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FROM THE RACEWAY TO YOUR DRIVEWAY. GO FURTHER IN AN ACCORD COUPE OR SEDAN Tank Capacity 70Litres Distance per Tank 1,094km 9.4L/100km 30mpgCity: 6.4L/100km 44mpg * *Hwy: 9 Approximate distance based on highway mileage CIVIC DX Fuel efficient Friendly to the environment Bold styling Fun-to-drive attitude $16,990 MSRP 198$ # @ 1.9 LEASE FOR LEASE APR PER MONTH FOR 60 MONTHS ON APPROVED CREDIT % Accord is the most fuel efficient vehicle in the full-size class.* ASK ABOUT CASH INCENTIVES! 9 GO FURTHER IN A FIT Tank Capacity 41Litres Distance per Tank 719km 7.1L/100km 40mpgCity: 5.7L/100km 50mpg * *Hwy: 9 Approximate distance based on highway mileage 9 GO FURTHER IN A CIVIC Tank Capacity 50Litres Distance per Tank 926km 7.4L/100km 38mpgCity: 5.4L/100km 52mpg * *Hwy: 9 Approximate distance based on highway mileage 9 for more information and to locate your nearest dealer visit: www.honda.ca 0.9AS LOW AS FOR 36 MONTHSon approved creditPURCHASE FINANCING% ON ALL NEW 08 ACCORD, CR-V & ELEMENT MODELSON SELECT MODELS Accord EX-L Sedan model CP2588JN Civic DX Sedan model FA1528EX You may be eligible for a $1,000 rebate From the Government of Canadas ecoAUTO Rebate Program ? 0 DOWN PAYMENT$ 178$ # @ 2.9 LEASE FOR LEASE APR PER MONTH FOR 60 MONTHS WITH $1,784 DOWN ON APPROVED CREDIT % FIT DX Remarkably versatile Unmatched class safety Sporty handling Room to move $14,980 MSRP #L im ite d t im e l ea se of fer s b as ed on ne w 20 08 Ac co rd Se da n L X, m od el CP 25 38 E / 20 08 Ac co rd Se da n E X, m od el CP 25 78 J / 20 08 Ac co rd Se da n E X- L, m od el CP 25 88 JN / 2 00 8 C ivi c S ed an D X, m od el FA 15 28 EX / 2 00 8 F it D X, m od el GD 37 28 E a va ila ble th rou gh Ho nd a F ina nc ial Se rvi ce s o n a pp rov ed cr ed it. 2 .9% / 3 .9% / 3 .9% / 1 .9% / 2 .9% le as e A PR fo r 4 8 / 48 / 4 8 / 60 / 6 0 m on ths . M on thl y p ay me nt is $2 98 / $ 33 8 / $3 68 / $ 19 8 / $1 78 wi th $2 ,45 5.2 3 / $2 ,53 9.9 7 / $2 ,87 4.1 1 / $0 / $ 1,7 84 .48 do w n pa ym en t o r e qu iva len t tr ad e, $1 ,39 0 / $1 ,39 0 / $1 ,39 0 / $1 ,29 5 / $1 ,29 5 f rei gh t a nd PD I, fi rst m on thl y p ay me nt an d $ 0 / $0 / $ 0 / $0 / $ 0 s ecu rity de pos it d ue at lea se in ce pti on . T ota l le as e o bli ga tio n i s $ 18 ,93 7.9 3 / $2 1,2 03 .29 / $ 23 ,20 8.0 6 / $1 3,4 24 .40 / $ 14 ,08 4.8 6. T ax es , li ce ns e, ins ur an ce an d r eg ist rat ion ar e e xtr a. 96 ,00 0 / 96 ,00 0 / 96 ,00 0 / 12 0,0 00 / 1 20 ,00 0 k ilo me tre al low an ce ; c ha rge of $0 .12 /km fo r e xce ss kilo me tre s. R eta ile r m ay le as e f or les s. Re tai ler or de r / tr ad e m ay be ne ce ss ary . L im ite d t im e f ina nci ng of fer s b ase d o n n ew 20 08 Ho nd a m od els . Fi na nc e e xa mp le ba se d o n n ew 20 08 H on da Fi t D X, m od el GD 37 28 E a va ila ble th rou gh Ho nd a F ina nc ial Se rvi ce s o n a pp rov ed cr ed it. M SR P i s $ 14 ,98 0 ( plu s $ 1,2 95 fre igh t a nd PD I) f ina nce d a t 0 .9% AP R eq ua ls $4 58 .38 pe r m ont h f or 36 m ont hs. Co st of bo rro w ing is $2 26 .80 fo r a to tal obl iga tio n o f $ 16 ,50 1.8 0. T ax es , li ce ns e, ins ur an ce an d r eg ist rat ion ar e e xtr a. Re tai ler m ay se llf or les s. Re tai ler or de r / tr ad e m ay be ne ce ss ary . - $1 ,00 0 G as Ca rd off er app lie s o nly to re tai l c us tom er pu rch as e, lea se or fin an ce ag re em en ts for