The bad news is that my car was rear-ended and totaled; the good news is that we got to go shoppin’.  I’m really not much of a shopper, but it was pretty fun to try out some new wheels.

Safety

My starting point for selecting a new car is its safety rating.  Both the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS) and the National Highway Transportation Safety Administration (NHTSA) publish safety ratings for dozens of car models.  I have a slight preference for the government organization since they would seem to be more objective, but the IIHS publishes a convenient list of their favorites.  I don’t know if the car manufacturers can get on the list by flashing a little cash, but the IIHS choices seem to agree well with the government’s list.

The two organizations seem to have slightly different testing methods:  the IIHS bashes weights into the car, while the NHTSA drives the car into barriers.  Instrumented dummies inside the vehicle measure the actual impact of the crash.  The government wins for thoroughness. Read the rest of this entry »

Tags: collision insurance, new car, Subaru, used car, Volkswagen

A recent proposal to stimulate the economy would pay car owners $1,500 – 4,500 to crush old, inefficient cars and buy a new one.  Let’s look at the economics and environmental impact of this initiative. Read the rest of this entry »

Tags: crush cars, economic stimulus, Outback, rebate, six gallons of gas melts a car, Subaru