at, yet)

Our drivers are really starting to be impressed by the little things in the Civic LX that you usually don’t notice when you only spend a short time in it.

For example, they love cupholders that “hugs the drink” so they don’t tip over when the car turns a corner. On the other hand, there’s easily reachable cupholder in the rear. The Civic’s also been complimented on having lots of little storage cubbies for lots of little storables like sunglasses, access cards, etc.

The other set-and-forget item usually lost on single-driver cars is the multi-faceted driver’s seat adjustments that seem tailor made for a six-foot-three lanky guitarist to as well as a five-foot-nil retiree. All the while, visibility out is receiving lots of praise, even when rear-view should be obstructed by infant seats (whose occupants apparently also like the ability to view the passing traffic).

And despite it’s overall size, the trunk will fit anything from a cooler and assorted picnic consumables, to a hockey goalie’s equipment bag.

Total km driven: 5,216 km
Total fuel used: 424.153 litres
Average fuel economy: 8.1 litres per 100 km
Best fuel economy: 6.5 litres per 100 km
Worst fuel economy: 14.5 litres per 100 km
Cost of fuel: $440.21
Maintenance: none
Maintenance costs: none
Things gone wrong (fix): Engine whine under power (nothing - deemed normal); stone-chipping on leading edge of hood (not yet).

My week in the XL 7 is coming to an end and overall, despite several usability issues and a few quirks, I still find it very enjoyable to drive. I particularly like knowing that I have the ability to quickly get out of the way of an oncoming vehicle, and being able to be a more daring driver than I normally am. I'm no speed devil, but I like being able to make last minute decisions, swift lane changes and quick left turns without ever feeling like I'm driving dangerously. I always feel very much in control of this vehicle.

The XL 7 is always a treat to drive after my own heavier, slower to accelerate, harder to maneuver SUV. It's definitely the sports car of SUVs and overall a very enjoyable ride.

Two pet peeves about the Prius, the first is having to agree to the terms and conditions every time you turn on the car. Seems like it would be an even bigger nuisance if you owned the car.

The other inconvenience is the load button on the CD player. I've never been in a car where you have to hit a load button before you can slide a CD into the player. Especially since there's an eject button so the process of changing CDs is made considerably harder because you're required to eject the CD that's in there, press load, and then feed it the new CD. Small detail but an annoyance nonetheless.

My son may only be 6 years old, but he already appreciates the little touches that turn a car into a luxury ride. Suitably impressed with the GPS and the leather seats, it was the wood trim that convinced him that this was a cool car.

I have to agree with him that, despite a few oddities in terms of the car features' "user-friendliness", the interior is easy on the eye.

And while I'm also quite fond of the purple exterior, I find the shape of the car a bit odd. It seems too tall for its width (or is that too narrow for its height?). And what's with the tiny windows? The back one in particular poses serious visibility issues (and unlike the Prius, it doesn't have the cool rear view camera to guide me when I reverse, so I'm always terrified of hitting something!) But today I also noticed that the side windows aren't very big either, and they're higher than on other vehicles. I noticed this twice. Once at a drive-thru order-placing interphone (my head was way higher than the microphone!) and then at an automated parking lot while trying to swipe my credit card. And speaking of drive-thrus and parking lot ticket machines... I will never get used to the window controls being on the centre console instead of on the door!

I am still not impressed with the satellite radio system on the XL 7. I think out of the 500 or so available stations, I tolerate about 3. And while it's great not to have commercials, when one wants to switch away from a particularly bad song, there's no nimble way to toggle between a few favourite channels like with preselections on a regular radio. Or maybe there is, but I haven't bothered reading the user manual and I probably won't.

Instead, I'll just keep listening to one single Toronto FM station, and since it's too complicated to switch to another likeable station during the commercials (without taking my eyes of the road for a duration that would be considered unsafe), I will even listen to those, which I would never do in a car that is not equipped with such an advanced, varied music menu! Pretty ironic that I end up enduring radio commercial to avoid using the commercial free satellite system!

I took the Civic to Peterborough (about 150 km outside Toronto) today to visit my mom which gave me a chance to test it on the open highway. Overall the ride was very comfortable and the trip was pleasant. the road noise in the cabin is very low for a small car and a lot quieter than my Mazda3 at highway speed.

The highway to Peterborough can be very hilly at times and I found that the cruise control to be very imprecise and would vary up to 5 km/h +/- on hills. It would also have to down shift an alarming amount to stay at speed, even on fairly moderate inclines.

