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IntelliChoice Value Rating
The chart above shows the purchase price versus ownership cost for each car from a specific vehicle class. The cars with better than average ownership cost/purchase price correlations are the best values, and these best value cars are represented by the dots below the curve. (i.e. the cars that have a lower ownership cost compared to its purchase price.) Those cars, which are worse than average or poor values, appear above the curve.
One way to view the graph is to draw a vertical line through any purchase price. You may see several dots that fall on this line - each of which is a car with a similar purchase price. However, notice the difference in ownership costs of each car represented by the vertical position of the dot. Two cars with the same purchase price can have thousands of dollars difference in ownership costs. This is what separates "good value" cars from "poor value" cars.
What is a good car value?
A "good car value" is one whose cost to own and operate is less than expected. The lower the cost to own and operate a car compared to what is expected, the better the value of that car.
But how do we know a car's "expected cost"?
For each car in the class, IntelliChoice plots the car's purchase price against the total five-year cost to own and operate it as determined by IntelliChoice research. Each dot on the above chart represents a specific car. Generally, we find that as the purchase price of the car increases, the cost to own and operate that car increases. This is why the dots on the graph tend to rise upward and to the right. This phenomenon also makes intuitive sense - as the purchase price rises, financing costs tend to rise, as do insurance, depreciation, taxes, and most other car ownership costs.
This is an important concept. It's normal for car ownership costs to rise as purchase price rises. Therefore, we can't just establish one "average" ownership cost number for each class, since cars in the class have different purchase prices. (This is why the "Relative" shown on each chart is different for cars in the same car class.)
Using statistical techniques, IntelliChoice "connects the dots" to form a curve that defines, for this car class, the relationship between the car's purchase price and car's ownership costs. This curve is our "expected cost" curve. The curve defines, for any car in the class, the five-year ownership cost that we would expect to see at each possible purchase price. If every car in the class were an average value, then all the dots would fall exactly on the curve. However, it's rare that any dot is exactly on the curve. Some dots are a little higher or lower, and some are a lot higher or lower. The dots that are a little lower are better than average car values, while the dots that are a lot lower are excellent car values (A dot that is a lot lower than the curve has ownership costs much lower than expected for a car of its purchase price). Conversely, a dot a little higher than the curve is a poorer than average car value, while a dot that is much higher than the curve is a poor car value.
Value is a relative term, not an absolute term. It is performing better than the logical expectation.
So is a Mercedes-Benz E320 expensive to own and operate? Certainly in an absolute sense. Most other cars cost less. But, when its cost to own and operate is plotted against cars with comparable invoice prices, the E320 costs less. So the E320 is not expensive to own and operate - it is a good car value. The Mercedes does not have low ownership costs, but it has low ownership costs for its invoice price.
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2008 Subaru Impreza Review
All-new, refined performance and practicality.
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Interior
Inside, the redesigned 2008 WRX is a bit roomier and a lot nicer than the previous-generation model. Since its introduction in the late 1990s, the WRX has been more about the go than the accommodations, but this new one puts things on more equal terms. Features, too, are more upscale. Niceties such as a sophisticated anti-theft system, cabin air filtration and an outside temperature gauge come standard, while a navigation system is optional.The front bucket seats in the standard WRX are upholstered with a soft, woven fabric, double stitched in the fashion of a luxury car. At least as important, these seats provide a good compromise between support and comfort. There's enough side bolstering top and bottom to keep occupants snug during fairly aggressive driving, but there's also plenty of give in the cushions. The leather/Alcantara seats in the STi are more like aftermarket performance seats, which means harder and more heavily bolstered. They're even better for hard driving, but the snugger fit leaves less squirm room during longer, more relaxed travel, and they demand more energy to climb in and out of. Seat adjustments are fairly simple, but also effective, allowing people of various sizes to get properly situated. Overall, the WRX driving position is excellent. Most drivers will be able to reach all controls, including those for adjusting side mirrors, without lifting head or shoulders from the seatback. One minor gripe regarding the armrests: They're positioned such that each elbow rests at a slightly different height.
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Overall the cabin is more subdued than before, with no embroidered logos to remind occupants what they're sitting in. The gauges are less garish, too, but easy to read and backlit with orange light. The trim is a metal-ized silver plastic. You can find more attractively grained plastics and maybe richer looking trim materials in this price range, but nothing in the WRX looks cheap enough to kill the deal. That's at least partly because the dashboard layout is so straightforward and effective. Subaru calls the dash a twin cockpit design. Translation: The size and shape are roughly symmetrical on both the driver and passenger sides, with a big, outreaching center stack in the middle. All the gauges are clustered in a single binnacle directly in front of the driver. The four dash vents are fully adjustable and large enough to move plenty of air. An LCD information display sits under its own hood at the top of the center stack, with temperature indicator, time and other information. At the bottom sit three big climate-control knobs: one each for temperature, airflow direction and fan speed, easy to grab with barely a peripheral glance, operating with a nice tactile sensation that conveys the amount of adjustment. In between is the standard audio head or the optional nav screen. Both are good sized and easy to manipulate. While the audio knobs aren't as big as those for the air conditioning, most adjustments are replicated with buttons on the steering wheel spokes. Interior storage is average and easily accessible. The glove box is deep, holding more stuff than most, and there's a lined bin in front of the gearshift for phones, openers or glasses. A pair of cupholders sits in the center console, just right of the handbrake and hidden with a sliding cover in the STi. Another cupholder in each door pocket is large enough for a 24-ounce bottle. The box in the center console has jacks for MP3 players and a power point. Models with the navigation system also feature a video jack. This allows video games or DVD players to project on the nav screen, but only when the car is parked. In all, this WRX feels less confining, perhaps more airy, than the previous generation. The glass seems more expansive, even though the side windows are now framed in the doors, rather than pressed against weather-stripping on the roof and roof columns, coupe style. In front, the feeling of space is most noticeable in the extra distance between occupants' shoulders. In back it's a bit more hip room and more headroom. The rear door openings are larger than before, and shaped in a way that eliminates the big head bob required to get into the previous WRX. Sliding in and out is easier. The rear seatback is not so upright, either, and reclined at a more comfortable angle. There's room enough here for a couple of six-footers to stay comfortable for a reasonable period of time, though not enough for three. If the outside rear seats are occupied, the middle spot is best left to a youngster. Trunk space? With 11.3 cubic feet, the WRX sedan falls toward the lower end of its size class, with a bit less than the less-expensive Honda Civic Si sedan or the more expensive BMW 328i (both 12 cubic feet). Still, the WRX's rear seatback splits and folds forward. With the 60-percent portion laid flat, there's enough room to slide two golf bags in through the trunk, and still leave room for a third passenger. Cargo space in the five-door hatch is another story. The basic profile is different than that of the previous Impreza wagon, with more taper to the rear glass than a conventional, boxy wagon shape. Point being, there's less cargo space than the wagon offered. Nonetheless, with 19 cubic feet, rear seat up, there's a lot more space than what's available in the typical small sedan's truck. The hatchback also allows taller objects to be contained with the car. And when the rear seat is folded cargo capacity expands to 44 cubic feet, with easy access from the rear side doors to help push things in and out. next page |
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Exclusive: 2002 Rim of the World Rally
Feeling like a revival of the muscle-car war between the Chevrolet Camaro and Ford Mustang, the new recruits from the Hyundai, Mitsubishi, and Subaru camps look all too ready for a performance war. Th...
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