Runde Auto Chat

I'm gonna throw a term at you some people wouldn't know how to catch: chromotherapy. Simply put, it's the use of colors to heal. A psychology lesson in an auto blog? ... well, yes. With more cars coming out with new flashier and more colorful interiors, it's important to realize that the light and colors you probably took for granted might be positively or adversely affecting your mood. And this could ultimately affect how you drive. Imagine yourself in a room filled with one of the following colors: Red, Green or Black. Imagine, standing in that room filled with nothing but that color for hours, what do you think you'd feel? Red making you a little on nerve? Green calming you down? Black making you feel uneasy or fearful? According to http://psychology.about.com: "Red is also considered an intense, or even angry, color that creates feelings of excitement or intensity. Green is thought to relieve stress and have a healing effect. Black is often used as a symbol of menace or evil" At a certain level or concentration of color, certain enzymes are triggered resulting in an emotional response which we recognize as "stress" "calmness" "happiness," etc. "The emotions are created based on the secretions of these enzymes that are associated with certain light wavelengths and there are certain triggers." explains Mahendra Dassanayake, Ford technical leader for Design. So it would seem that light and colors may have some impact on us mentally, but what does that have to do with driving? Let me give you an example of a car that implements this understanding in it's interior design very effectively. The 2013 Ford Focus offers ice blue, purple, blue, orange, red, white and green lights as its color palette of interior ambient lighting. Albeit being less overwhelming, this lighting subsequently puts you in that "room" full of color. The various color schemes give the driver a choice to amplify a particular feeling. It can help the driver be more alert or generally feel better, maybe he/she needs to calm down a bit so he flips it to blue. "We're opening this [ambient lighting choices] up to let the customer decide, it's offering them a choice. Dassanayake said. So imagine driving down the road at night with a substantial, yet not overbearing, amount of blue light encompassing the interior while pumping out some smooth Blues music... sounds pretty relaxing. But now imagine the same music with an orange light... the mood that the music is promoting doesn't seem to suit the environment quite as well. And now we are having the options to change the lighting to better fit our target mood. Personally, I'd prefer to have orange ambient lighting - I think it would keep me more alert and focused. Next time you're riding down the road take notice what colors are being introduced to your senses and how, or if, they are effecting you psychologically. You might be surprised by what you notice when consciously examine what may be subconsciously happening in your car.

George Kapparos may have not expected to leave with a Chevy Impala when he came to Runde's, but the smile on his face as he left with his Impala said "I'm glad that happened!." George was pleasantly surprised by the level of service he received and was more than willing to share that experience with the world!

What brought you into Rune’s today?
My wife and I needed a new vehicle so I drove through the other day and looked around for a while. I was going to look at another place but my wife insisted that I come here.

Have you dealt with Runde's before?
I actually took Tim and Jeff Runde to a Chicago Cub game when they were 14 years old. They were great kids. Otherwise no, we haven’t really dealt here before.

I hear that you weren't expecting to take a car home tonight?
No, we had no intention of actually buying anything for awhile, but here we are.

What did you end up buying today?
We bought the 2008 Chevy Impala.

What made you go for the Impala?
I drove one the other day and thought it was really nice.

Are you from the area?
Yeah, we live right across the bridge in Dubuque, IA.

Any Family?
We have a daughter here, and then we have two boys - one in Marion, IA and the other one lives by Des Moines, IA.

On a scale of 1-10 how would you rank your experience here at Runde's?
I'd give it a 10, it was super. Al is a good guy, you feel like you've known him forever. I can't stand high-pressure sales people and Al didn't pressure me at all.

That's all the questions I had for you George, thanks for the interview and enjoy your new Impala!

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I got the chance to test out the new Verano a few days ago and absolutely loved it. It was sort of like a belated Valentine(that I unfortunately wasn’t able to take home and cuddle with). The interior had a very intuitive design where everything seemed to be at my fingertips. All the controls were within my reach and the seats were sleek and cozy. It’s a fun car to drive, but I noticed that my speedometer kept exceeding the legal limit so I engaged the cruise to ensure that I wouldn’t have to pay a lofty fine for over-enjoying my test-drive. I was comfy, warm and I felt somewhat like Danica as I glided across a long strip of highway, feeling the power of the car. Quiet too. The car seemed very quiet to the point where I could have been able to hear my own thoughts if I wasn’t maxing the radio volume with Christina Perri's harmonic vibes that were pouring in through the Bose 9-speaker system. I wanted to drive it everywhere. My guess is that after you’re finished tooling around town in your new Verano, you’ll probably opt to take the long way home.

The 2012 Buick Verano, as promised, is a purposeful car that provides a rich feel and comfortable ride. It has been constructed to be a quiet ride with the benefits of Quiet Steel with laminated acoustical material in between the twin-ply sheet metal that effectively acts as a dampener and helps prevent noise outside the cabin from entering the driver’s peaceful domain. The same can be said of the laminated glass that keeps the wind noise on the outside, where it should be. The Verano also promises great safety. It was the top safety pick by the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety. It comes complete with 10 airbags, ABS, Full-Function traction control and a comprehensive child seat LATCH system. So as you’re enjoying the full power of the 180 horsepower 2.4L engine, you’re assured that your precious cargo is safe and secure.

The Verano has the signature Buick chrome waterfall grille, chrome portholes on the hood and sleek fitting wheels. It’s a powerful street-scooter disguised as an elegant luxury sedan that handles great around the back curvy roads and gets 22 mpg in the city and 32 mpg highway. You’ll easily get your money’s worth with this beautacious baby Buick. It starts at about $23,500 which is extremely affordable considering the value that Buick has built into this car. The Verano rescues your cold hands and the rest of your body from the ice-cold winters with a heated steering wheel and heated seats. It has a push button start system and a push button parking brake to boot. It also comes with a touch screen radio display with satellite radio, Pandora internet radio and Stitcher app. And as I mentioned before, the Bose sound system will get you lost in your favorite tunes as you navigate your way safely to your destination.

The only thing I might change about the Verano is the lack of leg room in the back seat, although I liked the spacious trunk and I really wouldn’t want to give up any space there. So I’m really not sure how Buick can resolve that issue other than make the car longer for the next generation, but an increased length might sacrifice some of the cuteness of the car and I wouldn’t want that either. I would also request that the next-gen Verano come with a standard glove box filled with Get Out of Jail Free cards for when the speeding tickets start piling up. Other than those minor quips and quibbles, the Verano is a great car. Personally, I give it 9.5 out of 10. This car is a surefire winner and on my wish list when it comes time to trade in my current cruiser.

Needless to say that this new design for the 2013 Fusion has been very well received at the Chicago Auto Show this week and people's comments have been very favorable toward it. The video below was shot by Runde Auto Group -- The noise in the background of the vid was coming from the new Shelby Mustang presentation across the room and we'll post the video of that soon. People were definitely all a-buzz about the Shelby. But this new Fusion is definitely gorgeous.

The new design is only about 1 inch longer and 1/2 inch wider than the previous Fusion, but it looks a lot longer than its predecessor mainly due to an extended wheelbase that's almost 5 inches longer than the 2012 version. A new inline 4-cylinder 1.6 Liter EcoBoost engine will be available on the all-new Fusion. And this optional turbo engine will produce 179 horsepower and 172 lb-ft of torque and is expected to achieve 37 mpg on the freeway.

Ford will also produce a new hybrid version of the Fusion that's expected to get 47/44 mpg (city/highway), which is a dramatic increase over the 2012 Fuison that currently is rated at 41/36 mpg.