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Tesla Model 3 Preorder Phenomena – A Week of Livestreams

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This past week marked a tipping point in automotive history. According to media reports, Tesla Motors has rolled up over 325,000 “preorders” for the Model 3 Sedan, the company’s least expensive vehicle to date. There’s never been anything quite like it. This is an unprecedented validation that the world is eager for an electrified sedan with 200+ miles of range. It was a brilliantly executed Kickstart that saw the first hundred thousand customers plunk down their $1,000 refundable deposits without ever seeing the car.

As the week progressed, I thought it would be interesting to run a livestream on YouTube to gauge the MPGomatic community’s reaction. I vlogged every day for five days straight, on a variety of topics. The most popular being the second installment, Tesla Model 3: Does the Chevy Bolt Have a Huge Advantage?

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Top Twenty Safest, Most Affordable Used Cars for Teenagers

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Choosing a first car is a right of passage. While the top two criteria for most parents are safety and affordability, teenagers on the other hand, are more focused on what’s cool. The Insurance Institute of Highway Safety (IIHS) recently published a list of safe and affordable used vehicles for teenagers and we’ve taken it up a notch.

A first car should be safe above all, but it needn’t be boring. Grandma’s cast-off Buick LaCrosse may be safe and priced right, but it lacks a certain cache. That’s why we’ve poured through the list to find the ten most affordable and most appealing of the IIHS’ picks. Our criteria focused on affordability, with all models starting under $10,000, in addition to a preference for manual transmissions and all-wheel-drive. If you’re driving a manual, you’re not holding a cell-phone.

Our top eleven list (yes, our list goes to eleven!) includes imports, domestics, sedans, wagons and SUVs, but no small cars. The IIHS does not recommend any small cars for teenagers. Big is better when it comes to safety. We’ve included links to MPG reviews and fuel economy ratings in the list.

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2015 Corvette Stingray – Highway MPG Testing

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“Wow, I’ll bet that gets great fuel economy on the highway!” is the last thing that most (normal) people think when seeing a Stingray cruise down the street. And yet, it’s true. The Corvette’s long been known (by those who know) to deliver solid MPGs when conservatively driven out on the open road. At long last, I had the opportunity to test it.

The positively scrumptious 6.2 liter V8 in the 2015 C7 Corvette pumps out 455 horsepower and 460 foot pounds of torque. It features cylinder deactivation and an Eco-mode (for fuel economy, of course) and can be fitted with a seven-speed manual or eight-speed automatic transmission. I was double-lucky to test a manual-equipped car. I found the clutch pressure to be reasonable, the shift mechanism quite good. Dealing with an overload (seven!) of speeds in the gate is eased by gear indicators on the digital dashboard and heads-up display (HUD).

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What’s the Best Cheap Used Car with Great Gas Mileage?

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We’ve all been there. You have basic transportation needs and a budget tighter than a screw cap on a cheap bottle of wine. An inexpensive used car can help you meet your needs without resorting to taking out a high-interest loan. Knowing which car to buy is key, but the answer is too often locked away. We’re here to cut through the bombardment of advertisements and get right to the facts. When you buy the right cheap used car it will set you free. Buy the wrong one and you’ll enter a new world of pain.

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Highest MPG Turbocharged Vehicles of 2015

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Turbocharging allows a small displacement engine to achieve significantly higher levels of horsepower (HP) and torque on demand, while delivering more miles per gallon (MPG) in light-load conditions. Once thought of purely from a performance perspective, forced induction technology has become a cornerstone of the march to higher fuel efficiency. You can have your cake and eat it too.

The top 15 list of highest combined MPG 2015 vehicles includes a mix of diesel and gasoline powered models, with the VW Jetta Hybrid taking the top spot. The Jetta Hybrid’s superior city fuel efficiency provides a significant advantage in tough traffic.

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