Miles to Go

When it comes to automotive technology Detroit does not rank up there. All the talk about high tech-cars are just mostly that, talk. Take the hydrogen fuel cell car, and the fancy hybrids that our car makers are going to put out. When all is said and done, it will be either Toyota or Honda that will be the stepping up to the plate. Our Big Three are just too muscle-bound to move quickly into the field. Or too top heavy to be coming out with something we all can afford to buy. Their bean-counters will never okay anything that will not give them the maximun mark-up. They will continue to push through the easy-to-make and pad gas hogs until we run out of gas.

When it comes to automotive technology Detroit does not rank up there. All the talk about high tech-cars are just mostly that, talk. Take the hydrogen fuel cell car, and the fancy hybrids that our car makers are going to put out. When all is said and done, it will be either Toyota or Honda that will be the stepping up to the plate. Our Big Three are just too muscle-bound to move quickly into the field. Or too top heavy to be coming out with something we all can afford to buy. Their bean-counters will never okay anything that will not give them the maximun mark-up. They will continue to push through the easy-to-make and pad gas hogs until we run out of gas.

I drive a car because I wanted better fuel economy when it came time to purchase. The past two weeks my car was in a body shop and I borrowed vehicles from a few friends. Each of them had SUV's, I drove a Jeep, GM Diesel 2500, and Chevy Tahoe. I admit, I loved being in a larger car but hated the price I had to pay at the pump. It is going to take a great amount effort on all of our parts to change the product offering in this country. It helps to have government regulators telling car companies to build more fuel efficient cars, but it is ridiculous for the American people to complain about high fuel prices when it costs them over $100 to fill their large oversized SUV's. We as a people cannot expect everything to be handed to us. We are responsible for the changes made and need to make a concious effort to promote those changes. Just because I desire to have a large SUV does not mean I should own one. Sometimes it takes a little self control. We operate in a consumer driven economy, the only reason large cars have been so readily available in the past 20 years is because we have demanded them. It is time to take a look in the mirror and ask yourself what you have done to promote our present situation. Stop complaining about car companies not using new technologies to make more fuel efficient cars, they are slowly working on them. Start voting with your dollars by purchasing more efficient and smaller scale cars and the car companies will be forced to follow suit.

I currently own a vehicle which gets 60 mpg on long distance cruises (50mpg otherwise). It is readily available. Only cost me $8000 brand new in 2005. It is my Yamaha 1100 V-Star. A motorcycle for those of you committed to 4 wheels.

When it comes to automotive technology Detroit does not rank up there. All the talk about high tech-cars are just mostly that, talk. Take the hydrogen fuel cell car, and the fancy hybrids that our car makers are going to put out. When all is said and done, it will be either Toyota or Honda that will be the stepping up to the plate. Our Big Three are just too muscle-bound to move quickly into the field. Or too top heavy to be coming out with something we all can afford to buy. Their bean-counters will never okay anything that will not give them the maximun mark-up. They will continue to push through the easy-to-make and pad gas hogs until we run out of gas.

Not all Americans have a need for speed. And not all Americans drive the highways may I add. Let us not forget that the greater part of our country is largely rural. Millions live in little towns and they will happily give up the gas-guzzlers foisted upon them by our carmakers and go with the little European and Japanese microcars that can get over 80 MPG. I daresay the many millions who live in the cities too would be happy to be rid of Detroit's idea of how to get from A to B and buy something small, like the Smart car that Mercedes is bringing to our shores.
The reason that we are no going to see 50 MPG cars here is just that our leaders and oilmen are drunk on the profits that our gas-guzzlers are making them. They will continue to dictate to us what to drive.

This could have been a really short article...the quick and dirty answer is this: because America is controlled by the oil and gas industry. End of story.

Did you people with 1980's high mpg cars actually READ the article? Try again.

Did you