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Has CAFE reached the end of its usefulness?

507 messages,  Last post on Oct 27, 2009 at 11:49 AM

You are in the Automotive News & Views Forum. Your Hosts are steve_ & claires

What is this discussion about? Fuel Efficiency (MPG)


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#501 of 507
Re: Obama will compromis our safety, not emissions. [larsb] by stevedebi
Oct 21, 2009 (11:04 am)
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Replying to: larsb (May 20, 2009 7:16 am)

"Puh-Leeze, Mr. Dramatic. The warming is not a myth. That polar ice ain't melitin its own self."
 
I can't resist. News articles say that this year's arctic ice was the 3rd lowest ever - not mentioning that it has been increasing since 2007 (that "lowest ever"). Antarctic ice is also increasing. So no, "that polar ice ain't meltin' its own self".
 
But I don't think CAFE was ever designed to counter climate change, only to encourage fuel economy - it was instituted after the oil crisis of '73, IIRC, to encourage conservation as much as anything else, always a good thing in my opinion.
 
I do not think it has outlived it's usefulness as a general indicator on the sticker of the car. If you see a low number on a huge SUV, it can be compared to a high number for a compact car. Yes, YMMV, but that is to be expected.
#502 of 507
CAFE will benefit the auto industry by steve_ HOST
Oct 22, 2009 (7:56 am)
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"For years - and years, and years -automakers in the U.S. insisted that their studies showed that Americans didn't value fuel economy and preferred those fuel-swilling (and profitable) SUVs and pickups over gas-sipping compacts.
 
But that's not so, says former General Motors economist Walter McManus"
 
Say it Ain't So! Detroit Ignored Fuel Efficiency Demands, Says Ex-GM Economist (Green Car Advisor)
#503 of 507
Re: CAFE will benefit the auto industry [steve_] by kcram HOST
Oct 23, 2009 (7:59 am)
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Replying to: steve_ (Oct 22, 2009 7:56 am)

I think it's more marketing than anything else. Americans respond to clever advertising.
 
For example, station wagons aren't profitable, but anything based on the existing truck frame is. So in the 90s, the automakers slowly discontinued wagons, marketing the truck-based SUVs as "this is so much BETTER than a wagon!" Then when fuel prices increased, the move was to car-based SUVs... "this crossover is so much BETTER than your big guzzling SUV!" And with the new CAFE rules, we'll see/hear in a few years "this sleek wagon is so much BETTER than that oversized crossover!"
 
Then somebody (like me) will point out that the 1979 Ford Fairmont wagon my grandfather owned had more cargo room, far better visibility, and exceeded 30 mpg highway with both the 2.3L I-4 and 3.3L I-6 engines (Grandpa had the I-6).
 
Back To The Future, anyone?
 
kcram - Pickups/Wagons Host
#504 of 507
Re: CAFE will benefit the auto industry [kcram] by steve_ HOST
Oct 23, 2009 (12:18 pm)
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Replying to: kcram (Oct 23, 2009 7:59 am)

And don't forget the minivan KC. Wagons almost didn't recover from their run before the Crossovers came out. My '97 wagon occasionally will hit 30 mpg on the highway.
#505 of 507
Re: CAFE will benefit the auto industry [steve_] by kcram HOST
Oct 23, 2009 (1:41 pm)
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Replying to: steve_ (Oct 23, 2009 12:18 pm)

To an extent. Minivans became the "mom mobiles" for a reason... the dads who used to pilot the Ford Country Squires and Chevy Kingswood Estates of the world were not going to switch to a 4 cylinder front-wheel-drive minivan built from a K-car... they were the ones who went for the Tahoes and Expeditions. Those dads were not giving up their V8s or towing ability when dragging the family cross-country Griswold-style.
 
kcram - Pickups/Wagons Host
#506 of 507
Re: CAFE will benefit the auto industry [kcram] by steve_ HOST
Oct 23, 2009 (4:56 pm)
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Replying to: kcram (Oct 23, 2009 1:41 pm)

My dad stuck to his '53 Buick Special. I don't remember him ever driving this.
 

See more Car Pictures at CarSpace.com
#507 of 507
Re: CAFE will benefit the auto industry [kcram] by stevedebi
Oct 27, 2009 (11:49 am)
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Replying to: kcram (Oct 23, 2009 7:59 am)

" Then somebody (like me) will point out that the 1979 Ford Fairmont wagon my grandfather owned had more cargo room, far better visibility, and exceeded 30 mpg highway with both the 2.3L I-4 and 3.3L I-6 engines (Grandpa had the I-6). "
 
Yeah, but a lot of them came like my '78; with the 302 (5L) V8 engine. Actually, I got around 23 MPG on the road with that car, a sedan rather than the wagon.

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