Blue Angels 2010

This weekend the Blue Angels are in town for an air show. Normally, I would walk down the street to check out the show, but it was raining on the first day of the two day event and the weather looks about the same today. I only live a block away from the airport, so I can hear the planes flying around. The picture on the left was taken in 2008, the last time they come to town. The charge to get onto the airport during the show is $25 per person. Prices for admission to music festivals and professional sporting events are outrageous these days.

On my used vehicle search, my brother suggested that I look at the Chevy Trailblazer. The Trailblazer is a mid-size SUV which gets 15 city / 21 hwy, only 20% better than what I get with my Dodge Dakota. That would still result in a $250 annual fuel savings for me. Ratings on the Trailblazer are surprisingly good. It's a mystery why Chevy decided to discontinue this well-liked model in 2010. Probably to compete with more fuel efficient models from the competition.

Insurance ratings are also good according to State Farm's Vehicle Ratings, as shown in the list below. The first letter is the liability rating, second is the safety discount, third is damage/theft index rating:

Mid-size SUV's Insurance Rating

Chevy Trailblazer: B / 40% / B

Toyota Highlander C / 30% / A

Honda Pilot C / 20% / A

Compact SUV's Insurance Rating

Honda CRV A / 30% / A

Ford Escape C / 30% / B

Toyota Rav4 B / 20% / C

As you can see the Trailblazer is the best choice with a 40% safety discount and the Honda CRV is the best choice in the compact SUV class. Of course, this is only one insurance company's opinion. I bet most people don't consider insurance ratings when shopping for a vehicle, but I knew this info was out there, so I thought it would be helpful to take a look. Prices for a used Trailblazer are actually several thousand less than the Ford Escape which has less room and towing capacity. Still, it's sad that in 2010 American's have so few alternatives to gasoline powered vehicles. If anything, the BP oil leak should be a turning point in efforts to bring alternative fueled vehicles to the public. With any luck, this will be the last gas powered vehicle I have to shop for.