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Please - SUV's are the 21st centuries answer to the station wagon - nothing more.
And, if you are so concerned about gas mileage - why aren't you working to get the big rigs - the 18 wheelers off the road? Or, do you like 4 / 5 MPG?
Big rigs are more efficient than SUV's for what they do.
One obvious way people could save money on gas- drive the speed limits and don't accelerate too hard Most of the population, though, drives in a manner that just throws away gasoline. They had to change the EPA numbers to please these people. I've always got close-to or higher than the EPA fuel economy on anything I drove (especially when the air conditioner wasn't needed- the air conditioner reduces fuel economy by about 5-10 percent as it gets it's power from the engine). The secret is you have to know how to drive conservatively. Go easy on the gas and braking, coast a bit before stops, and try to keep the speed steady. Freeways and expressways can save you gas if you go about 55-60 mph, as you don't usually have to stop for lights.
Keeping your tires correctly inflated, checking them once a week or so, saves money on gas too. It's an easy thing to check and remedy, but few people do it. Usually the correct tire pressure is listed on the gas cap cover panel or a similar place.
Big rigs are more efficient than SUV's for what they do.
One obvious way people could save money on gas- drive the speed limits and don't accelerate too hard Most of the population, though, drives in a manner that just throws away gasoline. They had to change the EPA numbers to please these people. I've always got close-to or higher than the EPA fuel economy on anything I drove (especially when the air conditioner wasn't needed- the air conditioner reduces fuel economy by about 5-10 percent as it gets it's power from the engine). The secret is you have to know how to drive conservatively. Go easy on the gas and braking, coast a bit before stops, and try to keep the speed steady. Freeways and expressways can save you gas if you go about 55-60 mph, as you don't usually have to stop for lights.
Keeping your tires correctly inflated, checking them once a week or so, saves money on gas too. It's an easy thing to check and remedy, but few people do it. Usually the correct tire pressure is listed on the gas cap cover panel or a similar place.
More effective than trains???? In the 1970's the trucking industry was deregulated and it destroyed the rail industry. Smooth move DC...
I also tend to get better than the EPA estimate. I also can blame EPA for changes on car emissions for lowering fuel economy. I drove a 1984 Nissan Pulsar it got 40 miles to the gallen... I had a honda CRX that got 50mpg. Is the air of better quality today? I wonder. Less emissions per gallaon but it takes more gallons to go the same distance.
The rail industry is reviving very nicely. Like the add says, "400+ ton-miles per gallon” of diesel. It is very hard to beat that. BTW - that is with two operators per 10,000+ tons or so. Not one operator per 40 tons.
Now if we spent the money to replace the diesels with electric engines fed by nuclear power plants we would reduce hydrocarbon fuel use by a fair amount. If we put the truck traffic on the rails we would save a lot more. It only takes money and political will.
Please - SUV's are the 21st centuries answer to the station wagon - nothing more.
And, if you are so concerned about gas mileage - why aren't you working to get the big rigs - the 18 wheelers off the road? Or, do you like 4 / 5 MPG?
I think the rail system should be used whenever its possible. 18 wheelers do have practical use though. Very few people who drive gas guzzling SUVs actually need it. People drive SUVs for one reason - its a fad.
If everyone boycotts for one day without reducing their consumption, they will still wind up buying the same amount of gas they would have otherwise. They'll just do it on a different day.
If you want to stick it to the oil companies, use less gas and oil. Buy a more efficient vehicle, change your oil according to manufacturer's recommendations instead of Jiffy Lube's recommendations, lower your thermostat and improve your insulation and windows, combine trips, drive at or below the speed limit, take public transportation or walk when you can... just use less oil.
I think the rail system should be used whenever its possible. 18 wheelers do have practical use though. Very few people who drive gas guzzling SUVs actually need it. People drive SUVs for one reason - its a fad.
Oh my - I have to disagree.
First off - your statement is nothing more than a generalization. Perhaps you do not recall when many, many families had a "family station wagon" to do all the things families did. Like I noted, todays SUV's are the modern version of those station wagons.
A small car simply cannot do what so many families need to do in their active lifestyles. Nor, can the small car deal with the larger families and the active lifestyles of today.
The other generalization comes when you condemn ALL SUV's as being gas guzzlers - for this is very much an untrue statement. Many of the SUV's out there get better gas mileages than the automobile cousins.
I find it somewhat hypocritical when some, such as yourself condemn an entire type of vehicles without also condemning the "regular" automobiles that get lower gas mileage than the SUV's.
That is such a dead argument. Even if they did open up ANWR it would just be putting a bandaid on the problem. There isn't even enough oil there to make it really worthwhile long term.
The true solution is more fuel efficient vehicles for the time being until an alternative energy can be developed. Something NEEDS to be done to stop the SUV craze. If they must have a vehicle that big, there are plenty of hybrid options.
Well , some want it to be a dead argument but that doesnt make it so , we dont know for sure how much oil is there,or anywhere else for that matter because we havent even been able to look! Evidently China and Russia believe there is plenty of oil still out there that is worth going after, If we follow your logic we will all be cramming our familys into rickshaws and the Chinese will be driving those new BIG Toyotas! Hybrids are a joke and a farce! The world runs on oil and as long as there is some left in the ground we need to be going after it!
First off - your statement is nothing more than a generalization. Perhaps you do not recall when many, many families had a "family station wagon" to do all the things families did. Like I noted, todays SUV's are the modern version of those station wagons.
A small car simply cannot do what so many families need to do in their active lifestyles. Nor, can the small car deal with the larger families and the active lifestyles of today.
The other generalization comes when you condemn ALL SUV's as being gas guzzlers - for this is very much an untrue statement. Many of the SUV's out there get better gas mileages than the automobile cousins.
I find it somewhat hypocritical when some, such as yourself condemn an entire type of vehicles without also condemning the "regular" automobiles that get lower gas mileage than the SUV's.
They should bring back the station wagon then. The 1980s station wagon got better gas mileage than most SUVs of today. With today's advances in fuel efficiency, it could be an acceptable solution for families. It takes a hybrid SUV just to match the gas mileage that a standard car gets on a traditional engine.
I just happen to own one of the last of the old style wagons. It is a 1992 Buick Roadmaster wagon with about 175k miles on the odometer. I consider this to be one of the finest road cars GM ever made. I use it for a short commute to the Park & Ride lot and it gets around 14 mpg (it never quite warms up) but on an expressway trip the thing gets 25 mpg at 75 mph. It even drives well in the snow if you stay off the gas. For $2,500 purchase price I cannot complain.
I plan on adding an old BMW motorcycle to the “fleet” for the summer commute and short trips. It should get around 40 –50 mpg. If people just purchase older vehicles, fixed them up, and ran them till they dissolved in the salt, we would save a tremendous amount of fuel used in building new cars. Not to mention money.
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