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Good morning Herndon,

Hyundai just showed off their 3 row Santa Fe at the Los Angeles auto show. That's the only new 3 row I can think of.

I don't think so. You love your diesel Jetta. You'll be just as pleased with another VW diesel product. Besides, I believe that diesel vehicles will bring a higher resale value.

In which case, you should also consider the excellently executed Kia Optima, first cousin to the Azera. Both are Hyundai Motor Co.'s Buick. (Hyundai owns Kia). The Genesis is Hyundai's Cadillac.

I think that's a fair bet. The Rondo was a sales flop in the US. It did well in Europe.

Mine is the Vlkswagen Jetta TDi

I was in Los Angeles and saw a couple of them being driven around. I also just heard they were raising the price.

The C-Max is already being sold, in fact Ford told me that the C-Max outsold the Prius V last month.

The C-max is a 2.0-liter while the Prius III is a 1.8-liter 4-cylinder. It depends on what options you get how the two fare out, but they start out pretty equal in price. 

Hey, John. Both Ford and GM, and even Chrysler with its Ram trucks, are doing better in California. The maxim holds: It's the product, stupid. Better products equals better sales.

Congratulations on your new baby. Kindly have another. You'll appreciate them more the older you get. In the interim, consider the usual suspects: Honda CR-V, Hyundai Santa Fe, Toyota Rav-4, Chevrolet Equinox, Ford Escape. Good luck.

Thank you.

Yes, we had to get a dog ramp awhile back. (You can get a durable one from Costco)

Cars are all about meeting the lifestyle you have. If you give us that information we can help.

Enjoy your new vehicle and your dog. Keep checking in.

Quite well for most of them. I am a frequent traveler of the usually well-policed Interstate 87, where the average speed, nonetheless, usually exceeds 70 mph. The new four-cylinder jobs do quite well in that traffic. To get to our house here in Cornwall, NY, we have to climb the  steep Mine Hill Road, some 600 feet above sea-level, if I remember correctly. Most four-cylinder models, the new ones, handle that job quite well.

Yes and Yes. I truly believe that all things BMW are worth the look. I haven't driven a bad one yet.

It is the question that people asked at the auto show. It is my understanding that Tesla gets money for being around and producing beautiful electric vehicles. I was told by a California Air Resources Board person that other car companies buy clean credits from Tesla, a sort of cap and trade.

No one knows, but everyone wonders.

There is no problem with the car, per se. It's a popular brand, especially the 2013 model. I think Ford underestimated demand, which means waiting longer for production and distribution. It will come. My hunch is that your dealer is giving you honest arrival guesses that he/she shouldn't make.

Yes, and what a wonderful difference it is! Substantially more torque, better mpg. Possibly slower starts in winter. But, overall, more fun to drive. And the new diesels are much cleaner and quieter than their predecessors.

I was at an analyst meeting and John Humphreys from JD Power and Associates said that car dealers could make or break a car deal and that car dealers needed to step up their game.

I can tell you that Audi wants your car deal and that I will pass this chat onto my friend, Brad, after the chat. Email me lou at carlist.com and I will try to help.

Luxury vehicles are very competitive. I was talking to Mark Templin, President of Lexus. On the back of his business card he says that if anyone knows of someone that is unhappy as an owner of a Lexus product he wants to know.

Buying a luxury car comes with a price tag, but it also comes with the benefit of a more personal service/touch.

email me.

Of course, tax dollars help build cars..and protect you in them. Governments worldwide greatly influence the design and engineering of cars in terms of safety, fuel economy, and emissions. To do that, governments need money. They get that money from you and me. Taxes.

I don't think so. Car manufacturers are using lighter weight materials such a aluminum and carbon fiber (BMW owns part of a carbon fiber company in WA).And NHTSA is in constant communication with all car manufacturers about new safety regulations. Trust me, there are plenty coming down the pike.

What would compromise safety is the infotainment systems that are being put onboard cars. The GEN Y group wants that infotainment and won't buy a car without it. That is why Chevy is bringing out SIRI on the Spark and Sonic. Two small cars made for GEN Y. Voice activiation is going to be the key for all these cars.

That and more safety.

Sje wants a crossover, which is a station wagon and minivan by another name. Just cooler in terms of image. My favorites in terms of best three-row comfort and versatility are the Chevrolet Traverse, GMC Enclave (high cool factor), and Buick Enclave (luxury). But I notice that many women also prefer the Mazda CX-9.

Yiu are right. We thank you.

Yes, the fit has good fuel economy, surprising utility, and is fun to drive. Ask your dealer to do a "dealer exchange" if he/she can't find one locally.

Look at the new 3 row Hyundai Santa Fe long-wheelbase . It is powered by 3.3L direct-injection V-6 engine that is on the new Azera large sedan which  produces 290 hp and is supposed to get 26 mpg.

Sometimes we forget to mention the obvious ones :)

Thanks for the reminder

Black attracts sunlight. It would feel hotter. Try buying a light colored cover for the drivers seat if it is an issue. Easy, cheaper fix than buying a new car.

You are not a sucker. But you do have a problem. It is one of outsized expectations and, apparently, not terribly competent technicians.

Outsized expectation: Very few dealers will offer you a loaner for what they expect to be a quick and easy job.

Dealer outsive expectation: Very few repair jobs, especiall those involving diagnostic computer testing, are ever quick and easy. Something elese always seems to go wrong.

Poor customer handling: The dealer should ask for more time to correctly solved the problem. If that takes another day or two, the dealership should allow you to have a loaner.

My first inclination is to point you toward a compact GMC, Chevrolet Equinox, or Hyundai Santa Fe. You want to spend more? I'd go with the Audi Q5.

You are a rarity. Rarities are not the stuff of most successful business plans.

I have always been told that you should be able to put your wrists over the top of the steering wheel for maximum driving safety.

For airbags they say to sit back as far as possible and recline your seat. How can you do that and drive safely?

Last time I checked less than 150 people had been killed by the force of an airbag.

Wear your seatbelt, fit yourself so that you can see everything around you and drive safely.

It is a global industry. Taxes are money and money is fungible. I wouldn't be surprised to find Finnish tax dollars are financing something in the U.S. auto industry, which is a global trading partner with many, many foreign suppliers. Tax dollars in those countries help to fund the developments of new widgets that are then sold abroad. The same thing happens in the United States.

The new Mazda 6 wil have a diesel version.

It is because the Santa Fe is such an excellent compact wagon/suv. Butif you can get a better moneydeal on a Nissan Rogue, buy it. It's also good.

great question. Scion was brought out as a sort of skunkworks group for Toyota. Scion was the first real group that understood that young people were adding aftermarket products to their car. Instead of having young people do that, and miss the sell and financing for those parts, Scion made them available as part of the purchase, and financing, price.

I think Scion will stay. Toyota needs to step up the marketing though.

Dealer-applied undercoating and "environmental protection package" are wastes of money. I've been in automobile plants all over the world, including in Sao Paulo. Every painting and coating operation I witnessed included multiple undercoatings and multiple layers of extrior protection. Why do it again at extra cost?