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An SUV doesn't necessarily make you safer. It depends on the type of accident.
The old rule of thumb a few years back for buying a hybrid was that you had to keep it at least 10 years or drive it more than 20,000 miles per year to justify the price premium (I believe I remember Clark Howard talking about this on his radio program). Seeing that hybrid prices haven't come down that much the past few years, that is probably still roughly accurate.
Do you think move SUV's will be traded in especially in warmer climates or the gas prices will not affect what people drive?
Over time, gas prices do affect people's buying decisions and driving habits. If our gas prices increased to the prices people in Europe pay, we would see a huge shift in purchases and driving habits.
I think that is a great point. We have two cars and mine is a 1998 Mustang which is in outstanding condition and very well maintained. Gas mileage is okay .. around 20 and 25 on long highway trips. If I sold it I might get around $8,000 and a new hybrid will probably cost more than $30,000 (I haven't looked into prices). How long and how many miles would it take to recover $22,000+ of investment?
I have no problem with hybrids or with electric cars and they probably are the future sometime down the road. But auto companies are perfectly capable of building regular cars that get very good gas mileage without sacrificing performance. In fact, they are already doing it because customer demand has shifted.
Yep.
European cars seem to get better mileage than US cars.
They are generally smaller cars, but are certainly more efficient.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Roadking2003
Over time, gas prices do affect people's buying decisions and driving habits. If our gas prices increased to the prices people in Europe pay, we would see a huge shift in purchases and driving habits.
No kidding.
People around here sometimes drive to Czech for petrol.
Yesterday, the Czech price for petrol was 34 koruny/liter. That's about $2.
Prices are expected to hit €1.70+/liter this week. That's a minimum of $2.37/liter or $8.97/gallon. www.xe.com
FYI: 1 gallon = 3.785 liters.
Last edited by chielgirl; 03-06-2011 at 08:22 AM..
My SUV (paid for) gets me 20mpg, but it's for bad weather, hauling stuff, taking dogs around, etc.
My sports car did get me 11/17, but I got a new one that's faster and gets 16/26...so I'm all ready for bad gas prices!
I drive a sedan because it's physically easier for short me to get into with bad knees than an SUV. If not for the short part and the knees, I'd tool around in a truck. Short legs and SUVs don't go together.
Back in the 80's we had a diesel and then a propane car. They saved money on fuel but the hassle wasn't worth it. IMHO you're better off with an efficient mainstream car and if you are buying new get an extended bumper-to-bumper warranty.
I was changing shocks (with a mechanic friend) and a tie-rod end on my RVR this morning and the guy in the bay beside me had a Hummer. He said he barely drives it, but spent so much on it that he'll never get his money back. He can't win.
So you are telling me that its the GOP and Bush writing legislation requiring car companies to make box cars that you'll get crushed in if you get hit in an accident? Thats odd.. I thought the GOP was all for supporting larger cars, (which are safer) so they can support their gas producing buddies, and now you are telling me they dont..
You cant have it both ways..
Either the GOP wants people to drive gas guzzlers, which are safer, so they can support their gas buddies
or the GOP wants people to drive smaller cars which are less safe
Which is it? Can you list one legislation passed by the GOP to make cars smaller because I can list numerous ones by Democrats..
Source it? Absolutely http://blogs.cars.com/kickingtires/2...-and-suvs.html "With their size and weight, SUVs are still the safest vehicles for the novice teen driver,” said Art Spinella, general manager of CNW Marketing Research.
While our environment is pushing us to make and sell smaller, lighter cars that meet the high fuel economy standards, safety advocates worry that meeting those requirements would result in cars that are less safe in a crash.
The laws of Physics Size is important because mass, coupled with acceleration, determines the force of a crash. Injuries depend on the forces that act on the occupants in the car, not on how much external damage the car sustains. The force of a crash turns on two key attributes: the weight of the crashing vehicle, which determines how much speed must be absorbed during the impact, and the size of the vehicle, which often determines how close the front of the vehicle is to the driver--an essential indicator of the extent of injuries to the legs and torso.
Seriously.. did you guys never study these things in school?
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