Efficiency vs. Economics

"If you pass it, they will come" Pass a carbon tax and hybrids + electric cars will be in demand. Pass the tax while prices at the pump are low and maybe they won't jump to $5.00 a gallon when the economy starts moving again. I know the idea of giving the government more money drives SOME of us insane, but giving OPEC the money should drive us ALL insane!!!!

The interesting thing is that if you want a plug-in hyrbid, you don't have to buy a new car but simply upgrade your existing gas guzzler to a plug-in. Companies such as Plug-in Hybrid, Inc. of San Diego (www.pihybrid.com) and REV of Canada (http://www.rapidelectricvehicles.com/) offers after-market conversion kits that convert pickups, vans and SUVs in plug in hybrids that run off a combination of gas and electric. The great thing about these are that without the necessary infrastructure in place to support electric recharging, these plug-in's will run even if the batteries are out of juice...because you still have old reliable...your internal combustion engine. And when you get home, simply plug it into any outlet and your ready to go the next morning.

I have 3 cars all of which get in the low 20's around town and 30 to 33 mpg on the highway. The one that gets the best milage is a V6 Buick sedan. I bought a Ford Escape last year, because I need something with 4-wheel drive where I live, and it gets 20 around town, 25 on the highway which it rarely sees. I'm over 60 and hope the Ford is the last new car I need to buy. My sister-in-law has an Escape hibred and gets a little better milage than mine but she figures it will take her 12 years to break even if gas costs $3/gallon. Even when I was working, there's no way I would have been able to pay $40,000 for a Chevy Volt, or any other car. A $3000 incentive wouldn't have changed that either. I paid $25,000 for the Escape and that was the most I'd ever paid for a new car. I don't think I'm unique. What I do find unique is how easily the millionaires in congress can assume that everyone will buy this new technology if they force Ford and GM to produce it. Did you see the story about Pres-Elect Obama's Chrysler 300 on Ebay? How many Priuses are there in the senate parking lot versus SUV's and luxury cars? Drill me enough oil to get through the next 20 years and I'll get out of the way.

The companies are lucky people do not have a lot of interest in hybrids because they can not keep up with even low demand. I ordered a 2009 Mercury Mariner Hybrid in July and still do not have it. People can not buy them if they are not available. I had to look for months before I could even locate one to drive and like most people will not shell out that kind of money for something i have never seen nor driven in person. It is a bit hasty to speculate a market will get squashed when the manufacturers never let it develop by not meeting demand.

People worry too much about the Hybrids and Electrics. We don't need to get people driving 37 mpg cars into 50 mpg hybrids. We need to get the people driving 15 mpg SUVs into 37 mpg cars. That's where you significantly reduce oil consumption. We probably don't need to do much to make that happen. Oil is cheap now because there is a global recession. Once the world economy picks up again, the price will go back up and SUVs will become less desirable. No one is buying them now anyway. As far as hybrids and electrics, they will come along on their own when the oil prices go high enough, or the technology gets a little cheaper.

A Few months ago I purchased a Toyota FJ 4X4 because it can go anywhere, gets moderate gas mileage and was too good a deal to pass up (8K under sticker). Though I would not mind a hybrid or a totally electric vehicle I will never purchase one until the power, range, price and ease of fill up/recharge are comparable.

As a nation, we need a Manhattan Project to ensure that electric cars are developed and that their technology permits them to be sold at a reasonable price. That may mean a significant increase in the national gasoline tax to make the ROI acceptable to the consumer.

We need to tax petrolium to the point that it is not a primary fuel for everyday use.

"Honda's 2010 Insight is slated to be the least expensive hybrid sold in the United States at under $20,000. That's still nearly $5,000 more than a Honda Civic running on unleaded."

Only if that Civic has no Air Conditioning and a Manual Transmission.

Hybrids and electrics are dying, but the reason isn't the recession so much as the bailout of the irresponsible mainstream auto industry. When the big old guys fail, the new young ones can have a place to grow in.

Electric cars will always have an uphill battle. Oil consumption provides huge tax revenues for the Federal and State Governments as-well-as the huge profits for the Big Oil Companies, which employ many lobbyists and make huge political contributions. Therefore, Detroit MUST continue making Gas Guzzlers to keep these taxes and profits rolling and keep them happy. Hybrids are just a compromise. They underperform most other efficient cars on the highway ??? but still consume gas and need the expensive repairs and service from automobile dealers - who are protected by state governments. The incompetent or corrupt politicians, behind the scenes, are really not for gas efficiency. Politicians, governments, oil companies, auto manufacturers and auto dealers all have a vested interest in the status quo!

Electric cars will always have an uphill battle. Oil consumption provides huge tax revenues for the Federal and State Governments as-well-as the huge profits for the Big Oil Companies, which employ many lobbyists and make huge political contributions. Therefore, Detroit MUST continue making Gas Guzzlers to keep these taxes and profits rolling and keep them happy. Hybrids are just a compromise. They underperform most other efficient cars on the highway ??? but still consume gas and need the expensive repairs and service from automobile dealers - who are protected by state governments. The incompetent or corrupt politicians, behind the scenes, are really not for gas efficiency. Politicians, governments, oil companies, auto manufacturers and auto dealers all have a vested interest in the status quo!

Place a TAX cost for those that still like cheap gaz

Angst.
What to do what to do. Buy a hybrid or a SUV. Happily, that is not the only choice that people have.
Today, I considered buying a hybrid vehicle. After doing the math, I figured I might be able to save only about 30 or 40 dollars a month, your mileage may vary. With interest rates as low as they are and gas prices set to increase, I might break even in about 2050.
But I arrived at that figure because five years ago, I bought a state of the art, high efficiency vehicle that gets great mileage. Comparing the hybrids to this well designed vehicle just does not translate into great savings for me. I made smart decisions years ago though, so I can dodge the guilt that comes from enriching the Saudis and baking the planet with CO2.

The lesson? If you are making green decisions every day, the marginal benefit you are going to get from an even more efficient vehicle will be slight. What SHOULD be happening is for SUV drivers to make the switch to hybrids, and that will not happen without high gas prices. America needs high gas taxes to bring fuel prices to the level of European and Asian countries. Until then, consumers will make choices that will lead to bad outcomes. Until then, American manufacturers will not be able to compete in producing good energy efficient vehicles. Until then, Toyota will be producing hybrid SUV vehicles and utterly crushing Detroit.

You heard it here. Raise taxes America, and get your competitive edge back. Triple the price of regular unleaded or get left behind.

The interest in green cars seems to rise and fall with the price of fuel.
There was a great deal of interest when the price of gas was $4.00 now gone since the price of gas is back below $2.
Personally I think the oil companies dropped the price largely in responce to prevent a move to cars not dependant on their product.
But the government is going to have an interesting problem since the tax on gas is a significant source of revenue and as such one has to wonder just how much real pressure to expect from government to move away from oil dependancy.

Re: the title.

No, that's not what's slowing green car development. It's the fact that a lot of America is too stupid to know how dangerous our gasoline-based economy has become to us.

Jose Bravo, executive director of Just Transition Alliance and a key figure in climate change and justice, talks about how the recession can help green transportation and the economy:

http://astuterecorder.com/2008/12/08/jose-bravo-green-transit-can-solve-many-problems/

Jose Bravo, executive director of the Just Transition Alliance, and a key figure in climate change and justice, addresses how the recession is an opportunity to use green transportation and transit to solve multiple issues: the economy, global warming and job losses:

http://astuterecorder.com/2008/12/08/jose-bravo-green-transit-can-solve-many-problems/