When I picked up my Mom, her first comment was "wow that is a slick looking car!" For context, I don't recall hearing her comment on the looks of any car before so this was pretty shocking and quite a complement. We then drove downtown to have lunch, and as I was parking she said: "these big cars are hard to parallel park aren't they?" which I think speaks volumes about the interior space in the Civic. She honestly thought the Civic was a "big car"!!

So the civic definitely passed the "Mom test" with flying colours.

One of my new favourite things to do in the Prius is to power it up, unroll the driver-side window and marvel at how quiet it is as I drive off.

It really is astoundingly quiet compared to any other car that I've driven. So much so that it's become a source of amusement to tail a cyclist on residential streets because I can tell that they have no sense that there's a car behind them so when they do look behind them before crossing to the other side of the street they usually nearly fall of their bike from having been startled. Same goes with jay-walkers. But on a more serious note, it does require extra mindfulness because you can go unnoticed (by other cars and pedestrians) from being so quiet.

One of the little details about the Suzuki XL 7 that really drives me crazy is the lack of English words on the myriad buttons that adorn the dashboard, steering wheel, centre console etc. Buttons, buttons everywhere. But very little English. One has to be an expert at iconology to figure out how to mute the radio (button with a person with something spewing out of his mouth), how to toggle between car/engine vital signs and regular odometer/temperature display (an icon of an empty road ahead) etc.

My guess is that they reuse those components for non-North American markets, thus avoiding having to print words in different languages on them. Or perhaps they're trying to cater to the growing immigrant population for whom English isn't necessarily taken for granted on car buttons. But given a choice between alienating non-English speakers and alienating the entire population of North America that hasn't obtained a PhD in pictology - I'd still propose using good old English and labelling the buttons Mute, Menu, Reset, Info, Display etc.

If the XL in XL 7 stands for Extra Large (it is, after all, a vehicle for 7 people), then why are the cup holders so darn tiny? I don't know about the rear ones (I can't say my kids have complained about them so far) but the two in the centre console are so narrow, I had a hard time jamming my extra large cup of Tim's in one of them (and since they're shallow too I was a bit nervous that my beloved morning Java would topple over during sharp turns!) and I had to give up trying to shoehorn a 710 ml bottle of Gatorade in the other. Don't they test stuff like that when they're designing cars? What do they use for these tests? Sippy cups?

I absolutely love the transponder key. It's as if it was made with me in mind. I tend to have a purse that is filled with junk and somehow whatever I need to access is not only at the bottom of my bag but also the very last thing that I pull out of the bag and with this key I am spared that frustration.

Now I just stroll up to the car lift the door handle and the car senses the key in my bag and unlocks the door. By the same notion, because there is a power button as opposed to an ignition I don't need to find my key for the purpose of starting the car either. I honestly think that, in my three weeks in the Prius, the transponder has spared me a good 30 minutes worth of rummaging through my bag in search of the keys.

This is my second turn with the Civic and I have to say that this car is really growing on me. The first thing that I noticed as I started driving it again is the handling. I can say without hyperbole that the suspension setup in the Civic is absolutely stunning for a car in this price point. There has got to be some strange, dark magic going on here, because there seems to be no compromise between ride comfort (which is excellent) and handling (which is, again, excellent). Every time I took a highway off-ramp or a tight bend on a country road, I was amazed by the lack of body roll and how the steering remained composed and responsive as it the car was going dead straight.

Easy to use, easy to park, spacious, comfortable, pretty good on gas (I averaged just under 9 litres/100km) - I think these are just a few of the reasons why I enjoyed my time with the Civic. I was not a big fan of sedans (especially white ones) before I drove the Civic but I think this fella may have changed my mind. The Civic served our family of three well and if I was ever in the market for a sedan, this car would be at the top of the list.

Funny thing switching from the Suzuki XL7 to the Prius: the sensitivity of the brakes and the throttle is staggeringly different between cars.

Every time I finish up with one and take on the other, it takes me a while to adjust. The Prius pedals, in this instance, are much more sensitive. There have been a few moments of near whiplash.

Can I just tell you how great the cup holders are in this Civic. Everyone that has had the opporunity to use them has commented on how good the design is. They have this little mechanism that hugs the drink and they are nice and deep so your drinks don't tip over when you turn a corner.

This car also offers lots of places to stash my little things like sunglasses, parking pass, etc. The only thing it is lacking in the small storage department is a cup holder in the backseat. Luckily there is extra room in the front so we were able to store my son's sippy cup there.

