The 65 mpg Ford the U.S. Can't Have

[Spivonious]

My brother had a Geo Metro. You cannot put 5 people in them, unless all 5 are midgets.

But then, they're basing that on the "average man on the street", which is currently a 30-something Chinaman


I'm sure those enclosed shopping carts they're passing off as cars get great mileage being made of plastic and aircraft aluminum, but they ride like shit and those of us who actually made it over 6 feet tall simply have no use for such a small vehicle. We can't get in, we can't get out if we do get in, and we cannot get comfortable in them.

Not about the Metro, but my brother-in-law (6'3", 250lbs) has a VW Rabbit and can fit in it just fine. Not all econo cars are tiny

[Cuthbert]

Right, Smart Cars and other min cars are common on the Autobahn... I don't think many of those mini cars leave the city and ever get out on a fast, open road. You almost can not avoid that here.

This is true, but in most of Europe the speed limit is around 130 km/h, so you can drive with a Smart, or a Fiat 500, that are small but fast enough.


For the record, I drive a Alfa Romeo GT, diesel supercharged, 1900 cc, top speed 220 km/h, 0-100 in 9 sec...

And at 130 km/h she burns 6 liters of diesel for 100 km.

[Cuthbert]

Forgot to mention, it also looks good:

http://www.auto-blog.pl/wp-content/uploads/2007/10/alfa-romeo-gt.jpg

[El Chiguete]

Here in the DR we actually pey less for diesel than gasoline.

[CharvelRocker]

Forgot to mention, it also looks good:

http://www.auto-blog.pl/wp-content/u...a-romeo-gt.jpg

Now THAT is a car the US should have. Hard not to love the looks of an Alfa Romeo

[phill_up]

Forgot to mention, it also looks good:

http://www.auto-blog.pl/wp-content/u...a-romeo-gt.jpg

That is a good looking ride.
You dont see them in the USA though.

[Carbuff]

Here in the DR we actually pey less for diesel than gasoline.

In the U.S, Diesel is so high because of government taxes on it because its main use is commercial.Uncle Sam rakes in tons of money on Diesel fuel sales.

[StukaJU87]

In the U.S, Diesel is so high because of government taxes on it because its main use is commercial.Uncle Sam rakes in tons of money on Diesel fuel sales.

Diesel used to be cheaper than regular gas. Like dirt cheap. Someone explain to me how it is now more expensive than premium.

[phill_up]

I was thinking the same thing stuka. "Dirt Cheap" That was probably back when the demand wasn't as high.

It wasn't that long ago I was watching the discovery channel and found out that there is a hell of a lot more energy in diesel than there is in gas. if that is the case, why didn't we have any diesel Z28s, vettes, mustangs or what ever? Engine components to expensive?

[Carbuff]

Diesel used to be cheaper than regular gas. Like dirt cheap. Someone explain to me how it is now more expensive than premium.

I remember it being cheaper than regular. Like I said before, the gov,t has taxed the hell out of it. What I want to know is why #2 fuel oil is still so expensive. Basically diesel fuel but without all the taxes, why just as expensive?

[Ben...]

A standard Diesel engine will run on Peanut oil and basicly any cooking oil. A lot of people get used cooking oil from fast food joints and run thier engines on it. It makes the people driving behind them hungry.....

Subliminal advertising!

[jgcable]

When you have an oil man running the country.. everything oil related will be expensive, taxed to all hell and extremely profitable to sell
Today I heard that Mobil makes $1,000.00 per second profit. Thats bottom line in their pocket profit. Not bad.

[ABSOLUT CHARVEL]

there must be no love loss between the auto industry & the oil man. Oil is killing the SUV/truck market.

[roodyrocker]

I guess I'm the only one here who wants the Shelby GT500 Mustang instead of the motorized shoebox then eh? I want the 500 hp Mustang not the zillion mpg contraptions they try to pass off as "cars"
Anyway, years ago a friend of mine ran a big block Chevy powered 70 Chevy pickup truck on Propane! He could run 13:1 compression on the street, make tons of power and zero emissions. Why aren't there more Propane or Natural Gas vehicles? aside from the large tanks they require seems easy enough to me. Or am I missing something here?
P.S. I don't think all the Chrysler turbine cars were crushed. Isn't one of them in the Henry Ford Museum in Dearborn?

[CharvelRocker]

I guess I'm the only one here who wants the Shelby GT500 Mustang instead of the motorized shoebox then eh? I want the 500 hp Mustang not the zillion mpg contraptions they try to pass off as "cars"
Anyway, years ago a friend of mine ran a big block Chevy powered 70 Chevy pickup truck on Propane! He could run 13:1 compression on the street, make tons of power and zero emissions. Why aren't there more Propane or Natural Gas vehicles? aside from the large tanks they require seems easy enough to me. Or am I missing something here?
P.S. I don't think all the Chrysler turbine cars were crushed. Isn't one of them in the Henry Ford Museum in Dearborn?

Could have something to do with if you had a full propane tank on your car explode, they would be finding pieces of you 15 miles down the road