Which cars have these features?

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Broons Bane - 22 Jan 2007 11:33 GMT

Hi all

Am thinking of shipping a US car to the UK and am out of touch with the
US car market.

I'm looking for:

1. a hybrid or diesel car.

2. fairly luxurious.

3. with adaptive cruise control (automatically speeds up and slows down
according to other cars on the road)

4. ideally also with lane keeping assist. (automatically monitors road
for lane markers and make mini adjustments to the steering to stay in
the centre of the lane).

the last two features are available on the Honda accord in the UK.

Can anybody suggest US cars with these features?

Thanks in anticipation :)

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HLS@nospam.nix - 22 Jan 2007 14:16 GMT

"Broons Bane" <newsgrouper@yahoo.com> wrote in message

> Thanks in anticipation :)

I dont know of any 'American' car that can accomplish all this,
but maybe I am wrong.

Look to Toyota or Honda, possibly.

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Steve - 22 Jan 2007 14:54 GMT

> "Broons Bane" <newsgrouper@yahoo.com> wrote in message
>
>>Thanks in anticipation :)
>
> I dont know of any 'American' car that can accomplish all this,
> but maybe I am wrong.

Well, there are LOTS that perform the required functions, but aren't
diesel-powered or hybrid (yet, probably coming soon). Currently very few
diesel-powered cars are sold in the US because of the combination of
restrictive diesel emission laws and the fact that the US is in the
middle of moving to ultra-low-sulfur diesel. Once that's done, there
will probably be more and more small diesels sold. Several European
diesel engines were briefly available in American cars (Jeep Liberty, PT
Cruiser) but were pulled because of a change in emission laws last year.
They'll be back.

> Look to Toyota or Honda, possibly.

No diesels there, and no "fairly luxurious" hybrids either.

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HLS@nospam.nix - 22 Jan 2007 15:26 GMT

> > "Broons Bane" <newsgrouper@yahoo.com> wrote in message
> >
[quoted text clipped - 5 lines]
> Well, there are LOTS that perform the required functions, but aren't
> diesel-powered or hybrid (yet, probably coming soon).

Respectfully, then, they do not accomplish all the prerequisites.

> > Look to Toyota or Honda, possibly.
>
> No diesels there, and no "fairly luxurious" hybrids either.

I beg to differ. Luxury is in the mind of the owner. My daughter in law
has
a Honda hybrid which is comparable to several European cars considered
to be luxury items. To me, I would prefer it over a BMW 300 series.

If you are talking about a 'hog' (Am. sl. 'roadhog'), then no. And you
might
not want such a car for British backroads.

I dont know if Honda or Toyota make diesels for other markets. Many
manufacturers
do so.

Do VW, Mercedes, and Audi still sell the turbodiesels in the USA?

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Steve - 22 Jan 2007 18:02 GMT

>>>"Broons Bane" <newsgrouper@yahoo.com> wrote in message
>>>
[quoted text clipped - 7 lines]
>
> Respectfully, then, they do not accomplish all the prerequisites.

FUNCTIONS. You can achieve all the functions without being hybrid or
diesel. I did acknowledge that they don't meet the OP's stated
prerequisites but DO meet the required functions.

>>>Look to Toyota or Honda, possibly.
>>
[quoted text clipped - 4 lines]
> a Honda hybrid which is comparable to several European cars considered
> to be luxury items. To me, I would prefer it over a BMW 300 series.

No Honda compares to any European car. At least in the mind of this
owner... ;-)

> Do VW, Mercedes, and Audi still sell the turbodiesels in the USA?

Right now I think only the VW TDi and the Benz E320 are available. The
Benz is not sold in several states because it doesn't meet emissions there.

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HLS@nospam.nix - 22 Jan 2007 22:02 GMT

> >>>"Broons Bane" <newsgrouper@yahoo.com> wrote in message
> >>>
[quoted text clipped - 11 lines]
> diesel. I did acknowledge that they don't meet the OP's stated
> prerequisites but DO meet the required functions.

