About Civics. A Seattle friend has a Civic hybrid (not all Civics are hybrid right?), and it has one feature that drives him nuts. As an energy saving feature the engine turns off when stopped at a stoplight or for more than five seconds at a stop sign. Downhill, level, or on a mild uphill slope that is a good thing. The engine has some sort of standby feature that brings it right back on when he presses the accelerators. But in Seattle this often happens at stop lights just before the peak of a very steep hill. Seattle residents, imagine having to restart your car from a dead stop most of the way up Queen Anne or Pill Hill. I imagine that would be unpleasant feature in Pittsburgh, San Francisco and a hell of a lot of other places as well. I suspect that is either a discontinued feature, or that they added some sort of angle sensor.

Wow. That sucks.

Not all civics are or have been hybrids. (My family had one in the early 70s - nobody knew what they were. Picture the Honda Civic cf the typical early 70s boat-like car. And with a family of five crammed into it. Yes, that was us - if you were in Baltimore.)

My '06 Civic is definitely not a hybrid. 2006 was the first year of the redesign, and I'm a big fan of it (love the split display on the dashboard!). It is a damn expensive car to buy new, though.

If anyone is thinking about buying a used car from a dealer, make sure you get an extended warranty. My mom got an entry-level Caddy with about 20K miles on it, and that warranty has more than paid for itself in the three years since she bought the car. Last time was when the transmission went out right after we got back from Florida last April; she didn't have to pay a penny for the work.

Nora, I'd skip Slanted Door. I've been going since it was in the Mission, then moved to a temp spot (while Ferry Bldg was being re-done) and then the Ferry Bldg. It's gotten more expensive at each stop, and the food quality and service have dropped off. I think it's really overpriced.

And I hope you and Tom will have time for at least one get-together? Would love to meet you!

Only the Hybrids have the engine shutoff feature. If you have a manual transmission Civic Hybrid as soon as you press the clutch down the engine restarts. Automatics it is as soon as the gas is pressed. The cars use the electric motor to start moving while the engine is quickly restarting. I've driven Hybrids up and down San Francisco hills with no problems.

Am hoping to have a Buffista meetup at the Toronado which is probably my favorite place in San Francisco!

Awesome! LOVE all those beers on tap! :)

I've seen "preventative" so much, it never occurred to me as not-a-word. It makes sense that it's not, now that you say so, but real publications even use it.

Where in blue bloody blazes did I get the idea that seeing a nurse practitioner was supposed to be more economical than seeing a doctor? Because it is a stupid, false idea.

And so I'm going to see an actual doctor for my $150 this time around.

ND, curse you! Now I am drooling over the Mercedes C230s on the CarMax site! Alas, my trusty 2000 Integra has only 50K miles and my plan is to drive it into the ground. My next car, however, may just be a Mercedes. Good safety record and affordable if you buy used. I want a black one with black interior!