Instead of stuff like SE, LE and XLE, the different options packages or “trim levels” on the 2010 Prius will be demarcated by roman numerals II, III, and IV. There is no Prius I. Odd. Probably to set it apart from your normal, not-getting-50-mpg cars. [Kicking Tires]
BLOGS
Convert And Combine Your WaMu And Chase Cards
By 3.11.09
The handover is complete and Chase now officially runs the WaMu credit card operations. Here’s how to combine your WaMu credit lines with your Chase credit lines. [CreditMattersBlog] (Photo: Ed Yourdon)
Best Buy Goes Above And Beyond To Make Up For Selling Busted Camera As New
By 3.11.09
Michael is happy to report that he got a really great resolution from Best Buy, who had sold his grandma a broken camera as new and then accused them of breaking it themselves. The shots of Best Buy employees Michael found on the camera, and the repugnant attitude he encountered when they tried to return it and disinterest when he complained to corporate multiple times, only made the story that much juicier. After Micheal’s story went up on Consumerist and hit Digg, Best Buy contacted him. Here’s what they did to make nice:
ComcastMustDie Declares Victory Overy Comcast
By 3.11.09
Bob Garfield, creator of ComcastMustDie.com, has declared victory. Comcast isn’t dead, but he says instead of being “a vast, greedy, blundering, tone-deaf corporate colossus,” it’s merely all of the above with the exception of tone-deaf. ComcastMustDie is one of the many online different outlets for customer rage that Comcast has tapped into to proactively respond to customer complaints. They still have a long way to go, but at least they’re listening. That is all Bob really wanted, it seems, as he’s moving on to a new project, CustomerCircus.net, that will solicit and broadcast consumer complaints against all kinds of companies. And yep, Comcast will still be one of them.
Senators Propose Financial Product Safety Commission
By 3.11.09
Senators Durbin and Schumer today proposed making a “Financial Product Safety Commission.” (an idea originally put out there by the super-awesome Elizabeth Warren 2 years ago). Shumer likened it to the Wild West days of medicine in the 1900s when snakeoil got peddled from street corners and magazines, saying, “Those who sell quack financial products in the 21st century” should be “reined in, not with disclosure, but with real limits.” If it comes to fruition, hopefully unlike other government protection agencies it will be staffed by consumer advocates instead of industry insiders.
Royal Caribbean Caught Infiltrating Review Sites With Viral Marketing Team
By 3.8.09
Meet the “Royal Caribbean Champions,” a group of fifty prolific posters to popular online communities that Royal Caribbean rewards with special access and free cruises in exchange for their frequent and positive commentary. The Champions were outed by their creators, the Customer Insight Group, which boasted on their company blog that the potent group is “regularly leveraged for ongoing marketing initiates. Members of the popular reviewing site Cruise Critic, one of the main targets of the program, are understandably pissed.
Losing 32lbs In 6 Weeks. Just 68 To Go
By 3.6.09
Consumerist reader Tyler weighed 344 pounds and is trying to lose 100 of them. So far he’s lost 32 in 6 weeks. Here are some of his secrets:
Vincent To Get Car He Wants
By 3.4.09
Yesterday we brought you the story of Vincent who got “gold misted” at a Chevy dealership. After his story went up he learned that his brother-in-law’s cousin works at a Chevy dealership and will get him the car he wanted. “Life is good :-)” announced Vincent.
Chevy Takes Time Away From Failing To Try To Rip Off Customer
By 3.3.09
UPDATE: Vincent To Get Car He Wants
Find Free Mp3s On Music Blogs
By 3.2.09
I posted recently about how I like HypeMachine, a reader/player/finder of free mp3s on music blogs and some readers chimed in with their favorite ways to find free mp3s on blogs:
Jeep Incapable Of Selling To Man With $24,000 In Cash
By 3.2.09
It’s amazing the hassle Bruce went through trying to buy a Jeep with $24,000 cash. Even though he’s ready to buy the car outright, the car salesman almost convinces him to finance because that way you get $1,500 back. Total cost of the loan: $31,732…they wanted him to spend an extra $7,132 to “save” $1500. Luckily his mom steps in and saves him from getting taken for a ride. His journey doesn’t stop there, nor does it end with a successful Jeep purchase. They can’t even sell a car to a guy who shows up with cash in hand ready to buy… no wonder they needed a bailout. Full story inside…
RyanAir To Liven Up Emergencies With Exciting New Escape Fees!
By 3.1.09
RyanAir’s toilet tax may not be the company’s worst idea after all, as reader Geoffrey reminds us with this mockup showing several potential fees the budget Irish carrier may well be considering.
RyanAir Employee Calls Blogger "Idiot," And Their Spokesperson Publicly Agrees
By 2.25.09
So blogger Jason Roe finds what he thinks is an error on the RyanAir site that would let you buy airfare from the zero-frills a-la-carte Irish airline for free. An employee decided t make nasty comments in Jason’s comments section, calling him “idiot and a liar!” and saying that he probably can’t get a date. Which was not that surprising. Nor was it surprising that a RyanAir PR rep responded to the situation. What was surprising was that the PR rep sided with the commenter and heaped further abuse on the blogger!
Is Last.fm Sharing User Data With The RIAA?
By 2.22.09
TechCrunch has published a damning rumor accusing the social music site Last.fm of helping the RIAA find users who downloaded leaked copies of U2’s new album. Relying on a tip, TechCrunch claims that the Last.fm, a subsidiary of CBS, handed over a “giant dump of user data to track down people who are scrobbling unreleased tracks.”
CNN Explains: "Living Within Your Means"
By 2.21.09
In case anyone forgot how the global economy came to teeter on the brink of collapse, CNN recently needed to help a reader figure out the difference between “living within your means” and “living below your means.” Let’s see if we can’t constructively add to the conversation…
Cancel Cable Without Losing Your Favorite Shows
By 2.21.09
Cable is one of the first things you should cut to keep expenses down, but that doesn’t mean you should ditch your favorite shows. J.D. over at Get Rich Slowly cut his cable bill from $65.82 to $11.30 without missing a single harrowing plot twist. Here’s how he did it…
Four Ways To Save Money At A Sporting Event
By 2.21.09
Sporting events were once a nice way to kill the day with friends instead of the massively expensive once-a-year “treats” that they’re trying to become. Food and drinks are easily the biggest expenses you can control at any sporting event, and with a few tips from Frugal Dad, you can keep your day at the game as cheap as it was in grandpa’s time…
