Runde Auto Chat

 The Detroit Auto Show is always bound to bring out the latest and greatest each manufacturer has to offer in their vehicle displays. Of the new and exciting things happening, Chevrolet unveiled the Sonic which acts as a replacement to the Chevrolet Aveo. While the Aveo's departure from the lineup is a sad time for some, there is plenty of good to look forward to in the Sonic.

At first glance it kind of feels like an Aveo, it was built to replace the Aveo and will probably be priced close to that of an Aveo... so what's the difference? Glad you asked...

Lets start off the bat with the engine. Remember the Ecotec 1.4L turbo that is available on the Chevy Cruze? It's back, this time in a smaller and lighter package with the Sonic's 6-speed manual @138hp will ensure your ride to have a great sense of speed and performance. Standard with the Sonic comes the Ecotec 1.8L engine paired with five-speed manual or six-speed automatic transmissions.

Some options which are rare to find in a car in this segment include: Remote Start, Front Heated Seats and Sunroof. And the sedan also offers the segment's best trunk capacity.

It comes in a 5-door hatchback and, just unveiled in Detroit, a sedan variant. From the Press Release: "The sedan and five-door models are distinctively different. The five-door carries a tight, two-box shape with aggressive, diving feature lines, while the sedan's "notchback" profile has a more upscale and mature presence. At first glance, the five-door model looks like a three-door hatch because the rear door handles are discreetly located in the "C"-pillar area. The rear of the five-door continues with unconventional details, including exposed, motorcycle-inspired rear taillamps."

Chris Perry, vice president of Chevrolet marketing comments, "The all-new Chevrolet Sonic blends the practicality of a small car with the passion for driving that Chevrolet vehicles like the Corvette are known for." And, coincidentally, the engineers for the Corvette are responsible for the ride and handling on the Sonic.

And as a little extra bonus/fact. The Sonic is the only small car to be built-in America, its production will be starting later in 2011 at the General Motors Orion Assembly Center in Michigan.

How did you find Runde Auto Group and this particular vehicle? Through Al Kloft. I told him what I was looking for and he went and found it for me. I bought a Trailblazer and my brother bought a vehicle from Al not too long ago too.

Why did you decide to purchase it here? Because I found what I liked and because I've known Al for a long time. He's a family friend so I trusted him. And I liked it so I said yah I'd buy it. 

Where is the first place you’ll take your new car? I don't know ... probably work. Really? Yah I have have work at 9 o'clock tonight. Where do you work at? At The Barn in Sherrill -- it's a bar and a restaurant up there. I used to go up to the barn a long time ago -- we played a couple gigs up there back in the day. Yah, that was when V.J. owned it and now his son runs the place. (Check out the link to The Barn's FaceBook Page)

Is your vehicle a male or female? Female. And will you give it a name? No. Why not? I don't know. (shrugs) I never named any of my cars.

How many vehicles have you owned so far in your life? Five. How often do you usually trade in your cars? This is the first time I've ever traded and bought something new. So you usually keep your vehicles until they die? Yep.

What’s the best thing about your new ride? It's bigger and it has four-wheel-drive. If you were a vehicle, what vehicle would you want to be? Probably ... I don't know, it's a tough question ... probably a truck because it's big.

Will your friends or anyone be allowed to eat in your new Trailblazer? Yes. Are you sure? Yah. (Wow we've asked that question before to many customers before and we usually get a "Nope" response back. I wasn't expecting that answer.)

How would you rate your vehicle buying experience with Runde Auto Group on a scale of 1 to 35 with 35 being the best? I'd say it was probably a 31.

And Al Kloft was your salesman -- so how would you rate Al? The best. He was awesome, I liked working with Al.

If something unfortunate were to happen to Al and he could no longer be a car salesman, do you think he would make a better News Anchorman, Game Show Host, or State Representative? Definitely a game show host.

And which game show would he be best at hosting? The Price is Right, Deal or No Deal, or that one about being smarter than a 5th grader? The 5th grader one. (she smiles) You know I think just the contestants have to show how smart they are so he'd probably be safe as the host. Yep. (she nods and grins)

What is your favorite movie of all time? Fried Green Tomatoes. Really? Do you like the Fried Green Tomatoes restaurant too? I know that there's a nice restaurant named Fried Green Tomatoes. I haven't been there, but I really like the movie. It's easily my favorite.

Do you have any hobbies? I like to ride horses.

What is currently in the cd player of your vehicle? Seether. Seether? What's that? It's a rock band.

If you could move anywhere else in the world, where would it be and why? Probably Wyoming because I like the country and there's like nothing out there -- like no big cities or anything like that. (I've heard that you haven't really seen the stars until you've looked up at a Wyoming sky on a moonless night.) Have you ever been to Idaho? No. I've heard that's awesome too. Yah me too.

Describe your ideal day – what would you do – where would the road take you? I'd go to a tractor pull. A tractor pull? Yep. (I like asking that question because you never get the same answer twice.)

Lightning Round:

Gaga or Taylor Swift? Taylor Swift.

Transformers or Twilight? Twilight.

Taco Johns or Taco Bell? Taco Bell.

Glass: half empty, half full, or someone just left it sitting there and no one felt like washing it today? Half full.

Target or Walmart? Target.

Ebay or Amazon? Amazon.

Win the lottery or become President? (grinning with confidence) Win the lottery.

We'd like to thank Bridget for taking time out of her schedule to sit down and chat with us. She's a very personable young lady and now she has a sweet new 4wd ride that you just may see her in as she zooms over the hills and valleys of the tri-state area. Let's just hope she never feels the need to drive her new vehicle like Kathy Bates in Fried Green Tomatoes.

A couple of months ago Jordan Degree got a Chevy HHR for the Dubuque Art Center from Runde's. The Are Center had plans to get it wrapped in a vinyl coat and that's exactly what they did! Jordan says he is loving the HHR and is very pleased with how the wrap turned out. Check out the pictures below and look out for it on the roads!

Am I the only one who thinks "holy cow, there must be a whole lot of complicated things going on when they built that engine!" This is what I think almost every time I pop open my hood to look at the engine? How would one go about building an engine? What all goes into the design? Is displacement really king when it comes to sheer power? Was GM's 3800 V-6 really the best car engine of the 20th century? Or what about Jeep's 4.0L inline 6-cylinder? I later go on to wonder if I were to ever take one apart, what would I see, would I know how it all worked, and could I put it all back together like pieces of a jigsaw puzzle? If only I could see one being built from scratch and have an explanation of what's going on... what's that? I can!??

That's right, Chevrolet is now giving you the option to build your own engine with the purchase of a Z06 or ZR1 Corvette. Pack up your bags, plop down an extra $5,800 plus travel charges to Detroit and you will be face to machine with all the parts and tools needed to build the very same engine that will be rocketing you down the road at ridiculous speeds. The best part about it is if you are in the market for a Z06 or a ZR1 then the extra $$$ needed for this awesome, once in a lifetime opportunity, will probably be next to nothing.

Check out the video below for a demonstration of the engine you could be building!

Wishing everyone a safe and jubilant 4th of July weekend. If you don't have plans for the weekend yet, there's still time to make them. If you're just not the plannin' type ... well, we hear ya. It's casual.

 All four of the Runde Auto Group locations will be closed on Monday the 5th of July in honor of the National Holiday. We'll reopen again for business on Tuesday the 6th, but remember that you can access our inventory 24/7 at www.RundeAutoGroup.com