Welcome to the AskPatty Blog Carnival, where we provide a refreshing assortment of female friendly news and interesting automotive tidbits from around the blogosphere. Whether it's informative stories or steamy shots of the hottest cars, information about women in the automotive industry, or eco-friendly gas saving tips, we've got something here for everyone. Have you got something to share? Email Ask Patty at info@askpatty.com or use the form at the end to include your own blog bits in next week's carnival!

Did you attend the Blogher '08 conference in San Francisco this weekend? Interested in hearing about the companion event in Second Life? Well AskPatty has the scoop! While thousands of women Bloggers assembled for the BlogHer '08 Convention, Second Life BlogHers had plenty of chances to hang out inworld at the BlogHer conference in Second Life! Hundreds of attendees enjoyed socializing at Callie Cline's Beach Resort (which sponsored several social events with dancing and music), and the BlogHer Vendor Area (which offered products and services in between seminars and panel discussions), but the Motorability Fairgrounds Speedway was a huge hit thanks to the sponsored racing events! YAY!

With gas prices going through the roof and regulators requiring cars to be ever more miserly, Volkswagen is bringing new meaning to the term "fuel efficiency" with a bullet-shaped microcar that gets a stunning 235 mpg. Read more about the super-thrifty One-Liter Car concept vehicle at wired.com

According to Matthew DeBord of The Washington Post,  "it would be a mistake for GM, assisted by the raving grease-monkey CPAs of Citibank, to sell the Hummer brand to an upstart carmaker in India or China or to breed it as a hybrid, as some have suggested. GM desperately needs an obnoxious, attention-grabbing brand to keep from turning into a dreary shadow of its former self. And America needs the Hummer to remind us of what has always made our automobiles stand out, from the tailfin 1950s to the muscle car 1960s and '70s: swagger. Americans don't just drive their cars -- they proclaim something about themselves by driving them." A brave opinion, Matthew! We salute you!!!

Civic Vs. Prius: Compact Hybrid Comparison! As small, fuel-efficient automobiles quickly became the superstars of the sales race, Automedia.com says you can go green and save green while also reducing greenhouse gasses in this review of the Toyota Prius and Honda Civic Hybrid sedans.

Have you seen it yet? The 2010 Chevrolet Camaro is nearing its February 2009 launch. GM recently invited a small number of journalists to its West Coast Advanced Design Studio in North Hollywood as they took the wraps off of the long-awaited response to Ford's Mustang and Dodge's Challenger. Our friends at Automotive Traveler was there to snap photos, and so was AskPatty.

While it might seem that women have come a long way, the biggest complaint reported by women car buyers in a recent Road & Travel study is how they are treated at dealerships. As this a rticle in the DailyLocal reports, "Some women even say they feel like second-class customers. And, if a woman buyer would like to purchase her vehicle from a dealer of the same gender, good luck. Sad. Even though women today purchase more than 52 percent of all new vehicles and influence more than 85 percent of all automotive sales in the United States, according to a 2004 study published by Road & Travel Magazine, MaryAnn Lonett admits car dealerships today can still be "a man's world." Don't we know it!

We love to hear the success stories of women in the automotive industry: Well, Nancy Ariano of Durango has been elected the first chairwoman in the 75-year history of the Colorado Automobile Dealers Association. She owns New Country Auto Center in Durango, New Country Cortez in Cortez and several other companies. Ariano previously served as CADA vice chair and in other volunteer positions with the organization. CADA was founded in 1933, and the association represents 260 new car and truck dealers throughout Colorado.

AskPatty likes like hydrogen. And so does the University of Missouri. They're competing in the 2,400-mile Texas to Alberta North American Solar Challenge, in a car fueled by hydrogen.  The school's Tigergen is a "demonstration vehicle," competing in the 10-day race just to show that hydrogen works. Read more about the race to Canada at wired.com http://blog.wired.com/cars/2008/07/racing-to-canad.html