Here's a more complete EPA list of the new 2005 vehicles....probably substract ~10% for real world numbers. 2005 Model Year Fuel Economy Leaders MPG Rank Manufacturer/Model city/highway 1. Honda Insight (hybrid-electric, manual) 61/66 2. Toyota Prius (hybrid-electric) 60/51 3. Honda Insight (hybrid-electric, automatic) 57/56 4. Honda Civic Hybrid (automatic, lean burn) 48/47 5. Honda Civic Hybrid (automatic) 47/48 6. Honda Civic Hybrid (manual, lean burn) 46/51 7. Honda Civic Hybrid (manual) 45/51 8. Volkswagen New Beetle/Golf/Jetta (diesel, manual) 38/46 9. Volkswagen Jetta Wagon (diesel, manual) 36/47 10. Honda Civic (manual) 36/44 Highest Fuel Economy by Vehicle Class 2005 Model Year MPG Class Model city/highway Two Seater Honda Insight (manual) 61/66 Minicompact Car Mini Cooper (manual 5-speed) 28/36 Subcompact Car Volkswagen New Beetle Diesel (man.) 38/46 Compact Car Honda Civic Hybrid (automatic, "lean burn") 48/47 Midsize Car Toyota Prius (hybrid) 60/51 Large Car Chevrolet Malibu Maxx 22/30 Small Station Wagon Volkswagen Jetta Wagon Diesel (manual) 36/47 Midsize Station Wagon Passat Diesel Wagon 27/38 Sport Utility Vehicle Ford Escape HEV (2WD) 36/31 Minivan Honda Odyssey 20/28 Pickup Truck Ford Ranger Pickup 2WD 24/29 Mazda B2300 2WD Cargo Van Chevrolet Astro 2WD (Cargo) 16/22 GMC Safari 2WD (Cargo) * Passenger Van Chevrolet Astro 2WD (Passenger) 16/21 GMC Safari 2WD (Passenger) Lowest Fuel Economy Models* 2005 Model Year MPG Rank Manufacturer/Model city/highway 1. Dodge Ram Pickup 2WD (automatic) 9/12 2. Lamborghini L-147/148 Murcielago (manual) 9/13 3. Dodge Ram Pickup 2WD (manual) 9/15 Lamborghini L-140/141 Gallardo (automatic) " 4. Bentley Arnage, Arnage LWB 10/14 5. Lamborghini L-147/148 Murcielago (automatic) 10/15 6. Ferrari 360 Modena/Spider/Challenge (automatic) 10/16 Ferrari 575 M Maranello (manual) " 7. Ferrari 575 M Maranello (automatic-3mode) 10/17 Ferrari 612 Scaglietti (automatic) " Lamborghini L-140/141 Gallardo " 8. Ferrari 360 Modena/Spider/Challenge (manual) 11/16 9. Ferrari 612 Scaglietti (manual) 11/17 10. Bentley Continental GT (automatic) 11/18 Aston Martin DB9 Volante (automatic) " *Trucks over 8500 pounds gross vehicle weight rating are exempt from federal fuel economy requirements. Lowest Fuel Economy by Vehicle Class* 2005 Model Year MPG Class Make/Model city/highway Two Seater Lamborghini L-147/148 Murcielago 9/13 Minicompact Car Aston Martin DB9 Volante 11/18 Subcompact Car Maserati Coupe & Gransport 12/17 Compact Car Bentley Continental GT 11/18 Midsize Car Bentley Arnage 10/14 Large Car Bentley Arnage LWB 10/14 Small Station Wagon Audi S4 Avant (manual) 15/21 Midsize Station Wagon Mercedes E55 AMG Wagon 14/21 Sport Utility Vehicle Mercedes G55 AMG 12/14 Minivan Kia Sedona 16/22 Pickup Truck Dodge Ram 1500 Pickup 2WD 9/12 Cargo Van Chevrolet Astro AWD (Cargo) Conv 14/17 GMC Safari AWD (Cargo) Conv " Ford E150 Econoline 2WD " Passenger Van Ford E150 Club Wagon 13/17

