2009 Ford Ranger

Easy on the budget and gas pump, the Ranger appeals to a growing demograph of young working men and women who want to be able to keep more of their paycheck.

The Ranger comes in a variety of trims that will suit most buyers. Personally, I would recommend the 4X4 Off-Road Ranger. It’s more suited to haul heavier loads and can go pretty much anywhere. It comes with the available 4.0L V6 207-hp engine. And that’s plenty enough power for a truck this size. Mileage is great too – at 14.3L/100km in the city and 10.7L/100km on the highway you’ll be able to save even more of your money.

The starting price for the 2009 Ford Ranger is a a decent $15,000 for the base model. That figure can jump significantly to about $25,000 for the fully loaded 4X4 Super Cab. If interested check one out at your nearest Ford dealership today.

Image: Ford.com

Post from: EveryJoe

2009 Ford Ranger

2009 Ford F-450 Cabela

With market research showing that 76% of Super Duty buyers were the hunter/fisher enthusiasts (I could have told them that), Ford decided to change it’s design to better suit the market. Their partnership with Cabela proved successful and have helped Ford boost it’s market sales. The Ford Cabela only comes in three colors, green, red and grey and have special edition leather seats and special trims.

My favorite special edition Ford, the Harley-Davidson F-450 comes in the Harley colors of orange and black. The interior leather seats are laced with Harley logo’s.

No matter what type of Ford F-Series Super Duty you’re into, they come with the available 6.4L V8 350-hp twin-turbo diesel engine. Not the most powerful engine for a truck this size, but it’s powerful low-end torque makes it perfect for towing heavy loads on the highway.

Image: Ford.com

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2009 Ford F-Series Super Duty Cabela

2009 Dodge Ram 1500

The Dodge Ram was designed with family vacationers in mind. The crewcab is spacious enough for children and has a Sirius TV and screen to help keep them occupied. The heavy towing capacity is helped by the many available engines including the very powerful 5.7L HEMI.

If safety is your thing you’ll love that the Dodge Ram five star crash rating and the highest five star government frontal crash test rating. It features a sway and rollover control so that you will always have full control over the road.

Find out more about the new 2009 Dodge Ram 1500 at your local Dodge dealer.

Image: dodge.com

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2009 Dodge Ram 1500

This large SUV has the power you would expect from a Dodge but also has the efficiency of a lighter car. The Durango can achieve 20mpg in the city and 22 mpg out on the highway.

2009 Dodge Durango

This is not a spectacular mpg rating though it is impressive for a large SUV. Dodge has also introduced a new technology called Multiple-Displacement System or MDS. What this basically does is turn of fuel flow to select cylinders when the power isn’t needed. This is done automatically by the engine and improves efficiency by as much as 20% – not bad. The starting price for the Durango is about $28,980.

Image: Dodge.com

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2009 Dodge Durango Hybrid

Best case scenario? Demand picks up and they boost production. Worst case scenario? They don’t sell, and GM closes the plant in the not-so-distant future.

The Silverado and Sierra hybrids are expected out by the end of 2008. The new two-mode hybrid system should boost fuel efficiency by 40% during city driving. You can find out more here.

Source: CTV.ca, NewCarTestDrive.com

[Image: Newscom]

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GM reverses decision, hybrid trucks in Oshawa

It makes sense to me that they’d scrap their vehicles that aren’t selling, and redesign classics to meet modern needs … but Why close a hybrid truck plant when gas prices are driving sales down? I know GM has made the Volt their #1 priority, but trucks are functional vehicles people are going to need, and they’re going to buy, but they’re not going to have better options. (Especially while they’re making hybrid SUVs that aren’t selling.)

Source: Car and Driver

Don’t forget about our contests and upcoming interview this month.

Let’s hear your questions!

[Image: Newscom]

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GM to Stop Making Hummers??

As much of a problem as I give their marketing team, UPS has done a wonderful job of trying to keep their emissions down by utilizing the technology at hand. In fact, they’re trying to become part of the solution by working with the EPA on developing new vehicles meant for deliveries.

Recently the delivery company purchase 200 new hybrid electric vehicles, set for delivery in 2009, and another 300 vehicles that operate on compressed natural gas. That order is tremendous, and increases their “alternative” fleet by 30%.

In the last year, UPS has also added over 40 ZAP electric vehicles, and 300 trucks which can run off compressed natural gas or propane to their fleet. The recent order should prevent hundreds of thousands of pounds in emissions from being released each year.

UPS may still have thousands of gas-guzzling, emissions-belching trucks on the road, but they are committed to making the differences that they can. Not entirely altruistic on their part, the move to alternative vehicles is also saving them a tremendous amount in fuel costs each year.

It’s a phenomenal move, and one that will hopefully catch on with other delivery companies.

[Sources: BizJournal, Greenbiz ]

Post from: EveryJoe

UPS Leads Fuel Efficient Delivery Companies

The Xebra is an adorable, fun little car … but it is little. You can’t ride it on highways, and you may be stuck at 25-30 mph up steep hills. They have a range around 20 miles, and take several hours to fully charge. I’ve also heard they don’t do very well in cold weather.

However, and this goes double if you can hook it up to a solar system, you really cut down on emissions. There is a variety of options – 4 seater in the SD, or 2 seater with a truck back in the PK, they also come with upgraded battery, charger and solar panel (Xero) options. Also, sometimes you can find cheap, gently used models on eBay for thousands less than (their already inexpensive) price.

You can also check out some owner and more informational pages at Xebraworld.com. Damn. This makes me want one all over again. One thing that you’ll enjoy about this car if you’re into tinkering, is that they can be modded over and over again. Add this here and that there, and there’s a strong community of geeks (COMPLIMENT! lol) to help it happen.

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For Alden: Pros and Cons on the Zap Xebra

You can see my previous post on the Current Offers and Rebates tool to find deals in your area.
If you’re in the market for a new 2007 or 2008 model, these are the most fuel efficient cars currently for sale:

2007/2008 Subcompact, compact cars

2007/2008 Family sedans

2007/2008 Wagons & Crossovers

2007/2008 SUVs

2007/2008 Minivans

2007/2008 Trucks

I apologize in advance, because the following may be a flood of related posts. I hope no one will be too aggravated. :)

Post from: EveryJoe

Best Fuel Efficiency 2007 & 2008