The functions he wanted were his prerequisites.. Simply Semantics, Steve.
And nothing meets them, as stated.

Reply to this Message

Scott Dorsey - 22 Jan 2007 22:36 GMT

>The functions he wanted were his prerequisites.. Simply Semantics, Steve.
>And nothing meets them, as stated.

Some of the newer BMW diesels might meet them. They are not sold in the US,
but might be available in the UK market. Really great-feeling cars, too,
although way overboard on the electrical gee-gaws for my taste.
--scott

Signature

"C'est un Nagra. C'est suisse, et tres, tres precis."

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cuhulin@webtv.net - 23 Jan 2007 14:57 GMT

To me,my vehicle is for getting from point A to point B.(sometimes,a few
other points too) Automatic lane keeping? That is a new one on me.What
are steering wheels for anyway?
cuhulin

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HLS@nospam.nix - 23 Jan 2007 15:32 GMT

> To me,my vehicle is for getting from point A to point B.(sometimes,a few
> other points too) Automatic lane keeping? That is a new one on me.What
> are steering wheels for anyway?
> cuhulin

Indeed... And I neither need nor want a car that will automatically parallel
park for me,
as the new Lexus is said to be able to do.

Reply to this Message

Scott Dorsey - 23 Jan 2007 15:37 GMT

>> To me,my vehicle is for getting from point A to point B.(sometimes,a few
>> other points too) Automatic lane keeping? That is a new one on me.What
[quoted text clipped - 4 lines]
>park for me,
>as the new Lexus is said to be able to do.

I sure wish some of the OTHER drivers on the road had cars that would
automatically parallel park for them, since some of the folks out there
are pretty terrible about it.

Of course, the real solution is to buy an MGB or a Fiat 200, and just pick
the front end up and carry it into the space.
--scott

Signature

"C'est un Nagra. C'est suisse, et tres, tres precis."

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cuhulin@webtv.net - 23 Jan 2007 16:13 GMT

Or get Michael Fox's levitating skate board.The more fancy cars get,the
worst they are.In my opinion.
cuhulin

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Bob M. - 25 Jan 2007 02:09 GMT

> Hi all
>
> Am thinking of shipping a US car to the UK and am out of touch with the
> US car market.
>
> I'm looking for:

Don't bother. Buy the car you want when you get in the UK. There are
numerous problems with shipping US-market cars to the UK. Emissions, safety,
lighting, and so on are all different over there and they may well force you
to make the changes before you can license (oops, licence) the car. For
example, you'd have to replace the US-spec headlights because they aim in
the wrong direction for UK roads.

By the time you've figured out all the things to do, you could have bought a
new or used car in the UK and probably saved some money in the process.

Reply to this Message

HLS@nospam.nix - 25 Jan 2007 13:52 GMT

Emissions, safety,

> lighting, and so on are all different over there and they may well force you
> to make the changes before you can license (oops, licence) the car. For
> example, you'd have to replace the US-spec headlights because they aim in
> the wrong direction for UK roads.

Good point, Bob. We imported my son's car into Norway, but he had a hard
time getting it registered.

Norway uses the same left hand driver position that we do, BUT the key here
was
the type of headlamp that was mandated in Europe. The Toyota he owned would
not accept the European headlamp, and Toyota had never sold that particular
model in Europe, so could not offer the proper headlight assembly to make
the
conversion.

We finally found European assemblies that looked something like the ones in
the
Toyota, and managed to adapt them to the American version, with a bit of
body
manipulation, fabricating brackets, sawing away panels.

It is worth thinking about.

(Note...all our American based cars had no problem with pollution devices,
etc.)

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Broons Bane - 26 Jan 2007 09:14 GMT

Gents.

Ta muchly for your advice!

> Hi all
>
[quoted text clipped - 19 lines]
>
> Thanks in anticipation :)

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