At the start of March 2012 California had gas prices shoot up 6 cents in just one evening to $4.20 for a gallon of regular unleaded. According to AAA that is now the average for the entire state, also that is up a quarter from the week before, that had a price of $3.95. Our nation’s average per gallon rose 3 cents overnight and 12 cents in a week up to $3.64. Pictures around California are showing up everywhere with prices around $4.39 per gallon of regular.

Prices have been steadily declining nationwide since May of 2011, where they hovered around the $4 mark. That was after last years rapid surge in gas prices between February and March, where gas prices rose nearly 40 cents in a month. The main difference this year is that the average price before the rise is much higher, about 20 cents on average. Although there are higher prices, drivers shouldn’t start to panic.

While prices did hit $4.00 on a national average by summer, there are ways to drive smart and more fuel efficient.

Car shoppers should not rush out to trade in their gas guzzlers for a high mileage car just because of the higher prices at the pump. If you were already in the market for a new car, then choosing a better fuel efficient car is a wonderful idea, but trading in a care before it makes financial sense to do so will not help your budget at all. There are also a few deals out for efficient models like the Hyundai Elantra. Let’s hope the past three years of up and down gas prices have hardened us all to today’s prices. Automakers have also upped their mileage during that time.

There are 18 2012 models with 40-mpg highway EPA figures that run on regular gas. That doesn’t include eight other EVs and diesel models. In 2008, there were only three.

Some Automakers have been discussing doing away with one large piece of equipment from future cars in an attempt to make cars lighter and to obtain a higher fuel efficiency. Most consumers wouldn’t realize that it is gone until they have been stranded on the side of the road, boggled as to where their spare tire is. Over the last few years many automakers have begun removing spare tires from the trunk. Some car companies have today are making a spare tire an option for the consumer and having it cost as much as $ 350.

Taking out the spare tire will not only help fuel economy but could also eliminate the danger of standing on the highway shoulder while trying to change your tire while other vehicles fly by. Nobody keeps an exact record of how many people die every year while changing their tires on the road, but roughly 4,000 pedestrians die each year according to the government’s Fatality Analysis Reporting System encyclopedia. About 700 of those 4,000  pedestrians are people working on the roadway.

Most consumers would be shocked to find an empty area where a spare tire would normally be in their trunk, the industry says that it is not unsafe to go without. Since 2006 it has been mandatory for all cars to have tire pressure monitoring systems, this should alert all drivers before their tires deflate. A blowout  is rare, and even if the tire happens to become punctured on the side wall, most drivers have a cell phone or access to emergency services in their vehicles.

Terry Connolly, General Motors Director of Tire and Wheel systems, said “ Getting rid of the spare tire, something so important, wasn’t a decision we made lightly.” “The Universal implementation of tire pressure monitoring systems over the past five years has significantly reduced the likelihood that a flat tire will leave you stranded on the side of the road.”

Chevy, of which is owned by GM, has already eliminated the spare tire on the Chevy Cruze when it made its debut last year, and they also began offering it as an option for $100. Out of their 2011 sales. 85% of customers bought the spare tire option said Chevy. So now they have decided to make it standard equipment again on all Chevy Cruze models except their Eco version. On the Eco version you cannot even purchase a spare tire as a option.

The auto industry as a whole is under massive pressure to increase fuel economy. One of the ways that they can do that is by reducing vehicle weight, and when you start looking at heavy items that can be tossed, the spare tire seemed like the obvious choice.

There are many models that don’t have spare tires standard, including almost every vehicle that comes with a run-flat tire. If you want to get a spare tire on a Cadillac CTS you will have to spend $350. The spare tire option for a Fiat 500 is $100. For the Ford Focus and for the Honda Fit you have no option in Canada, but here in the U.S. you do have the option. Some versions of the Ford Mustang, Chevy Camaro ZL1 and the Audi TT don’t come with them either. The All-wheel drive versions of the Toyota Sienna do not come with spare wither, but they are equipped with run-flat tires.

Run-flat tires seem to be a great compromise of fuel efficiency concerns and the consumers desire to have a large “just in case” tire. In the beginning they cause problems though, they wore out quickly and were very expensive to replace. Also consumers complained that they received flat tires more often with run flat tires than with normal tires. And then they had a hard time finding new run flat tires at dealers. They can also produce harsher rides, which is extremely troublesome since road conditions in snow states have gotten worse in the last few years.