I bought a 1995 Acura Legend in 1998 with 32,000 miles on it. It was a 36-month lease turn-in and was literally in PERFECT condition. It sat unsold on the Acura dealerâs used lot because it was the least expensive model, the L 4-door, with cloth interior and 5-speed manual transmission. But it was exactly what I wanted, White with Taupe interior, Bose stereo, Power seats with memory and (the best part) the sweetest 200hp 3.2L V6 Iâve ever experienced! I paid $26,000 out-the-door, which felt like a fortune at the time (I was 23). I drove it 40-50k miles per year until I was t-boned by a commercial truck in August 2005. It had just turned 329,000 miles at the time and didnât burn a drop of oil (synthetic), the clutch had only been replaced once and the transmission shifted like new. Other than scheduled maintenance, the only thing I ever had to replace was the A/C compressor and two ABS sensors. The impact was so hard the passenger-side door panel ended up breaking my right hand and forearm (it was in the middle of the car). The rearview mirror broke loose during the crash and hit me in the head just above my right ear. It left most of the glass mirror fragments in my head and took 38 staples to close the wound! I also had damage to two discs in my cervical spine that required a 3-level c-spine fusion the following year. But I was able to recover from all of those injuries, which was pretty amazing considering how bad my poor Legend looked. I bought a 2006 Mazda3 Hatchback to replace it in December 2005. Eight years later, Iâm just past 190,000 miles and going strong!

I live in Columbus Ohio and my commute is 15 miles one way. Without traffic I'm able to make the drive in 19 minutes. However, with traffic, rain, snow, accidents the drive takes 2 hours. Many people laugh at me because I refuse to work a 9-5 job. If I left the office at 5 pm, it would take 2 hours to get home, so I refuse. I have to drive through 3 construction areas currently which makes everything an absolute mess and the expressway is a parking lot from downtown Columbus. bob_cville, if you remember the expressway 315 in Columbus. All lanes are being repaved, and they are rebuilding the exit from 315 onto 270 that merges with 23. Its always been a nightmare but they are finally doing something about it. However that construction project is taking 4 years. I can't wait until its over. I also think a commute is easier or more tolerable if you're actually driving and not sitting in bumper to bumper traffic. That just creeps along. I could park my car and walk faster. But 15 miles is a long walk!

nanny - there is room for financial growth in this company (annual merit raises, bonuses for continuing educations), but in terms of actually promoting to a higher position, there isn't much prospect of that in my department. That, and I'm not really sure that I'd want my boss's job anyways. luk - I totally agree with the 'work to live, not live to work' mentality - while my job is a big part of my life, it's certainly not the only aspect of it and I think it's important to have good separation between work and life matters. eld - I'm not sure if there are city tests in California like you mentioned. I'll have to look into it. There are certainly city veterinary jobs, though I have no idea what their pay scale is like. It'd be worth checking on. skibby - that's a good point - I'd have to ask him about domestic partnership with his insurance. If nothing else, it would be saving us money each month and I'd be getting better insurance out of it. wanttoretire - I completely agree - while I'm sure other big cities are comparable, I just don't think people that haven't actually been there understand why I don't want to live there. I came from a small city of about 40k people and one high school - and I liked that so much that I moved back to that area after college. I certainly understand why people like living in the city, but like you said about circling the parking lot just at the grocery store (or having to pay for parking everywhere you go, fight with other drivers who clearly don't understand there's a world outside of their vehicle, etc.), it's just not for me. chisue - yes, he works closer to home because his work allows him to work within different divisions of the city. He originally was working further than I am, but finally was able to relocate and he's much happier. He always tells me he doesn't know how I'm still doing it. We do plan on starting a family in the 5 years or so, and right now live 10 minutes away from my parents, and 15 from my brothers. His mom recently passed and his dad and stepmom are about 50 minutes away but may move out of state in the near future. So staying near my family is important to us, especially when we start having kids. nicole - yikes! I don't know how you did that, I suppose doing it 3 days a weeks made it a little easier, and having a 12-hr shift probably meant you were not quite within the scope of rush hour for the drive, but boy that makes for long days. I think the fact that I'm paid well is the top reason that I'm debating what move to make. Also, thank you all for your input and experiences, it's very helpful!