Cl’e g lo rila nò (Dhseruer September 9, 2009 Pori lanci OL s e r v e r Auf© R e v i e w Page A9 News and reviews on new motor vehicles 2010 Toyota Pirus III K athleen C akk The Toyota Prius was completely redesigned for 2010.lit remains a four- door hatchback that seats five people. The car's hybrid powertrain consists of a 1,8-liter gasoline engine that pro­ duces 98 horsepower and 105 pound- feet of torque that's used in conjunc­ tion with two electric motors and a special planetary gear set that func­ tions as a continuously variable trans­ mission in total the system power is 134 hp net. The current powertrain is a little more robust on the highway than the previous-generation car, although not really any quicker away from a traffic light. It is more fuel-efficient estimated fuel economy of 51 mpg in the city. A hefty lead foot will drop mpg into the high 30-mpg range, however if keep your mind on the "Eco" driving mode indicators, and use of the new EV mode, which allows a mile of pure- electric driving with a well-charged battery pack it will help any driver extract more than 50 mpg in city driv­ ing. At full acceleration, both power sources work together to provide the maximum get up and go. Although under a lighter load conditions such by as stop-and-go traffic, the Prius alter­ nates between the two, often running on battery power alone. This maxi­ mizes the car's fuel economy poten­ tial. The brakes are now discs at all four comers, and the regeneration that captures kinetic energy, turning it into electricity, has been improved Inside the cabin you find that the stiffer body shell helps reduce noise and vibration from the engine and continuously variable transmission. The new body style creates more room for it passengers. However there is less front knee room, side to side, thanks to the new center console, but the driver's seat is now height-adjust- able. It may be a little to quiet because it took a few moments for us to notice that it was on, although it great when driving because you do not feel the change between power. The Prius has a Touch Tracer sys­ tem that mimics your finger-swipes over steering-wheel controls over the gauges, so you don't have to look down to adjust radio stations or cli­ m ate-control settings. Pow er w in­ dows, cruise control, and an AM/FM/ XM/CD player are standard. Major new options include a moonroof with Vehicle Specifications: 1.8L DOHC WT-14 cylinder engine: 51 city mpg, 48 highway mpg; MSRP $27,909. solar panels, pow ering a fan that draws hot air out of the car without using the Prius’ other batteries. A re­ mote air conditioner is also available, along with a navigation system, LED headlamps, Bluetooth, and a backup camera. Toyota's reputation for reliability and durability is holding true for the Prius. Although the Toyota Prius is quite complex, future repairs and part replacements could be quite expen­ sive. It a excellent commuter vehicle that meets the needs saving money and the environment. Health Net Volunteers Pitch in to Fix Home A b o u t a d o zen e m p lo y e e s o f Health Net Health Plan, a local in ­ surance company, teamed with the n o n -p ro fit R eb u ild in g T o g eth er group, to help an elderly north Port­ land resident, fix up his home. The goal o f the recent day-long com m unity service effort was to help make Howard M inor’s home more inhabitable. The volunteers scraped the old paint o ff the exterior of the house before priming and painting it. They tore up old and soiled carpeting, in addition to an old retaining wall. They cleaned out a dilapidated shed and hauled away. At the end o f the day, M inor and his daughter, Shirley M inor, and grandson, Rodney G raves, warmly thanked the volun teers, as did a string of neighbors who rem arked on how well the house looked. “O ur crew worked very hard, de­ spite the hot sun and the difficulty of the w ork,” said Bill Dwyer, a H ealth Net business analyst who served as a leader on the project. This is the fourth year Health Net has been involved with a Day of Service campaign to improving the inhabitability o f som eone’s home. Rebuilding Together, a founda­ tion of north Portland’s Rebuilding Center, is dedicated to helping re­ pair the homes of people experienc­ ing financial hardship or disability. Rodney Graves (left) and his grandfather Howard Minor (second from right) welcome Health Net Health Plan fix it volunteers Bill