Doing the Right Thing

I guess sometimes the right thing involves a car payment, but I have no regrets. Seems like the payback will be real, and maybe happen even faster than I calculated. It’s a Camry Hybrid, and it is one fantastic car, for the same money as a similarly equipped Camry SE. I’m able to routinely peg the “eco-meter” at 42MPG (getting rewarded with a flashing “Excellent!” when I turn the…I mean push the button to stop the engine). I intentionally drove it harder today to make sure I’m not babying it too much during the break-in, and still pegged a 42 this morning, and got solidly in the mid-30s driving aggressively back from Baltimore tonight. I was a bit skeptical, since I never logged below 31MPG in the 02 gas-engine Camry. But I am a believer now!

And the car is just beautiful. It rides so smoothly and sooooo quiet! Coming home tonight, on electric power through the 25MPH section of Uniontown Road, I could actually hear my watch ticking while my hand was on the steering wheel. It's not much noiser when the gas powerplant is operating. And it does so much thinking for me. It unlocks the door. It turns the heater on at the right time when the engine has warmed. It turns the lights on when it's dark. It dims the mirror when headlights are shining in. The built-in Bluetooth is a real luxury and safety essential, with clarity that beats the handset and earpiece by a mile, with push-button operation on the steering wheel. Of course, it turns the stereo off automatically whenever I make or receive a call.

And the icing on the cake is it qualifies as a Super-Ultra-Low Emission Vehicle — emitting less than 10% of the pollutants of similar vehicles — and earns the EPA’s SmartWay Elite designation.

It's the ideal vehicle for anyone doing serious commuting; high MPG and you still feel like you have a substantial vehicle around you.

So humor me this bit of gloating. Seems like win-win-win-win to me. Except for that dang payment!