I had a funny experience with the Suzuki’s sound system yesterday. For the last 5 days I’ve been meaning to gripe about the fact that when you turn the car off, the radio/cd stays on so that you have to manually power it down before exiting the car. I mentioned this in my first blog entry but kept meaning to return to the issue and re-emphasize on what a nuisance it was.

Upon leaving work yesterday, I hopped in the car and scooted to the grocery store. When I arrived there, I took the keys out of the ignition and opened the door (having forgotten to manually turn off the radio) only to discover that the action of opening the door causes the radio to turn itself off. It’s actually a nice feature now that I know how it works! Should you need to wait in the car while it’s parked somewhere, you can to listen to music without idling your engine and without having to interrupt the song while you turn the car off and then turn the battery back on.

On the topic of audio, I must say that while I appreciate the variety that Satellite radio offer, I find that the wealth of options is almost too distracting. It takes about three minutes to just scroll through all the channel options so that by the time you actually settle on a song you like, if it finishes and you don't like the next tune, you have to embark on another three minute search to find a tolerable song!

...so why does everyone think we will run out of oil? To me the Prius seems to be a direct product of this kind of confused thinking. An idea that works in theory and on commercials seems seamless, but in actuality, it is only there to capitalize on our fear of lack of oil. Everyone knows that the only reason we are still using oil is because there is money to be made in oil. If we ran out, Toyota would have a new lineup of cars using different source of fuel faster than Prius goes from 0 to 100. So everyone should realx and enjoy the good cars we have now and once we are ready to evolve to a new source of fuel, I am sure other great cars will follow.

So looking at the Prius... As a fuel saving vehicle, its good (not great). Last week, I spent about 13 dollars in gas what would have cost at least 30 driving my Mustang. In every other aspect, the car is average or below average. Combined with the fact that it is very expensive, I really can't understand why Toyota is having so much success selling these cars.
Actually I think this car is selling because people just like saying..."I drive a hybrid".

Alas, a sedan with room for all of my hockey equipment! I'm actually not a goalie but I just wanted to let the goalies out there know that Honda had them in mind when they designed this car.



I think Honda also had families in mind when they designed this car. We went to a pool party on the weekend and we were able to fit a large cooler, all of our gear and still had room to spare.

Drove with a friend who is slightly claustrophobic on Friday and he seemed pleasantly surprised by the layout of the car. The three rows of seating allowed for the four passengers on board to scatter themselves so that there was always an open seat between any two people.

The sunroof was also a welcome feature for my phobic friend who appreciated having easy access to the open-air. Plus it’s a wonderful feeling to have the sun beating down on you on summer drives up north.

Strangely, I haven’t been able to find the hazard lights since I started driving the car five days ago, and this is after several attempts to locate them, even enlisting the passenger to lend me their eye . In spite of my careful inspection of the dashboard and the steering wheel controls I still can't locate the hazards but I did stumble upon several buttons whose purpose I can't for the life of me figure out. There’s a lot more going on (in terms of controls) in this car than in others I’ve driven so perhaps I am just not familiar with the iconography but they weren’t exactly self-explanatory.

We did a lot of driving in the Civic this weekend and it deserves a big thumbs up for comfort. The front driver and passenger seats "hug" your back and seem to provide more lower back support than usual. Everything you need to access while driving is conveniently located within arm's reach and the arm rests are just where they should be. We are really enjoying this car as a family.

Back in the Suzuki and instantly remembered all of the things that I liked about it the first time I drove it. Very spacious, with every new passenger I take on board commenting on its roominess.

This time round, however, I am starting to spot some of the limitations of having such a large car. I drove it in an underground parking lot today and was shocked at how many times the antenna touched the low-hanging parts of the garage ceiling. The lights, for instance, which hung from the roof of the parking lot kept clipping the antenna. Another obstacle was making sharp turns in the lot: I had a difficulty time seeing how much room I had on either side of me when I was driving up the ramp because I was so high up and I simply couldn't see the ground directly in front of me. I had never before had that experience in a parking lot, but I've also never driven such a large car.

The only other minor irritation is the placement of the automatic window control. It's not on the arm rest on the door as it is in most cars but rather on the central console. Granted it's only slightly inconvenient but still it means that I always have to look to the controls to lower and raise my window.

Yesterday I discovered that the Prius can actually improve your mood. I was in a somewhat bad mood last night when I started my drive home and by the time I got home, the trip computer said I did one of my best drives in the Prius...4.7L/100km. That put a smile on my face. Eventually this car becomes like a video game, as with every drive you are trying to beat your best score. Yesterday I noticed that my battery never seems to charge more than 2-3 bars when I drive it in the city.



