Hybrid Wars-Toyota's New Prius

Airtime: Wed. Mar. 25 2009 | :52:5 09 ET

Toyota is being challenged by competitor like never before and is responding with a new version of the Prius. Insight with CNBC's Phil Lebeau.

Is Your Car Covered in Pollen?

Mine is. What was once grey is now yellow. It reminds me of my first car, a yellow Toyota Celica. I can say that pollen was not really an issue on that citrus-lemon-yellow automobile. I digress.

This time of year many Americans spend their Saturdays washing their cars which helps with the pollen, and its good for the exterior of any car. Here are a few tips form the pro's to make sure you are doing it right.

Routinely washing your Toyota is the best thing that you can do to maintain your vehicle's original shine and finish.
Here are a few tips to keep your Toyota looking new:
1) Use a quality car wash soap.
2) NEVER USE DISH DETERGENT to wash your car - it can strip off wax and damage the finish.
3) Car-wash-specific soaps are specially formulated to dissolve dirt without compromising your vehicle's finish.
4) Wash in the shade. This helps keep your car cool while you work, reducing the possibility of water spots.
5) Rinse the vehicle first, then wash from the top down and rinse often.
6) Use a clean 100% terrycloth towel for washing and drying.

Sales Tax Deduction for New Cars and Trucks

Money Back for New Vehicle Purchases. Taxpayers who buy certain new vehicles in 2009 can deduct the state and local sales taxes they paid.

While making the final preparations on my 2008 tax returns, I came across the new 2009 Sales Tax Deduction for Vehicle Purchases on the IRS web site. In a nutshell, The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 provides a deduction for state and local sales and excise taxes paid on the purchase of new cars, light trucks, motor homes and motorcycles through 2009. The deduction is available regardless of whether a taxpayer itemizes deductions on Schedule A. Purchases before Feb. 17, 2009, are not eligible for this special deduction.

The deduction is limited to the tax on up to $49,500 of the purchase price of an eligible motor vehicle. The deduction is phased out for joint filers with modified adjusted gross income between $250,000 and $260,000 and other taxpayers with modified AGI between $125,000 and $135,000. Here is a direct link to the IRS Sales Tax Deduction for Vehicle Purposes Information Page. Please contact the IRS or your tax attorney to verify that this tax deduction applies to you. IRS

2nd Annual Rice Toyota/Scion Doggie Adopt-a-Thon

Mark your calendars!
We are gearing up for the 2nd annual Rice Toyota/Scion
Memorial Day "Doggie Adopt-a-thon." This will take place on May 25th in the morning at Rice Toyota in Greensboro, NC. We'll start about 7:00 am and end about 2:00 pm.

Last year's event was a huge success and generated a lot of exposure for our furry friends (dogs and cats) needing homes. Please spread the word! And we'll keep you updated as the date gets closer.

In the meantime, there are loving animals that are in immediate need of a good home. Please take a minute to visit the Triad SPCA site. There is information on ways to volunteer, charitable donations, and pets available for adoption right now.
Triad SPCA Site

2010 Toyota Prius Fuel Economy vs. Competition

I came across this comparison chart on Consumer Reports Cars Blog and thought I would share.
Jump to Consumer Reports Cars Blog "Prius Fuel Economy vs. Competition"

I got in a car accident, ugh. Now what?

We've all been there. Some of us have been there a few more times than others, albeit no fault of our own, of course. And it always happens at the worst possible time, you're late for work, its Christmas Eve, or maybe you just turned 16...ouch! Perhaps, it was no traffic accident at all, maybe you missed the turn in your garage and ended up scraping your bumper along the garage wall, yep I did that before, and my parents were anything but proud. But it happens to everyone, and luckily you are okay. Now what?


Your car is busted or worse, immobile. Let's assume you are not a novice, if it was a traffic accident, you have called the police, filed a report and alerted your insurance company. Now here's something you may not know, you have the right to choose who repairs your car. The best advice about getting your car fixed is to remember that the money may be coming from the insurance company but you should control the repair process.

Start by researching auto body shops in your town, find one that has a solid reputation, with trained and experienced technicians who stand by their work.