ne w 20 08 Ac co rd, CR -V an d E lem en t m od els co nc lud ed , re sp ec tiv ely be tw ee n J uly 1s t, 2 00 8 a nd Ju ly 31 st, 20 08 . $ 1,0 00 Ga s C ard of fer inc lud es GS T, PS T, HS T, QS T w he re ap pli ca ble . V ali d o nly on pu rch as e, lea se or fin an ce ag re em en ts co nc lud ed at pa rtic ipa tin g H on da re tai ler s. Se e y ou r H on da re tai ler fo r f ull co nd itio ns a nd de tai ls. #/ // - Of fer s v ali d f rom Ju ly 1s t, 2 00 8 t hr ou gh Ju ly 31 st, 20 08 at pa rtic ipa tin g H on da re tai ler s. Of fer s s ub jec tto ch an ge or ca nc ell ati on w ith ou t n oti ce . S ee yo ur Ho nd a r eta ile r f or ful l d eta ils . Y ou m ay be el igi ble fo r t he G ov ern me nt of Ca na da s ec oA UT O Re ba te Pr og ram . C ivi c m od els w ith 1. 8L en gin e a nd m an ua l tr an sm iss ion / F it m od els w ith m an ua l tr an sm iss ion qu ali fy for a $1 ,00 0 r eba te. Fo r m or e de tai ls, vis it w ww . ec oa cti on .gc .ca . * Ba se d o n 2 00 8 Fu el C on su mp tio n G uid e r ati ng pu bli sh ed by N atu ra l R es ou rce s C an ad a. Th es e e sti ma tes ar e b as ed on Go ve rnm en t o f C an ad a's ap pro ve d c rite ria an d t es tin g m eth od s. Th e a ctu al f ue l c on su mp tio n o f th es e v eh icl es m ay va ry. R efe r t o t he Go ve rnm en t o f C an ad a's En er Gu ide Fu el C on su mp tio n G uid e f or m ore in for ma tio n. B as ed on 20 08 Ac co rd w ith 2. 4 l itre en gin e a nd m an ua l tr an s. / 20 08 Ci vic w ith 1. 8L en gin e a nd m an ua l tr an sm iss ion / 2 00 8 F it w ith 1. 5L en gin e a nd m an ua l tr an sm iss ion . V isi t w ww . ve hic les .gc .ca fo r m ore inf orm ati on . You may be eligible for a $1,000 rebate From the Government of Canadas ecoAUTO Rebate Program ? Fit DX model GD3728E ACCORD LX 2.4L 177hp DOHC i-VTEC Engine Advanced Compatibility Engineering (ACE) Body Structure Vehicle Stability Assist (VSA) with Traction Control Air Conditioning with Air Filtration...and more. $25,090 MSRP ACCORD EX 2.4L 190hp DOHC i-VTEC Engine Power Moonroof with Tilt Feature 17" Aluminum Alloy Wheels 8-Way Power Drivers Seatand more. $27,490 MSRP 338$ #@3.9 LEASE FOR LEASE APR PER MONTH FOR 48 MONTHS WITH $2,540 DOWN ON APPROVED CREDIT % 368$ #@3.9 LEASE FOR LEASE APR PER MONTH FOR 48 MONTHS WITH $2,874 DOWN ON APPROVED CREDIT %298$ #@2.9 LEASE FOR LEASE APR PER MONTH FOR 48 MONTHS WITH $2,455 DOWN ON APPROVED CREDIT % ACCORD EX-L Leather Seating with Heated Front Seats 270 Watt Premium Audio System including XM Satellite Radio Dual Zone Automatic Climate Controland more. $29,890 MSRP 6 WHEELS July 18 2008 The 2009 Pontiac Vibe comes in three models including the AWD (all-wheel-drive), shown, that is suited to the chang- ing road conditions of the Canadian climate. All-wheel-drive and downsized, frugal motoring are higher that ever on the minds of Canadians as oil (at this writing) is at almost $135/barrel. You can drive down any street and see rows and rows of older, big SUVs crammed into the sales lots with the number of takers dwindling every time gas goes up another dollar. Canadian Pontiac/GMC dealers already have a spread of CUV/SUVs, but with attention shifting to smaller is better, the Pontiac Vibe is in the right place at the right time. The Vibe has always been a good seller but with avail- able all-wheel-drive and 7.8L/100 km (36 mpg) highway fuel consumption, this five-door is