Take it on the highway and its a different story as the wheels spinning at 100km\h charge that battery in no time. Maybe in the next years model, Toyota can put a set of bike pedals on the passenger side so they can charge the battery while driving the Prius in the city.

I wonder what the A-Sel button is for? I think I have figured out pretty much every other button and dial except for this one. I haven't had a chance to look at the owner's manual yet and I don't want to press it before finding out what it does. I don't think I've ever seen it in a car before.





I was really praising Honda when I discovered upon first glance, what I thought was the greatest clock button ever invented. What a great idea! All you need to do is press + or - to adjust the time on the clock. Duh! It was for the trip. Yes, I realized after looking at it closer that the icon was not a clock but boy would that ever be a user friendly feature if the car did have it.

I am loving the view from the new Civic. There are no blind spots in this car. Big, unobstructed windows allow you to see your surroundings from every angle. (There's even a little window by the side mirrors so you can see what's going on there.)

The Civic also gets a big thumbs up from my toddler who is very happy that he can do his truck and machine spotting from his seat. (Something he can't in our current cars at home.)

I am back in the Prius for a few days and despite my less than enthusiastic opinion of the car, I wanted to see if this car is really that bad or if my overview of it was somewhat biased.
Getting back in the prius felt somewhat familiar. It kinda felt like getting back with an old ex-girlfriend, with who a relationship ended on a sour note. At first, I kept thinking "I cant believe I am driving this battery charger again" when I got back in to the Prius. Also, coming off the Honda Civic, which is a great car, the Prius felt somewhat slow and sluggish. (at twice the price tag)

But not all is bad as I remember it to be. The gas consumption screen is quite fun to have on a car. This week Gas is 104.8 per L, and averaging 5 to 5.5 L per 100 KM will save me about 30 bucks in gas over the mustang considering i really don't have anywhere important to go and I probably won't mind cruising at 35 Km/h.

But just like my experiences with dating ex-girlfriends again...things usually don't work out. I feel the Prius will be no different.

I've been trying to track down the source of the "noise" that this Civic makes. At one point I even checked to see if for some reason, I was driving with the parking brake engaged. (I don't know, I'm not a mechanic, I was exhausting all possibilities.) Concerned that something was wrong with the car, I tried to capture the sound on video. When playing it back to one of our cars guys in the office he said, "Oh, you mean the noise." Apparently this is normal. I think the car sounds like a sewing machine and my husband thinks it sounds like an electric car. The noise gets progressively louder as you accelerate but if you turn the fan on and turn the music up, you won't even notice it.

My first observations - the new Civic, in my opinion, was designed with a man in mind. The dials, the type/font used on the gauges, the styling and the finishing touches all have a very male feel to them. This particular Civic even has a manly scent to it. (Upon further investigation, I realize this may be left over cologne fumes from the last driver.)

The next time you're at the grocery store, take a closer look at the packaging on men's deodorant and you will see the similarities. Having said that, because of the design of the knobs, buttons, gauges, etc. the car is very "user friendly". I got in the Civic and was able to do all of my adjustments right away without any problems.

Perhaps Honda made it all so easy because they had a man in mind when they designed the car. ; )

Our drivers are cozying up to the way Prius saves on so many levels ... at the gas pump at the end of the week, but also on their peace of mind during all the trips during the week.

The quiet and serenity is something that is having a profound impact on them, with one even admitting to creeping up on jaywalkers just to see their startled reactions when they find a car they didn’t hear coming, right on their heels. Although, we in no way condone terrorizing pedestrians in this fashion ... even ones who feel they have more right to road use than any road-going vehicle.

We’re also finding more drivers comparing the car to a PC, due to its (a) technological sophistication and (b) its persnicketiness. Some find the starting procedure of particular annoyance, while others are taken aback by the Navigation’s system insistence on redirecting users back to what it considers to be the “optimal” route (which is by no means particular to this navi system).

After 6,277 km, we’re averaging 5.66 litres per 100 km, with a best of 2.52 and a worst of 9.43. We’re coming up on its first maintenance interval (total odo reading is 7,820 and it’s due for a check-up at 8,000), which will give us an idea of costs to keep this PC running ... maybe it’ll turn out to be a Mac ...

Total km driven: 6,277 km
Total fuel used: 351.747 litres
Average fuel economy: 5.7 litres per 100 km
Best fuel economy: 2.5 litres per 100 km
Worst fuel economy: 9.4 litres per 100 km
Cost of fuel: $365.51
Maintenance: none
Maintenance costs: none
Things gone wrong (fix): nothing

When first told that our long-term XL7 is purple, most test drivers’ first reaction is “who would want to drive a purple car?”

