Unless you’re Toyota, I guess…

What Business Week is plowing onto the American public here is garbage, at least as far as this SUV owner is concerned.

Just as this article was coming out, I got a call from Toyota. It seems my “contract is running out” ( i.e. I’m close to paying off my FourRunner). Toyota is contacting me, wondering whether I’d be willing to trade in this vehicle (now worth a bit more that Kelly Blue Book, according to them) for a new Toyota vehicle of equal or greater value than the one I now own. They are willing to give me several thousand dollar, as a “coupon” on a new vehicle. My vehicle is in excellent shape and probably has a good ten years of useful life left in it. I of course declined.

If gas prices fall off their spike, I can only think that the rush to dump SUVs, perpetuated in good part by the media, will retrospectively be the next, closest, convenient way to jam more indebtedness down the throat of US consumers. “Trade in that gas hog now! It’s worthless! Get a small car before it’s too late! By the way, we’ve got a financing deal for ya!”

PS: My SUV - the one the media says is a dog - is now exactly three years old.

UPDATE: Forbes thinks the swan song of the SUV is overblown too.

UPDATE 2: Five reasons to keep that machine.

Particularly those begging for that tire pressure sensor light to just burn out!

I’ve stared at that light ever since getting caught on a rutted-out road in a raging downpour, coming back from fishing. All four tires were set at 32 psi, but the light would not go off. I did not want to take this puppy down to the dealer only to find out it was something stupid. Instead, I did some digging, and found out it was (something stupid).

Contrary to what you might read on various forums, the 2005- 4Runners do not have a reset button on the steering column for this issue. And those tire pressure sensors are not statically-powered (meaning, they don’t have to be moving to work). I found this out after deciding to check the pressure on the spare, which I frankly hadn’t seen until this point. Sure enough, it was eight pounds low, and the moment I pumped it up the light went off.

For those like me who’ve never seen their spare, and for those unlike me who don’t carry a portable compressor, don’t worry. Toyota makes it easy to get to that spare: pull out your jack kit, assemble and insert the crank rod into the little hole by your rear hatch catch, and turn away; the tire will lower nicely to the ground, where you can check pressure and inflate as needed. When you’re done, just crank it back up, and pull out of the service station like nothing ever happened.

A week or so back I compared Apple to Toyota, regarding pricing and quality. I left one major issue out which some may say speaks to the difference between good products and truly excellent ones.

I’m talking about warranties.

The warranty a company offers with their products tells me heaps about what I am buying. It speaks to how confident the manufacturer is that their product will work without fail. It says much about how good the service will be when it does fail. And nowadays, it should be as important in a notebook computer as it is in a car, as some people depend on them as much (or more).

I am typing this entry on a Dell C840. It is tricked out (just the way I like it - read more at A Decent Linux Laptop (continued)). Anyway, I have had this machine for almost 18 months, bought it from the Dell Outlet, and it came with a 3 year, next day onsite warranty, parts and labor included. A hard drive failure hit me once - there was a new one at my front door the following morning. It is a desktop replacement that has served, and continues to serve, me well.

But I need something more portable (as the Dell is a boat anchor). I have Windows and Linux tied up, so curiosity takes hold, and I peer at Apple Powerbooks.

Yes, Apple makes nice products; yes, they are easy to use; yes, they are purported to be stable, reliable, and virus free. And yes, I am drooling over a 12 inch Powerbook now. But I have one concern. Everyone I talk to, whether it be existing Mac owners, Apple Store reps, or even hot dog vendors on street corners, say get AppleCare. Get AppleCare. Get AppleCare. Hmm.

So I check out AppleCare, and what do I find? It is a $350 add on to the price of the slab! A $1,700 sub-notebook is now a $2,050 sub-notebook, and that is without the tax. Wow! And the rep in the Apple Store doesn’t budge when I ask to have it thrown in. Huh? It’s a dang service contract - if your product is so great, what harm is there in just giving it to me? I’ll buy the cute little aluminum gizmo right now, and even a few software titles, just throw in the service contract. “Sorry, we can’t do that.”

Why not stand behind the product with aplomb? Tell me the product is the finest around, that nothing will ever go wrong with it. Tell me you know this to be true. Don’t say “the parts in this little bugger are darn expensive.” Ouch. $350, extra, is the cost of that assurance, eh?

My Dell is 18 months old, and under warranty for another 18, no extra charge (failed me once - repaired next day); my Toyota is four years old, has another year left under warranty (at least for the stuff that counts), no extra charge (never failed me). Excellent products.

I think I will wait a little longer on the Powerbook, based in part on the recommendation of my neighborhood hotdog vendor.