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So why is there all this emphasis on hybrids as the solution to our fuel economy issues and such a focus on SUVs as evil? Hybrids are great for some people, but what about battery disposal as a future environmental concern? And some SUVs, such as the Saturn VUE get better fuel economy than a lot of cars.
Raising the gas tax will never fly in our political system and the only thing that the government can come up with is tax breaks for hybrid owners. The automakers offer multiple engine sizes on almost all their vehicles and since buyers don't prioritize fuel economy, they often buy the larger/more powerful engine. What if the government would just offer a sliding scale tax break for fuel economy of a purchased vehicle? People would buy more fuel efficient vehicles immediately without any new technology needs. So if a car or truck meets the CAFE requirement, they get $0, if it exceeds it by 10%, they get $250 (or whatever amount) a year in deductions. If it exceeeds it by 20%, they get $500. People would naturally buy more fuel efficient vehicles and manufacturers would adjust production. How easy would that be? Personally, I will only purchase cars that get close to 30 mpg on the highway. It would be nice to be rewarded for my small efforts here.
Now I know all this depends on the flawed EPA cycles, but perhaps they need to update those to reflect the higher speeds traveled compared to the avg. 48 mph on the current highway cycle. Many cars perform better on the highway in the real world (i.e. Saabs), others much worse (i.e. large air-pushing SUVs). Also, the CAFE requirements may need to be raised, but with my idea, they wouldn't be as critical, and you wouldn't force auto manufacturers to build and sell cars (at lower profit) that people don't want.
Just some personal thoughts, (not representing my employer in any way). It would be interesting to hear what you think.
Atul
'04 9-3 Linear - 1,100 miles
'97 900S - 95,600 miles
Detroit
posted by 198.208.16...
, Thu, 29 Apr 2004 13:09:01, Thu, 29 Apr 2004 13:13:51
, Thu, 29 Apr 2004 11:20:28
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