After spending at least a day in it, though, they begin to appreciate what a chameleon it is, taking on a darkish blue twinge in the early waning and waxing light and an exuberant black in twilight.

Almost all have the expectation of an extremely roomy interior, and they aren’t disappointed when they load it up with seven people (up to five full-sized and two pint-sized versions, they explain), a full weekend of camping gear, or a foursome of golf bags.

Our testers have also pointed out that although there is a steep learning curve on first getting into the vehicle, everything is organized quite succinctly so once you get the hang of where everything is, it actually is quite easy to navigate around the cockpit.

To date, the XL7 has travelled 8,464 km, attaining an overall economy figure of 12.58 litres per 100 km (up slightly from 12.51), with a best of 9.5 and a worst of 16.0.

Total km driven: 8,464 km
Total fuel used: 1,075.04 litres
Average fuel economy: 12.6 litres per 100 km
Best fuel economy: 9.5 litres per 100 km
Worst fuel economy: 16.0 litres per 100 km
Cost of fuel: $1,117.74
Maintenance: none
Maintenance costs: none
Things gone wrong (fix): intermittent squeak from middle seat (not looked at, yet)

The Civic is starting to open up some eyes with our younger set of drivers, many of whom readily admit they would not normally give it a second glance.

Some have found the cabin considerably roomier than expected from the sub-compact-like exterior dimensions, while others were surprised by how much “junk” they could fit under the nearly-non-existent trunk lid.

However, they’re also finding that practicality comes with a price. For example, if the trunk needs to be propped open, it pretty much obliterates view out the rear window. Combine that with small and hard to adjust side-view mirrors and it creates a serious visibility issue.

The other grand observation is that the Civic looks absolutely stunning in white. The downside is that it doesn’t stay stunningly white for too long, as every little spec of dirt seems to like to nestle on the painted surfaces, no matter how hard the driver tries to keep it clean.

We've also picked up a couple of serious stone chips right on the leading edge of the hood, which we'll have the dealer touch up at our first maintenance interval.

Economy is stabilizing at around the 8.0 litres per 100 km range, with it currently reading 8.23 L/100 km over exactly 4,200 km (previously, it was just under 8.0, at 7.82). The worst figure to date has been 14.5 over 120 km of mostly stop-and-go driving, and the best being a prolonged 1,200 km (mostly highway) run that netted 6.5.

Total km driven: 4,200 km
Total fuel used: 345.826 litres
Average fuel economy: 8.2 litres per 100 km
Best fuel economy: 6.5 litres per 100 km
Worst fuel economy: 14.5 litres per 100 km
Cost of fuel: $358.98
Maintenance: none
Maintenance costs: none
Things gone wrong (fix): Engine whine under power (nothing - deemed normal); stone-chipping on leading edge of hood (not yet).

I gave the Civic back today. It was a very enjoyable week with the Civic which I have to admit is my favorite out of the 3 testers that we have. I've always made fun of Honda cars for being more expensive, boring, and not offering any incentives like the American car companies to get their cars out of the showrooms. After driving the Civic I realize why they don’t have to do that. Anyone who wants to settle down and have a family will be attracted to the Civic over anything Americans can throw at them with 300 + horsepower. I am not there myself yet, so it’s back to the Mustang (until I can afford the Z06 Corvette).

I swear at one point, I could actually see the gas needle dropping before my eyes. Now this may be a bit of an exaggeration but since I am used to driving a very fuel efficient car (6.0/100km – mixed city/highway driving) it would be a tough sell for anyone who tried to convince me to buy an SUV. The XL7 uses almost double the gas (11.9/100km) of my car and with the XL7 being almost double the price, we could afford to buy a second hatchback and seat 8 in comfort.

Since I drive a lot and our family consists of only three people, we couldn’t justify spending that much money on gas to get us from here to there. Don’t get me wrong though, the XL7 is a very nice vehicle and if we were ever in the market for an SUV, it would certainly be something to consider.

It's time again to say goodbye to the Prius. This was my second week-long sejourn in the car and I continue to feel that if I was in the market for a car, and money was no object, I would seriously consider a Prius. It's important to note, however, that money is an object! Because as much as I love the Prius it is still a rather pricey car.

It's hard to justify paying nearly twice as much as you would for other cars in the same class. Not to dismiss the importance of driving a car that is environmentally sound but unfortunately most of us have financial constraints that dictate what car we buy.