Dwyer and Maggie Huffman to Minor's northeast Portland home. p iloro bv M ark W ashington / T he P ortland O bserver State of Hate continued ^ ^ f r o m Front tion Against Hate Crimes, said that Volksfront once had such clout that smaller hate groups and individuals essentially shied away from doing anything without getting its approval. Blazak added that Krager has left the state, hastening the group's decline. Harsher enforcement Oregon has also taken a harsher tact toward hate groups. Shortly af­ ter Mulugeta Seraw, and Ethiopian student, was brutally murdered by Portland skinheads the police set up a hate crimes unit, while the Legisla­ ture passed hate-crimes laws and vot­ ers approved get-tough-on-crime bal­ lot measures. "When we turned the hea, up on these guys and put a lot of them in prison they said, 'this sucks,"' said Burkeen. Blazak said that with Volksfront in decline, there are a few smaller and less-organized hate groups lurking on Portland's east side, in addition to the Hammerskin Nation across the Colum­ bia River in Vancouver, which is per­ haps the best known. “When there are smaller groups there isn't as much communication; there aren't as much finances; there's city. “How much of it is real and how much of it is imagined? Let’s face it, a lot of these guys go out and thump their chest, but are they really doing a whole lot? No, because they’re not anxious to go to jail,” said Nielsen. fewer things to be able to grab onto," explained Daniel Nielsen, assistant special agent in charge for the Port­ land Division of the Federal Bureau of Investigations, who confirm ed Blazak's assessment. The advent of the Internet has made it even more difficult to know how big a threat an "organization" is, accord­ ing to Blazak. Sometimes a forebod­ ing w ebsite that appears to have many committed members is just one person in their mother's basement, which Blazak said was the case in one instance. “That is always a problem because those groups aren’t going to give up their membership list,” said Heidi Beirich, research director for the Southern Poverty Law Center, which tracks hate groups nationally. Without large public events, said Beirich, it's hard to gauge how big a group is. Blazak said that one person can download and print out hateful fliers or stickers from the Internet and litter their neighborhood with them. Re­ cently this happened in the Sellwood neighborhood in southeast Portland when someone got stickers from the racist National Alliance. Last year, someone released balloons marked by swastikas in various parts of the P o rtlan d e a rlie r this year. Two Medford men pleaded guilty to burn­ ing the letters "KKK" into the lawn of a racially-mixed couple's house, among other incidents. Hilary Bernstein, community direc­ tor for the Anti-Defamation League's Pacific Northwest Region, said that How much o f it is real and how much o f it is imagined? Let's face it, a lot o f these guys go out and thump their chest, but are they really doing a whole lot? bio, because they're not anxious to SO tO j a i l *5 •' ' -D aniel Nielsen, assistant special agent In charge forthe Portland Division of the Federal Bureau of Investigations Incidents continue But ugly incidents continue to pro­ liferate across the state, according to reports from anti-hate groups. Earlier this year two Troutdale teenagers painted racial slurs and swastikas on tombstones in a Jewish section of a cemetery. This summer a Pendleton man yelled an anti-Jewish epithet be­ fore head butting a judge for the city's annual wiener dog race, among other occurrences tracked by the coalition. Three Native American men were beaten by men yelling racial slurs in her organization received 12 com ­ plaints about hate groups in Oregon as of June, which she said is unusu­ ally high. Many involved National Socialists the southern and central Oregon. The SPLC claims there are only seven hate groups in Oregon, but only four espouse a white supremacist ide­ ology. “It’s out there on the fringe, but it’s just not the same” said Mary Wheat, spokesperson for Portland Police who previously worked as a bias crimes detective. Get Seen | in Happy Birthday Mary Johnson! 1 he Portland Observer Place your business and classified ads in our long-standing publication to get no­ ticed and get the support you need. From your family & friends Call today at 503-288-0033 or email ads portlandobserver.com