gaining in popularity. It is built in a factory in California, shared with - of all competitors Toyota. This joint venture goes back about 20 years and has spawned a number of joint efforts, the Pontiac Vibe and Toyota Matrix being the latest examples. Except for minor details, the Vibe is all Toyota except in name which is a good thing because buyers can expect the same level of build quality they would from a Matrix. Several years ago, Mississauga News photographer Freddie The Flashbulb Loek had a first generation Vibe with AWD that he flogged mercilessly, rarely remembering when it needed servicing. The only time it got washed was when it rained. But that little Vibe took everything Freddie could throw at it and kept coming back for more. But what sticks in my mind most was how slow it was. For some reason the AWD version got a 118 hp engine instead of 126 for the non-AWD. With either version of the 1.8-litre four-cylinder, acceleration was leisurely and the lit- tle four-banger seemed to run out of breath higher up the rev range. For 2009 there is still a 1.8-litre DOHC engine on the base Vibe, but it now is up to 132 hp and 128 lb/ft of torque. On the other two models, the AWD and the GT, there is a 2.4-litre DOHC motor with 158 hp and 162 lb/ft of torque. The 2.4-litre as tested here is an AWD model gets 10.3L/100 km (27 mpg) city in addition to the 7.8L/100 km (36 mpg) highway as mentioned above. A five-speed manual transmission is standard on the base and GT with a four-speed automatic fitted to the AWD. There is a five-speed automatic with manual shift mode optional on the base and GT. Instead of the discs/drums Freddie had, its now discs all around with ABS and StabiliTrak standard. While the base Vibe gets MacStruts and a twist beam at the rear, the AWD and GT get a more expensive, but better riding, indepen- dent system at the rear. The increase in power was the first thing I noticed when I was involved earlier this year with the Catch the Vibe. It was a brand introduction contest involving a kind of scav- enger hunt manned by media people as the cars moved across Canada and all of it strictly on the Internet. For Ontario journalists, the object was to buzz around the Greater Toronto Area using cellphones to take shots of certain landmarks while sending blogs and twitters. Apparently it was a big success, although I never was officially notified about who won. But it did serve to show how the Vibe has grown from a grocery-getter to a vehicle that has a lot of uses and features that appeal in the post cheap gas era. During the contest, the power to join the flow of traffic on the highway was noticeable. But more so was the way it accelerated away from downtown lights where taxi drivers hit the horn in milliseconds if you are too slow for their lik- ing. In the east end of Toronto with its cacophony of music blaring from small shops, overhead wires and oblivious jay- walkers, it took good brakes and adroit handling to weave our way to find a statue of Alexander the Great for the con- test. Trying to find a parking space was tough enough let alone trying to squeeze into slots not much longer than the Vibe. Thanks to the speed-sensitive power steering it was made easier, plus the good sight lines let me know where the corners of the Vibe was. Pontiac gets grip on a changing auto industry JIM ROBINSON Metroland Media Group www.yourautos.ca See PONTIAC, pg. 7