The latest versions of the tires seem to have fixed some of the problems, says Jennifer Stockburger, program manager of vehicle and child safety at Consumer Reports. Consumer Reports has been tracking run-flat tire wear since 2007, when drivers began complaining about their quality. She said part of the problem was people didn’t know that they even had them.

“They weren’t aware they didn’t have a spare tire until something happened,” she said. “And then they found out about all these extra problems.” Now, though, run flat tires can last around 40,000 miles if the consumer takes care of them diligently. Consumer Reports has been keeping the tires inflated properly and rotating them on schedule, and Stockburger says that haven’t had any problems with their tires.

Stockburger says that she feels safer in a car with run flat tires than in one with no spare but an inflator kit. Inflator kits do not help if your tire is damaged on its sidewall. Where as run flat tires give you the ability to get to a safe place, off the side of the road, or even many miles down the road to a service station. Not having a spare tire at all can cause you to be stranded if the side wall of the tire has been damaged, or there is no cell signal.

“We don’t realize that people living in truly rural areas sometimes don’t have a cell signal,” She says.
AAA expects 1.2 million people will place a call for help this summer 2012. Many will be drivers with flats, but the agency says that many of those could have been avoided if people maintained their tires properly.

AAA recommends that drivers who buy a care without a spare tire take into consideration what kinds of road they travel on. “ Not having a conventional spare tire would probably not be advisable if  an individual travels long distances and on lightly traveled roads,” says Mike Calkins, AAA’s national manager of approved auto repair. But they also say if most of your driving is on urban or suburban roads you could probably do without.

A membership to AAA costs on average $50, depending on your location. AAA frequently responds to calls where drivers do not have a spare tire, or where they have a spare but it is unusable. If they have a slow leak, they try to air up the tire and then follow the driver to a nearby repair shop. Some AAA clubs can repair tires on the spot and if that fails, AAA will tow or flatbed the vehicle to a repair shop.

Even though there are alternatives to having a spare tire, some customers are uncomfortable with the very idea of it. Tim Huckaby, from Fort Worth, Texas, says that he simply  will not buy a car without a spare.  He has had to change tires by the side of the road multiple times and therefore cannot see going without one. “It has come in handy so many times…I want and need the spare,” he said.

The turnaround for Hyundai is being ranked as one of the most impressive business turnarounds of the past quarter century. Hyundai Motors used to be a punch line of many jokes, my how that has changed, now they are fighting it out for superiority in the Unites States market.

The Hyundai Elantra sedan was voted the North American Car of the Year for 2011, Hyundai was  No. 6 in US car and light truck sales in 2011, both of these are examples of how far this company has come.  If you were to total Hyundai and it’s sibling Kia’s sales for 2011,  they would have been No.4 overall, just behind Ford Motor Company, Chevrolet and Toyota, all makes that have pickup trucks making up significant parts of their annual sales.

This growth doesn’t appear to be slowing down any time soon. Early this month at the 2012 Chicago Auto Show, Hyundai President and CEO John Krafcik premiered two adaptations of their Elantra sedan, a 2-door coupe and a 5-door GT hatchback.

Cars.com’s executive editor, Joe Weisenfelder accounts Hyundai’s sucesss into a simple explanation. “Hyundai encapsulates the saying that industry executives always use; namely, ‘It’s a;; about product.’ They use product in the singular and say ‘There’s no problem that product can’t solve.’ They always use that line, then they throw lots of money into the marketing budget instead,” he said.

“And Hyundai’s product has become very good. They worked relentlessly on their shortcomings and got to where they were doing pretty well with quality and features, but they were still a little behind on things like fuel economy and crash test.” Alas, no longer.

“Look at the most recent products, the Sonata and the Elantra. They’ve got good crash test results, and fuel efficiency is quite high. We can argue EPA ratings but the Elantra is rates as 40 miles per gallon on the highway with either manual or automatic transmission. Some of their competitors are advertising that 40 mpg, too, but often it’s with a special version such as the Cruze ECO or the Focus SFE.” says Weisenfelder.

