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Have You Ditched Your Roomy Ride for a Smaller Car?

Sales of large cars are in decline as drivers hunt for better mileage and models are discontinued, according to Polk.com's analysis of automotive sales trends.

The full-size non-luxury car market, which includes vehicles like the Ford Crown Victoria commonly used as police cruisers, has been on the decline since the 1970s. But in the past five years, these cars denoted by their extra-long bodies have lost more than half of their share of the market. Today, they make up just 2.3 percent of all new vehicles sold, according to an analysis of the market by Polk.com.

Drivers are looking for better fuel efficiency, makes and models are being discontinued and dealers are phasing out full-size non-luxury cars from the showroom. 

Gone are the days of the Crown Victoria and Grand Marquis. Now, the only large non-luxury cars available are the Impala, 300, Charger, Taurus, Azera, Maxima and Avalon.

Meanwhile, consumers are opting for more modestly-sized vehicles. Midsize non-luxury cars now account for 16.7 percent of the industry — an increase from 13.4 percent five years ago. 

Have gas prices prompted you to make a car switch? Let us now in the comments.

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Just a short thought to get the word out quickly about anything in your neighborhood.
Share something with your neighbors. Write a new post... What's up? Make an announcement, speak your mind, or sell something
SalthePlumber May 20, 2013 at 09:59 am
The Bank of Pinole Building is in the control of the City of Pinole. The City has bungled everyRead More opportunity to rent that building. They pushed the Flower Cart out and focused on putting a Coffee Shop there, spurning a proposed Italian Restaurant and mishandling an actual Coffee Shop that will be opening elsewhere on San Pablo Ave. The vicious amateurs of Pear St (City Hall) seem to have no aptitude for Commercial Development or negotiating skills. And so the City suffers from the poor leadership and the empty spaces...
G.C. May 18, 2013 at 05:18 am
Lastly, society (including parents and kids) are letting our schools down as evidenced by theRead More extreme truancy in Hercules and Pinole. Taxpayers give in the form of bond measures and parcel taxes. Teachers give out of their pockets. And our kids show their appreciation by skipping class. Sad.
G.C. May 17, 2013 at 08:43 pm
Jessica, This approach to funding the classroom needs to stop in order to return the teachingRead More profession to just that, a profession. Teaching should not be a life-long stint in the Peace Corps. I easily spent $500 per year of my own money when I was teaching science in the district. I enabled the erosion of the public education system. Enough is enough. Teachers need to call society on it. This means teachers also need to return some responsibilities to the administration. Currently, teachers have assumed enough responsibility to result in the scapegoating of their profession, but not enough responsibility to succeed at their profession. Join the rest of the working world. Come to work and do as your told per chain-of-command. If you do not have the supplies you need, we'll hold your bosses, and ourselves, accountable. Teaching is no different than being a mechanic or a police officer or doctor. We pay all of them what they are worth. Why is it different for teachers?
Bud Burlison May 16, 2013 at 07:06 am
You can always change your provider if you're disappointed with service. I thinkRead More "hit-and-miss" can describe a lot of health service providers, but Kaiser is among the best if the experts are to be believed. I've had nothing but the best service for about 40 years.
G.C. May 15, 2013 at 05:51 am
Kaiser received serious administrative penalties-fines as reported here by the California DepartmentRead More of Public Health http://www.cdph.ca.gov/certlic/facilities/Pages/APCountyAlameda.aspx http://www.cdph.ca.gov/certlic/facilities/Pages/APCountySanFrancisco.aspx Kaiser is hit-and-miss, much like public schools. You might get an excellent doctor (or teacher) or you might encounter a real dud. I've encountered both. I'm still scratching my head over a recent visit in which I had been up all night with a blocked esophagus since 5 pm Easter dinner. The advice nurse made a 9 AM appointment for me with my doctor instead of sending me to the ER. When I saw my doctor, I was spitting into a cup because I couldn't swallow. I told him I had even tried to induce vomiting during the night. He noticed that the back of my throat was red--he said he worried that it was an infection. I told him I had attempted to induce vomiting, using the back of a fork. He said that the back of a fork is dirty, that my red throat must be an infection. Seriously? So only sterile things should go into my mouth? No comment. He then asked me why I was there, that I should be in the ER instead. Really? Ask the advice nurse. He offered to call an ambulance. He then said he would call the ER to let them know I was on my way. He then showed me the fastest way to my car. It was a very long day. I couldn't even swallow water. At 3:00, I was x-rayed. At 5:00, they did an endoscopy and removed the blockage. Twenty four hours of being unable to swallow might be something they want to try at Guantanamo. I would have said anything just to be able to sip some water. It's far from the best, but it is affordable.