economy

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Sun 13 Dec 2009

Car Fuel Economy

Posted by Jim Bradbury under cars , economy , fuel economy , hybrid
1 Comment 

For years I have been keeping track of my fuel economy with the vehicle I drive. Currently, my daily driver is a 2005 Toyota Sienna XLE. I like having the large vehicle for making long trips and for hauling large items, but I don’t like the 21 MPG I get driving it every day. I have looked at the Toyota Prius for years as a possible car to buy. The 2010 prius is rated at the 51/48 MPG.

Most recently, I have looked at both the 2010 Ford Fusion Hybrid and it’s cousin the 2010 Mercury Milan Hybrid which are both rated at 41/38 MPG. The Ford Fusion Hybrid and the Mercury Milan Hybrid cars are rated as the #1 mid-side cars for 2010 by U.S. News and World Report.

2010 Ford Fusion Hybrid

2010_Fusion_Hybrid
2010 Mercury Milan Hybrid

2010Mercury_Milan_hybrid
I especially like the colorful dual-LCD SmartGauge configurable dashboard display which is the same on both the Fusion and Milan hybrids.
smartgauge-empower-1280

Photos Courtesy of Ford Motor Co.

 

Fri 6 Nov 2009

Unemployment Over 10 Percent

Posted by Jim Bradbury under economy , unemployment
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The media today is announcing that the unemployment has now reached 10.2%, up from 9.8% from the previous month. This unemployment figure quoted by the media is the U-3 from the Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics. Look at the U-6 figure of 17.5% announced today and see how this current figure of 17.5% fits in and compares to the Great Depression in this chart from 6 months ago. More and more people are looking at the U-6 as the true measure of unemployment as you can see in this Wall Street Journal article today.