http://www.autoblog.com/2007/11/06/c...omy-standards/
A great read.

Bob Wilson

Operation Iraqi Oil Freedom:

Automatic, stock, project car.

My other 1500 cc car:

Automatic, stock, backup car.
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The artilce is spot on. As far as I am concerned, the CAFÉ standards have never been about any sort of technical challenge. We have had some of the mentioned technology for ten and even fifteen years or longer. Its also not about money from the consumers perspective as some of the technologies have the potential to reduce the flow of dollars coming from the consumber's pocket and potentially even to reverse it. All are certainly affordable in the mass production methods common to the automotive industry.

Ultimately, its about money from the political perspective. Meaningfull reform dies, or at least gets pushed back time and time again due to the relentless and immediate need for the congress to get $$$ to get reelected. The much greater moral aspects, responsibility to duty, national and even global custodial responsibilities all get pushed aside.

My biggest fear is that the same mind set and short term morality will in the long term make this planet uninhabitable and possibly destroy us all. Not in several thousands of years -- but in several hundred or even less. Not the legacy I wanted to leave my children.

It is the ignorant among us that will eventually destroy us all.

As they note all the technology to do this is either on the road as we speak or soon will be. 5 yrs is not too short a timeline.

In addition the 35 mpg fleet average is just that the average of all the vehicles. It doesn't mean that every vehicle has to be exactly at 35 mpg. There can be 20-25 mpg trucks for those that need them and 25-30 mpg SUVs and 30+ mpg Crossovers and 35+ mpg midsize autos and 45+ mpg small vehicles and 65+ mpg ultra efficient vehicles.

The oft-quoted rejoinder is that 'Well that's great but what if the buying public only wants our 20-25 mpg vehicles? That's skews the averages downward.' This actually is true and we the buying public are part of the problem. At some point we need a kick in the pants ( where our wallets are located ) to stop buying big gas sucking vehicles. Since we haven't taken the necessary steps the oil producers are doing it for us. If fuel is $5 or $6 a gallon how many fancy 18 mpg big rigs will we the public want to buy?

However to asuage a painful runup in fuel prices Congress should offer us both a carrot and a stick to swap out vehicles. Credits for better efficiency and penalties at time of purchase for gas guzzlers. Offer a Volt buyer a $10000 incentive to buy a 60-90 mpg vehicle or a Next Gen Prius buyer a $6000 incentive. Charge a 18 mpg SUV owner $3000 for the 'right' to pay $6/gal for a vehicle getting 1/5th the fuel economy of the Volt. BTW, for the present there are a lot more 'penalty payers' than 'credit receivers'.

Now the vehicle makers can in good faith say that they are following the market trends by producing more fuel efficient vehicles.

Oh BTW, there is no reason at all for any governmental vehicle now not to be a hybrid or to be run on bio diesel or E85. That should be the first order of business. Lead by example.

Lifetime fuel usage: 2.1 GPC ( 1.99 recent )

There is a time and place for high milleage mini cars and industrial big rigs. I agree we need to have higher mileage SUVs for people who need them and we need to work on the definition of what Hybrid cars should be. The only luxury based Hybrids we have come from Lexus only.

I would like to see a Hybrid Acura or a Hybrid Mercedes-Benz. The other problem is the additional cost involved. Manufactures need to make the Hybrids equal in price to their "gas" edition models.

Right now all hybrids on the road are more cost effective then their equivilent ICE siblings for any 3, 5, 7 or 10 yr life cycle. This ignores too any Federal Tax Credits that might apply which is just an added benefit in certain cases.

The jump to $3 fuel has made this so. At $4 or $5 or higher it's a no brainer.

Lifetime fuel usage: 2.1 GPC ( 1.99 recent )

I'm a bit of an outsider to the whole CAFE thing, but my understanding was that there is this issue of changing customer choice, and that the legislation put the onus on the car makers to make it happen. They have a number of options open to them: they can invest in technology and decrease emphasis on acceleration (i.e.: smaller engines) to improve their fuel economy fleet-wide, and continue selling the same mix of small cars and big trucks. Or, they can sell the same cars and trucks, and shift the proportions until the fuel economy averages out right. That might mean selling their small cars at cost, and holding auctions for the smaller number of guzzlers, selling just a few of them at wild prices. Or, ignore all the options open to them, and just pay the penalty to the government each year...