I commented on this the last time round but it's worth noting again: This car is fantastic on gas. Drove it for 6 days; to work and back everyday and quite a bit on the weekend. I filled it up for the first time today and it cost me a mere $15! I was honestly startled by the abrupt jerk of the gas pump when the tank was full. It's a lovely car to drive if you are someone who doesn't like to put a lot of effort into owning and maintaining a vehicle.

We took a trip down to Marineland on the weekend and the navigation system came in quite handy. All we had to do was press the destination button (marked "Dest") and type in the first few letters and it finished the rest with "Marineland". From there it gave verbal directions and showed the route on the large screen. If you miss a turn, it quickly re-calculates the route to make sure you get to your destination so you never have to worry about getting lost. It certainly is a nice feature to have.

I drove a few friends who have not been inside the new Civic as of yet. They were all blown away...I heard comments like "This is huge for a civic" and "accord must be a monster if its better than this", and they are right. Its spacious interior would have only been seen in mid size sedans more than 5 years ago. While its a good car in almost every way I have a few problems with it.

Firstly, its very common. Everyone and their mother is driving this new civic these days. As someone who likes to be different, the Civic fails. Secondly, while it tries to be very stylish, its not very exciting at all. I know that stuff sold by the gram is always more exciting than stuff sold by the pound but come on, ad some danger to the package. The interior looks like a space ship, but not a cool one like the Death Star. It looks like something from Star Trek...very safe a pleasant...telling you "repeat after me - all is well...all is well". The exterior looks good though. Mechanically, the automatic gearbox is not terrible, but it can be quite jerky. And my final beef with the car is the price. This car costs almost 22,000 dollars. If I had that kind of money, I definetly wouldn't settle for a Civic, but would work a little bit harder, and go for the accord or a Nissan Altima.

Also, American made cars in the same class give you a whole lot more horsepower for that kind of money (Chevy Cobalt ss - 170, Dodge Caliber RT - 172) and a lot more features (sunroof, AWD, satellite radio anyone?) And a better warranty... While I am not saying those car are better value, it is something worth thinking about.

When they say “seats 7” I think they mean 5 average sized people and 2 very small people because there is no way my 6’2” husband would fit in the very back. For our family of three though, the XL7 is quite spacious. My husband fits in both front seats comfortably as well as in the back seat. (Just not the back back seats!) We also have plenty of room for all of our gear plus room for more if needed.

Did quite a bit of moving around this weekend and the Prius proved itself to be much more spacious than it looks. On Friday, I drove my mother to the airport. She had a large suitcase, a laptop, a knapsac and a disassembled rocking chair with her. I was impressed with how easily it all fit into the car. The chair itself was quite considerable in terms of its size: it consisted of two couch-sized cushions and the frame which was packaged in a cardboard box. It was pouring rain when we packed up the car and thankfully we were able to fit everything in the car easily and quickly.

On Saturday, I drove my coffee table across town and was pleased to find that I didn't even need to take it apart in order to fit it in the back seat.

The Prius is a very compact looking car, it looks small on the road compared to the sea of SUVs but it is surprisingly spacious.

So I finally had to fill up with the civic and I figured I'd share the numbers with you. I have been driving the civic hard for the last 4 days...an HARD being the key word. Lots of fast city driving...AC blaring all the time... And I went 411 Km on 38L of gas. When you do the math that works out to about 9.2L per 100km. While you may think this is not that good, I assure you its great for the type of driving I did. With my Mustang, and this kind of driving I would get about half the distance compared with the Civic. Plus I don't think I'd get to where I am going any faster since the Mustang tends to under-steer way more and can be rarely driven fast outside of just going in a straight line. After the fill up however, I decided that i will take a trick out of the Toyota Prius's book and try to drive the Civic as economically as possible for the rest of my time with the car. Just to see how good this car can be on gas if you really want it to. I will share this on my last post...

Cars are disappearing before my very eyes! I’m not sure if it's because I am so high up or if it's because the back window is not that large but whenever a smaller car gets too close behind me, it vanishes. I have no problem seeing cars that are in front of me or beside me. It’s just the little guys that sneak up on me that are a problem. My toddler, on the other hand, is loving the view from his car seat in the back as he normally cannot see above the tall doors in our other cars.

After realizing that entire cars go missing, I wonder what it would be like if the garbage and recycling bins were behind me or heaven forbid a small child.

Back in the Prius, and once again convinced that it's the car for me! Not sure why I wasn't struck by its lack of noise last time I drove it: But this time, I can't get over how quiet it is on the road. For the second time now, I've crept up on a jaywalker who jumped out of their socks when they turned around and saw that there was a car behind them.