Hyundai’s CEO, Krafcik, addressed the mpg features at the Chicago Auto Show, bringing attention to a Popular Mechanics test of the Elantra and the Ford Focus. “At 55 mph the Elantra achieved 47.6 mpg and the Focus 47.5,” he said. “Then, at 70 mph, the Elantra got 39.3 mph and the Focus 33.5.”

While premiering the coupe and the GT hatchback, Hyundai’s vice president of product and corporate planning, Michael O’Brien, said that as American consumers begin considering downsizing for fuel efficiency, they will still want premium content and options.

So why did they go with a coupe? Michael O’Brien says, “Singles don’t want a sedan because that screams ‘family’” “And driving enthusiasts will be attracted to the GT because it has European driving characteristics, emotional and streamlined styling and more interior space than competitors for an active lifestyle.”

Krafcik didn’t seem to falter when President Obama announced his fleet goal  of 54.5 mpg by 2025, noting that Hyundai had a 36.1 fleet average in 2011, a number that increased to 36.7 January 2012. “We’ve got six variants with 40 mph ratings, he said, enumerating them: the Accent sedan and 5-door, the Veloster, the Elantra coupe and sedan and the Sonata hybrid.

In January 2012 Hyundai announced a lifetime hybrid battery guarantee for the 2012 Sonata hybrid, which is an industry first. This is vaguely reminiscent of the 10 year, 100,000 mile warranty that the company used, and still do, to attract buyers as it originally climbed back from nonexistence. Hyundai’s O’Brien says, “Even with all the hybrid vehicle options on the market today, there is still limited demand for these vehicles because of barriers to customer adoption such as a certainty of the technology and performance. By offering this guarantee, Hyundai is addressing customer concerns and demonstrating our confidence in the durability of out product.”

The 2012 Hyundai Genesis Sedan has achieved another accolade, it is now the highest ranked model in the midsize premium car category by the 2012 J.D. Power & Associates Vehicle Dependability Study. This study also ranks Hyundai at number nine overall. The Genesis sedan debuted in the 2009 model year and was able to earn Hyundai’s first ever North American Car of the Year Honor. J.D. Power & Associates Vehicle Dependability Study surveys original owners three years after their vehicle purchase. Given that the Genesis debuted in 2009, 2012 was the first year that the Genesis was eligible to be in this study, and it was the only category award recipient in its first year of eligibility.

Erwin Raphael, Director of engineering and quality said, “Our goal is to design and build cars that meet and exceed consumers’ expectations not only off the showroom floor, but through the duration of their ownership experience. Earning Hyundai’s first-ever top 10 finish in the J.D. Power & Associates Vehicle Dependability Study demonstrates that our efforts are paying dividends.” “It’s equally gratifying to see Genesis sedan, a content rich model with all the features you expect of a premium car, outperform powerful competitors in its category. Long term dependability translates to a positive ownership experience and brings customers back to the Hyundai brand in the future.”

Since its debut in the 2009 model year, The Hyundai Genesis sedan has accumulated more than 20 top honors from media outlets and automotive organizations in North America. These accolades include honors from J.D Power & Associates, Cars.com, AutoPacific, Motor Trend and consumer publications, supplementing the North American Car of the Year Honor.

In the J.D. Power & Associates Vehicle Dependability Study they measure the problems experienced during the last 12 months by the vehicles original owners of three year old (09 model years) vehicles encompasses 202 different problem symptoms across all areas of the vehicle. The overall dependability is determined using the level of problems experienced per 100 vehicles (PP100), with a lower score reflecting higher quality.

The Chicago Auto Show has started with a bang and we have added new versions of our hot selling Elantra lineup.  The Elantra is well regarded as one of the best compact cars on the market. The Elantra is stylish, reliable, diverse and fuel efficient. Up until now we have been selling one model the standard four door sedan. Today the Elantra line has added a coupe model and the Elantra GT. The Elantra GT has been seen in Europe and other countries but it is known there as the i30. Given it’s European beginnings the Elantra GT is more upscale than your standard U.S. sedan. The Elantra GT is the lightest car in its segment, weighing in at 222 lbs less than the Golf, 175 lbs less than the Focus and 151 lbs less than the Mazda 3.  Great fuel economy as well on this model coming in at an estimated 28 mpg city and 39 mpg highway. The GT has a drivers knee airbag, which is a first for our Elantra line and something else attributed from the European models. The fluidic sculpture design of recent Hyundai’s translates really well on the Elantra Coupe. There is a bigger door and larger rear seating than most small coupe models out today. The Elantra GT and Elantra Coupe are the third and fourth vehicles of our 7/11 product intiative (7 products in 11 months). The first two released were our Veloster Turbo and the new designed Genesis Coupe.