While you're at it, why not demand the best? Look for an auto body shop that will come to you and give you an estimate at no charge. Rice Collision Center in Greensboro, NC does that. Rice Collision has a mobile estimator service that will come to your location and write you a estimate on-the-spot.

Wouldn't it also be nice if there was a rental car office on site so when you drop your car off, you drive home in a rental car? How about that for convenience? Your life is busy and car repairs are a hassle, Rice Collision wants to make it easy on you. Rice Collision will work with your insurance company to get your claim handled properly.

Rice Collision repairs all makes and models, imports and domestics.

Special Offer: One free day car rental with any repair scheduled online.
Visit us online at www.RiceCollision.com and get that thing fixed already!

Greensboro Symphony Rice Toyota Chamber Series

At Rice Toyota we value our community and enjoy supporting the local arts. The Greensboro Symphony Rice Toyota Chamber Series is just one of the ways we say "Thank You Greensboro for over 50 years of patronage." Below is an article from the Classical Voice of North Carolina on the Chamber Series and the uber-talented Dmitry Sitkovetsky. I have also included a link to the Greensboro Symphony online. Attending the Greensboro Symphony is an experience that will enrich your heart, soul and mind.

Greensboro Symphony Rice Toyota Chamber Series:
Sitkovetsky and Friends

Greenboro Symphony

by Tim Lindeman

January 30, 2009, Greensboro, NC: Greensboro Symphony Orchestra Music Director Dmitry Sitkovetsky introduced Friday Night’s Chamber concert by explaining that the performers were all part of his “music family.” One could have gone a step further, noting that the featured soprano, Susan Roberts, was also Sitkovetsky’s wife.

Sitkovetsky was joined by pianist Konstantin Lifschitz for a sterling performance of Mozart’s Sonata in G Major, K. 301. The two musicians are in the final stages of recording a 4-CD set of Mozart’s mature works for violin and piano, so it should have been no surprise that this performance was flawless.

The two movements that make up the work were written while the 22-year-old Mozart was touring in Paris and Mannheim. Both movements are primarily bright and cheery, with a few dark clouds in the minor section of the second movement. The duo’s performance was sparkling and elegant, like a diamond. The melodic material is shared more or less equally between the two instruments, and each performer matched the other’s subtle nuances.

Susan Roberts and Lifschitz performed Mussorgsky’s Nursery Songs. Mussorgsky is a curious composer, self-taught, and lying outside of the European canon somewhat. The musical setting of the texts (also written by the composer) is devoted to capturing the essence and meaning of the words. Thus, one should not expect lyric lines, or music that flows in stanza form, but rather a dramatic foray into what a child loves and fears.

Roberts captured the theatrical nature of the music perfectly, with an animated style that helped the listener understand the texts, which were sung in Russian. She displayed an amazing number of colors and timbres, occasionally approaching speech, but all in the service of the poetry. Lifschitz certainly had his hands full. This is not pianistic music, but orchestral, with short bursts of virtuosic material and sudden silences.

If the Mozart sonata represents clarity, balance and poise, the final piece on the program, César Franck’s Sonata in A for violin and piano, provided a perfect foil. This four-movement work contains both intimate beauty and frenzied passion. It is one of the composer’s most loved works, representing man’s journey through life, and this performance was one of the most heart-felt I have heard.

The first movement, depicting youth, was taken at a really slow tempo. This languid approach allowed for wonderful rhythmic flexibility, which both pianist and violinist explored with great expressiveness. The slow tempo of the opening movement also threw into relief the fire and drive of the second movement "Allegro," which represents young adulthood. The "Recitativo Fantasia," reflecting old age, was an introspective musing between the piano and violin. The final "Allegretto poco mosso" provides a look back on a life well lived. The music contains both tranquil and impassioned moments, concluding with ecstatic joy.

One runs out of superlatives to describe the musicianship of Sikovetsky and Lifschitz. The violinist’s ability to provide an astounding array of timbres certainly is at the core of his musical personality, from laser-like intensity to warm and richly romantic sound, all beautifully in tune. He radiates confidence. And Lifschitz seems to have no technical weakness, taking on fiendish arpeggios and elegant scales equally and providing the color of an entire orchestra.

These chamber recitals of the GSO have become a venue for some of the best music Greensboro (one might even argue the entire southeast) has to offer. And Friday night’s concert proved the point.