Another thing that I failed to notice the first time round is that because the Prius is so like a PC (with all of its automated features), it suffers from some of the same drawbacks as a PC: Namely, its finickiness. On Friday, I got into the car after work and wasn't able to start it. I pressed the power button a number of times but to no avail. The car finally did start (after about three attempts at turning it on) but it reminded me of having to reboot a computer. And then again yesterday, I used the GPS to guide me to the airport and even though I changed the settings to not include freeways in the route it selected, it put me on the QEW. Again, it was behaving like a temperamental computer.

I still really enjoying driving the Prius but the experience of driving it is very similar to the experience of owning a new PC, there's a period of education in which you have to learn how it works before you can operate it to your liking.

My co-worker passenger was not fond of the colour combo on this particular XL7. (Keep in mind she’s not a driver so how the car drives was not important to her.) I myself am not a big fan of tan interiors but I do enjoy the leather seats and the fact that they are easy to clean. I do question the combination of tan, grey and faux wood though. I would have preferred it to be all grey I think.



Purple is not a colour I would ever choose for a car but this one is quite dark and under certain light, appears almost black so I don’t mind it that much. I guess that’s the benefit of options - they offer something for everyone.

After driving the civic for 3 days now I can honestly admit, this is a good car. It doesn't blow your mind with anything in particular but it does everything a car should very good. However, I remember the price of this puppy was listed in our blog at 21,830. A friend of mine has the automatic base model of the brand new civic and his costs 17,980, so we decided to compare and see what 4,000 dollars more will get you when buying a Civic. You gets an extra 2 sets of lights in the cabin, side mirrors that are same color as rest of the car, alloy wheels and cruise control...and...thats pretty much it. Oh, and the seats, which are much firmer on the tester but not in a good way as they are quite uncomfortable. So my suggestion when buying a Civic is, don't be fooled by Honda trickery and their "LX"..."EX" badges and stick with the base model. This is basic motoring, and they all drive the same so there is no need to pay for a premium.

The accordion-inspired roll up door in the center console has a real issue. Due to the design, it’s just asking to be a depository for crumbs, dust and the like. I wonder if there is some other way to still have the door roll away but without all the tiny little folds? I think a smooth top would be more appropriate. And what is the purpose of this thing anyway?

My 2 least favorite things about driving are people who don't signal when they are turning left until they stop at the intersection and getting stuck in rush hour. The first thing I noticed while driving the civic yesterday during rush hour is how relaxed and calm I was. I certainly wasn't relaxed because of the awfully hard seats that the Civic comes with, or the quietness(that engine whine is not normal, I don't care what Honda technicians say).
Instead, I was relaxed because I was in Honda Civics natural territory. This car was made to be stuck in A to B, stop and go traffic. Its quite zippy at low speeds and the handling is excellent for cutting people off and creeping up the bumper to bumper traffic. I will bet any money that I can beat Dodge Viper in rush hour traffic from work to my house in a Civic. Good material for Honda when shooting the next Civic commercial...

Where am I to put my sunglasses? Where do backseat passengers put their drinks? Personal storage space is lacking or not in the most appropriate of places in this XL7. I don’t carry a lot in my car but I do like to have my sunglasses handy as well as a place to put my underground parking card which I use every morning to get into the office. I’m used to having it all within reach in the built in cubbies on the dashboard.



Water bottle storage is also an issue. There are only two drink holders in the front seat and they are quite shallow so the bottle tips over whenever you round a big curve or apply the brakes quickly. The drink holders are in the center armrest in the backseat but what happens if you have a third passenger in that spot and need to flip the armrest up? Where do they put their drinks?

Skinnamarink e-dink e-dink
Skinnamarink e-doo
I love you.......

Boy, am I ever loving the radio system on this vehicle. I have a long commute so I spend a lot of time in the car listening to music. I'm a bit of a channel surfer, I don't like to sit through commercials and I don't have time for the songs I don't care for. This particular vehicle offers XM Satellite radio which is a breath of fresh air. There are 15 genres to choose from and within each of those, a plethera of choices. How happy was my three year old son when we came across the kids station!

I'm also enjoying the FM radio just as much. The stations are defined by genre and on many of the stations, the song title and artist are listed which is a great feature. Some stations let you know when a commercial is coming up so you know when it's time to flip and some offer a quick text weather brief. This is certainly making my commute more bearable!

Not that it has anything to do with Hondas specifically but I thought I'd better mention what has been one of the more standout aspects of driving the Civic and that's its colour.