We have set out to have a big year at Hyundai, hope you take the drive with us!

The 2012 Hyundai Tucson has been called one of the most efficient crossovers today, but why? This second generation compact crossover was one of the first to show off Hyundai’s new designs of full curved bodies and a fresh, young look back in 2010. The 2012 Tucson sits lower than the first generation and has opted for a more powerful and better fuel economy four-cylinder engine. This third generation has an array of safety features standard as well as suspension and minor break adjustments to improve ride and safety!

While most auto companies are having a big push on hybrid vehicles right now, Hyundai motors is choosing to focus their attention on bringing out more highly fuel efficient vehicles for the future.

Hyundai has released the Hyundai Sonata and the Kia Optima within the hybrid range, they truly believe that the real solution is in bringing out fuel efficient vehicles. Sir John Krafcik, CEO of Hyundai has said that the company is researching ways in which they can produce vehicles with higher fuel efficiency without having the expense of hybrid technology. Hyundai Motors company has also been working on releasing 10 speed transmission.

Federal regulations in the State of California mandates that by the year 2025, 1 out of every 7 vehicles sold should be an electric or a hybrid vehicle. Mr. Krafcik says that such regulations will motivate all auto manufacturers to begin concentrating their attentions on these type of vehicles which will inundate the market and customers. So Mr. Krafcik states that by concentrating on manufacturing highly efficient vehicles would be the right approach to take for them.

The Hyundai Elantra was named car of the year by a panel of automotive journalists at the Detroit Auto Show for the 2012 North American International Auto Show. The Ford Focus and, Volkswagen Passat , and the Hyundai Elantra were the three finalists in the car of the year category.

This past year, Hyundai sold over 200,000 Elantras when the latest model was introduced. The Elantra averages 40 miles per gallon on the highway and comes equipped with many extras for the driver to enjoy. This award is a very unique award to win with the simple fact that the jury consists of 50 veteran auto journalists from all over the United States and Canada. Most auto awards are given out by individual organizations. This is the second time a Hyundai has won an award at the Detroit Auto Show and it is a great accomplishment.

Ed Voyles Hyundai has a hugr selection on Elantras for you to see. Stop in today and test drive the Hyundai Elantra (THE CAR OF THE YEAR) and see why it was chosen for yourself. Visit us online or give us a call and we can get you started now.

Hyundai describes this vehicle as the “urban customers in the 30-40 year age bracket for comfortable driving into the countryside”.

An auto show in India revealed the new eight-seater produced by Hyundai. There is a secret to it though, looking at the vehicle it looks like a small SUV that may seat five. The trick is in the name, the seats are shaped like hexagons, and fit into the interior like a puzzle in order to seat eight people.

There are many different options to the eight seats as well. The center seats fold flat for more passenger comfort, the second row folds flat, and the back row folds flat to to have more room for hauling. You can also fold all eight seats flat to make a bed if you have the need to sleep in your car. To enter the cabin, the rear doors on both sides of the Hexa Space lift out and slide back to ensure plenty of space for entry.

Under the hood of the Hexa Space is Hyundai’s 1.2-liter Kappa engine, a turbocharged four-cylinder direct-injection gasoline unit that drives the front wheels through a six-speed automatic transmission.

Hyundai stated that they have no production plans as of right now, but the Hexa Space is primarily looking at markets in India for now. Check out the photos below of this must see to believe vehicle. We will keep you updated on production of the Hexa Space.

After the holidays, money is tight and servicing your vehicle can be very expensive, but Ed Voyles Hyundai is proud to offer these specials for you to take advantage of: CLICK HERE

Come in today or call and schedule an appointment with one of our certified technicians and we will get your vehicle taken care.

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