Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
But you failed to address the central point of my post. Why did the cars have to be destroyed? Many of the people driving the cars didn't want to give them up. Why not just let people keep driving the cars? Political pressure killed those cars, not pure economics.
These type of cars (experimental) are always destroyed. This isn't some conspiracy tied to these cars.
I don't buy the hybrid myth that they pay for themselves in fuel savings. Now if you bought a hybrid as a "green" gesture, even though there are arguments against that, makes more sense.
I copy pasted this from another website.
[LEFT]But I thought a hybrid would save more gas money! Anyone can see that 46mpg could save more gas than a 29mpg car. But how much more? A quick glance may show a 59% savings by choosing the Prius (46-29)/29=59%. However its easy to be deceived. The savings is really 35%! (34-22)/34 Does that still sound like a lot of savings? The Prius averages 46 mpg and consumes about 22 gallons per 1,000 miles. 12,500 miles x 3 years x 22 gallons per 1000 miles = 825 gallons 825 gallons x $4 gallon gas = $3,300 The Civic averages 29 mpg and consumes about 34 gallons per 1,000 miles. 12,500 miles x 3 years x 34 gallons per 1000 miles = 1275 gallons 1,275 gallons x $4 gallon gas = $5,100 $5,100 - $3,300 = $1800 in gas money savings from the hybrid after three years on $4/gallon gasoline. The Prius costs $5,633 more than the Civic. After three years, the Prius has yet to pay for itself even on $4/gallon gasoline. It is still owes $3,833 to the Civic.
If your really trying to save money and use less fossil fuel AND drive the miles , diesel is the only way to go. I paid $9500 for my Jetta four in a half years ago it gets 48-50 mpg so far its got 182k miles on it, I plan on putting at least another 150k on it. To me it makes way more sense than a Hybrid. At least for the moment, who knows in another 10 years or so. [/LEFT]
The article doesn't say fossil fuels is the replacement, it says hydrogen, which I have supported for a long time.
Trouble with hydrogen is it takes fuel to make it.
Trouble with hydrogen is that it takes a huge volume of it to carry a useable amount of energy.
You either have to liquefy it (as the Space Shuttle does, impractical for home use with the cryogenic temperatures needed), or compress huge amounts of it, very dangerous in a wreck or if someone mishandles it (see Hindenburg, Challenger).
Fuel cells might hold some promise (spacecraft use those too), but they are even farther behind in development, than electric batteries are.
Hydrogen is even more impractical than electric power. Electric is coming along, but still has a long way to go before it becomes useable by the general public, as anything more than a second short-range car or an expensive, exotic toy.
Well all I can say is we told you green weenies this was going to be a failure. Don't worry though Obama only wasted away taxpayer money on it. That stuff grows on tree's according to the swooners.
"President Barack Obama has put $5 billion in taxpayer money behind his goal of having 1 million electric cars on U.S. roads by 2015. The Republican presidential ticket says it’s money wasted on “losers.”
I'm not sure what 5 billion you're talking about, but I can tell you that when my parents bought their 2013 Chevy Volt the $7,500 federal tax credit they received was due to a law signed by George W. Bush.
The Prius C is only a few hundred dollars more than the Civic not $5,633.
Okay, I didn't do a price comparison just pasted that info. I still stand behind the fact that if you want to save money, and use less fossil fuel a Hybrid is not the way to go unless you have a very short commute. If you want to make a statement, help advance Hybrid tech and have a short commute then they are the way to go.
Many said the gas-powered car would never be a viable technology to replace oat powered horses or that steam would never be a viable tecnology to replace sail or that flight was a neat parlor trick but would never be a viable technology for mass transportation, eh?
Luddites unite!
You have nothing to lose but the new-fangled conveniences you enjoy everyday.
I'm waiting for someone to claim that gas, steam and aircraft are unconstitutional to be used by government since they aren't specifically mentioned in the Constitution.
Okay, I didn't do a price comparison just pasted that info. I still stand behind the fact that if you want to save money, and use less fossil fuel a Hybrid is not the way to go unless you have a very short commute. If you want to make a statement, help advance Hybrid tech and have a short commute then they are the way to go.
I agree and posted earlier that it's not viable outside of dense urban areas that have installed charging stations.
But you failed to address the central point of my post. Why did the cars have to be destroyed? Many of the people driving the cars didn't want to give them up. Why not just let people keep driving the cars? Political pressure killed those cars, not pure economics.
They were destroyed because GM would have been legally obligated to provide parts for them for 10 years.
Quite an expensive proposition given the technology was proven to be not viable.
They were destroyed because GM would have been legally obligated to provide parts for them for 10 years.
Quite an expensive proposition given the technology was proven to be not viable.
What really happened though were middle class people turning in their low mileage trucks and SUVs.
Not many poor could afford or qualify for car loans.
Cash for Clunkers Two Years Later - KickingTires
The program sent used Explorers, Ford F-150 pickup trucks, Jeep Grand Cherokee SUVs and other low-mpg vehicles to wrecking yards in exchange for $3,500 or $4,500 vouchers toward more fuel-efficient replacements: brand-new Toyota Corollas, Honda Civics, Ford Focuses and the like.
..
"The people who really had these clunkers, most of them weren’t qualified to buy a new vehicle," says Merriman, who has worked at the used-car dealership for 40 years.
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
