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You're not beholden to software to drive your car, you get to control the car.

It's cheaper to overhaul and more fun to drive.

Honda Civic, Toyota Corolla, Ford Fusion, Chevrolet Malibu, Hyundai Elantra,....The list is endless. Which is why Mercedes-Benz is being forced to enter that segment.

Autotrain is fine. Get available "trip insurance" to assure peace of mind.

Probably, yes, you are fooling yourself. Welcome to the burgeoning world of computers and sensors, which operate more quickly and more effficiently than you can shift--which is why many automatics today are more efficient than manuals, and which is why many manuals are more efficient, too.

This is what happens when people can see the end of a loan in sight. They start trying to decide what they want, but they have to justify why they hate their old car.

It's why we tell you to buy the very best you can when you are buying, because you will get tired of it after awhile. I love manuals, but they don't conform to my lifestyle, too many hills in my area and I love to drink coffee and drive.

What else do you not like about the car? Start making a list. Pay off the loan, that will give you the ability to trade in or sell yourself. If you sell yourself you might get a little more money, but there are security concerns. I should do a story on how to sell your car as a private individual. (I won't have a garage sell because I don't want people coming to my house!)

Keep the stick shift till you find something you can't live without, but let's start narrowing your choices now. Tell us what you're thinking of buying.

Good luck on your "girls only" weekend. Save money, buy the new Pathfinder and be happy. It is not much different from the sibling Infiniti JX. Best kuxury kind of SUV is the Mercedes-Benz GLK. You'll love it.

According to Bob Carter, senior vice president of automotive operations for Toyota Motor Sales (TMS), (TMC is global, TMS is US) there have not been that many people that have needed to replace their battery. I ask him everytime I see him. And the recycle rate is somewhere around 98-99%. It might be because on the front of the battery there is an 800 number that says that if you return the battery you get X amount of dollars. I think it's $200, but if you have a Prius go look.

I'd take the new Accord V6, which offers as much as the TSX at a slightly better price. Acura, like most auto luxury divisions, exists primarily because of marketing.

Take a look at the Ford C-Max or the Kia Sorento. Both are compact, gifted utilitarians available at reasonable prices. The interiors aren't glam. But they are certainly suitable, Accept compromise.

Whenever someone trades in the first car for another car, is the first quick answer.But you see a large amount of them after about 2 years.

I am urging my readers to contact both the White House, as I have done previously, and Congress, as I am doing today. And it is expressly related to cars, as indicated by Experian's report in a slight uptick in delinquent auto loans of 60 days are more. Many of those delinquencies are with long out-of-work people who bought replacement vehicles when they finally got jobs. Those jobs are now in jeopardy because of Congressional foolishness. The White House has a role to play, yes. The bottom line is that politicians, right, left, Republican, Democrat, need to put aside their ideologies, get off their tails and do what the people sent them to Washington to do.

Lokk at price, recharge times, the amount of distance that can be traveled on a single chargem whether or not the vehicle in question has fossil fuel assistance. (That is, is it oure electric, plug-in electric with fossil-fuel assist, or non-plug-in gas-electric).

When it cost more to repair than it's worth. Both Warren and I love new cars, but we don't want you to run into financial ruin because of a car. You've had your cars (if you bought them new) for 9-10 years. If you look at how much you can get for them as a trade-in versus how much you would have to put into them to fix them, then you can decide when it is time to trade them in. If you're having issues already, now is the time to start looking so that you can get the best deal for the car you truley want.

Spring is a good time, people are out and about. Don't do it in the fall before the new cars show up.

Value is based on the amount of miles driven and how well you've kept the car. If it has been garaged, let people know. If you have receipts to show the car was fixed, let people know.

I'd look at a used Nissan Xterra, Ford Escape, Hyundai Santa Fe, Subaru Forester, something alon that line. I'd shop at Carmax for best used-vehicle value, variety and warranty. Or Autonation.

Nope. That whis is most popular usually comes with a higher price.

Politely, that's baloney. Many of the sequester cuts will ham-chop the oldest and the poorest. It will also cut in the wrong places on defense. The way Congress is going about this is as stupid as my "austerity" decision to arbitrarily axe a snow-plowing contract at our home in Cornwall, NY.  Now, I either have to risk a heart attack or broken limb to remove the stuff. Dumb.

Coming soon with new entry-level MB.

MB is planning to intro its new, "affordable" CLA compact in the US, soon.

I, like you, am waiting for the MBZ A-Class. I saw it in Stuttgart, Germany and love the design. It is projected to come to the United States in 2014.

More hatchback. Probably more fun.

I offer this answer based on proof of experience. Our house in Cornwall, N.Y. sits about three-fourths up the way of the very steep Mine Hill Road. We use a Subaru Outback (circa 2002) to get up and down the road in all kinds of sloppy weather. All-wheel-drive should be sufficient for you, too.

Ah, my friend, you are blinded by your anti-Obama bias. I think the majority of the nation's voters have already spoken on that issue.  Congress, controlled in the House by the Republicans and repeatedly bolixed in the Senate by the same party, which once claimed my loyalty when it behaved as the Party of Lincoln, has blocked a common sense approach to budget-making at every turn.

In the real world, we try to improve income AND cut unnecessary spending. But, first, we make sure what is necessary and unnecessary. That helps us avoid doing STUPID things like arbitrarily canceling annual snow-plow fees on the mistaken belief that it is going to be a mild winter.

Answered.

I think there are people who are so angry at Congress, and the White House, that they want to sequestration. How much of this is a political ploy of democrats versus republicans? I have never seen such division in Congress and it is the American people who are going to be hurt. Do we need budget cuts? Yes. Does it need to be the sequestration budget cuts? I don't know.

All I'm saying is that our politicians--Democra, Republican, Independent--supposedly are intelligent people. I'm asking that we demand them to act intelligently. They can start by listening to business people, small and large, nationwide. What are they saying about all of this? What are they actually doing in anticipation of sequester? What do the Experian auto loan delinquency numbers mean?

It's a matter of weight versus cost. If it weighs more to fix a component that is going to be good for 8 years (since your car is a 2005), or meeting the cost they need, they are going to do what is necessary.

Warren enjoys answering your questions and appreciates that you enjoy his answer.