My faithful readers respond:
Q: Hey Bud, (regarding Gunnison), a nice story about a nice car driven by a nice guy to pick up a nice (well-deserved) award. Congrats. – M.F.P. IV
A: Thanks, Miles, your response is a keeper for me. You’re clever with words, you ought to be a writer!
Q: You did it again, Bud, you forgot about us torque and HP guys. It wouldn’t matter, except the turbo causes my interest. Thanks. – R.C.
A: Rich, 211 hp, 258 torque for 2.0T allroad.
Q: I thought possibly you had misspoken (or miswritten) a small but serious point in your column on the Audi (The Denver Post, Sept. 1). Speaking of the Audi, you wrote, “It is more sleekly styled than the Volvo and much more luxurious than an Outback.” Would it have been better or made for better relationships with others if you had said, “It has some nice features the Outback doesn’t, however, you pay dearly for the plushness.” – N.J.W.
A: Let me say, in review, Norma, that, though the Audi may have more nice features, a black Audi wagon is not as attractive as a red Outback.
Q: Just a note, Bud, to let you know that I really enjoy your articles in The Post. I have read them for years. Regarding the Audi review, did you catch any fish? – L.S.
A: That’s a legitimate question, Larry, and I wish I had a more satisfactory answer. Within 3 minutes of tossing the line, I lost a 10-inch trout at the top of the water, then spent an hour mostly moving up and down the stream. At that point, I returned to the Audi, drove on 2 miles to the Glen Haven General Store and enjoyed cherry cobbler and coffee.
Q: My warmest congratulations, Bud, on winning the Iacocca Award. It’s a fitting capstone to a distinguished career. – J.L.C.
A: Thank you so much. (Mr. Colwell was my freshman English teacher at Sterling High School many years ago.)
Q: Bud, I like reading about cars and enjoy your columns when they talk about the car and not your personal friends and tours. I am getting tired of your riding in cars that the average person cannot even consider. Last week a Mercedes with a sticker of $120,000. Many of your recent columns have featured exotic cars, who cares? Let’s talk about cars that consumers with average incomes drive. – B.L.
A: As a columnist, Bob, and having been at the newspaper business for more than 50 years, I’ll not soon be changing my style of writing. While apparently ignoring the cheaper cars I review (note the photo), just sit back and appreciate the innovations revealed by the higher-end models.
Q: Bud, I may have missed it, but I have not seen a review from you on the Chevrolet Volt. They are cutting-edge incredible. The Volt is leaps and bounds ahead of all other internal-combustion-engine (ICE) cars. The new electric cars will make all of these ICE cars obsolete within 10 years. The Audi allroad for $47K, what a joke. A loaded 2013 Volt is going for $4K off MSRP, and after Federal and Colorado rebates, you can get one loaded for under $30K. I have one on order from a dealer in Florida, thank God for the Internet. – J.B.
A: I reviewed the Volt in January, Jim, and will send you a copy. Really, the internal-combustion engine (ICE) obsolete in 10 years? You’re dreaming. I read recently in Automotive News of a study which predicts the ICE will continue as the dominant automotive power source into 2050; that might be a good bet.
Q: Greetings from Gunnison, Bud. Several years ago I owned a small Buick that had a digital dash, which was very easy to read and very accurate. I would like to see them come back. My current car has analog speedometer and is much harder to read. Why don’t car manufacturers supply them? – J.P.
A: A few cars offer the digital speedometer, Jim, (Honda Civic, Chevrolet Sonic, Toyota Prius and others), though the analog needle is still preferred by the manufacturers. The digital reading seems to keep a driver more honest in assessing his or her speeds. The optional head-up display offered in some models projects the speed in digital form out front of the driver.
Bud Wells can be reached via e-mail at bwells@denverpost.com.