Having driven the car for a week I can safely say that a white car is absolutely impractical. It is impossible to keep clean. Every fleck of dust, oil smudge and nugget of bird turd shows up on this car. It rained for four of the seven days I had in the Civic which made little difference to the car's cleanliness.

I'd advise to those who want a clean-looking car without having to put forth a lot of effort in upkeep to steer clear of white vehicles.

Joe threw me the keys and let me know that the XL7 was in the east parking lot. My mission, to find the car amongst the sea of others without looking like that person at the grocery store who can't remember where they parked their car. I really should have looked online at a picture first before heading out to the lot but it was too late. I could always hit the panic button and let the blaring horn guide me... but I see a co-worker headed to his car and I don't want to look obvious.

I walk up the middle aisle and scan both ways until I see what looks to me like a purple SUV, press the unlock and sure enough, it was the right car. I got settled in okay and seemed to find everything I needed to adjust with ease. (Not the case with the Toyota Prius hybrid which had controls very foreign to me.) I got the engine going and was ready to roll until it was time to shift it into gear. Being unfamiliar with the "feel" of this car, I can't figure out which gear I am in. Why don't the letters light up on the P-R-N-D on the centre console? Where's my visual cue to tell me what gear I am in? Aha, the dashboard has a P-R-N-D indicator. Off I go.....

Thought I’d elaborate on the ample trunk space in the Civic. From the outside, the Civic appears to have a shallow trunk. But after a weekend in the country it proved to be as spacious as any other similar-sized sedan (if not more so). I drove the Civic to Hamilton with two friends for a golf tournament and we fit all of our belongings into the trunk without any difficulty. That included two sets of clubs; three knack sacks, and a bag of groceries. I really like that about the Civic: that it’s a very compact-looking car but that it has as much usable space as you could expect from a car of its size.

On an entirely different note, I had some difficulty with the panic button on the automatic key lock. On the way out of town, I stopped in at a mall to stock up and couldn’t remember where I had parked the car upon exiting the mall. I walked around the lot holding down the panic button and pointing it in every direction but to no avail. When I did find the car (of my own accord), I tried activating the alarm from about 25 feet away and it still didn’t go off.

Used the Honda Civic to transport some smaller home furnishings around today. First off, it was able to fit a bookshelf that wouldn't fit in my mom's Saturn which was a pleasant surprise since they are similarly sized vehicles. Had a bit of a tough time figuring out how to move the backseats down. Unlike most cars (which have a latch by the headrests that unlocks the seat from their upright position, the Civic's latch is located in the trunk which is not exactly convenient.

Driving the bookshelf ended up being a bit of an ordeal largely because it started pouring rain en route and my vision was already obstructed by not having been able to properly close the trunk. The experience revealed two shortcomings of the car. The first being that the side mirrors are very stiff and as a result not easy to adjust. In this instance, I was having to rely on them entirely (since I didn't have access to the back window) so at one point I had to pull over and spend about three minutes fiddling with them. Also found that the car steamed up after about 15 minutes of driving and I had to blast the AC and undo the window to be able to see properly.

We left for our camping trip this morning and we were able to fit four adults and one child into the XL7, however due to our extreme over-packing, we just barely fit. One thing to note is that when a child seat is placed in the center position, it sits very far to the left and does not leave enough room for an adult on either side. The simple solution was to move the child seat to the left and have the adult sit next to each other on the right.



I have never been to this particular campsite before, so having the navigation system was very helpful. I was able to locate the campsite on the map manually, then mark it as the destination with just a few clicks. We needed to stop for some supplies on the way and we were able to add waypoints very easily.

The XL7 also has an auxiliary audio input which allowed us to listen to an iPod the whole way. It is a feature that is mandatory in this day in age, and sorely lacking from my Mazda3 (although the new model has one).

Again, this is a great cruising vehicle and it made the ride very comfortable even at full capacity.

Because we had so much stuff to take in and out of the back, it became clear pretty quickly that the liftgate on the XL7 is one of its weak points. Upon opening, the lift gate swings up with alarming speed and force, and came very close to hitting at least two people in our group.

On the other side, when closing, it is impossible to close with ease and if you need to do it one handed (which is often) it is impossible to do it in one motion. This is extremely annoying and something that I thought car manufacturers had worked out long ago.

We're taking the XL7 on a little camping trip this weekend so we had to do a bunch of running around to get ready. I haven't camped in a few years so I had some equipement deficiencies (like tarp, sleeping bag, camp stove). We are going to go with a couple of friends and their 4 year old, so having the XL7 is nice because we will be able to get all of us there in one vehicle (hopefully).