Automakers Use New Technology to Beef Up Muscle, Not Mileage

http://www.nytimes.com/2006/03/30/automobiles/30energy.html?_r=1&oref=slogin&pagewanted=print

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For two decades automakers have been developing technology that could make vehicles go farther on a gallon of gasoline. But instead, they have chosen pep and size — making vehicles like the new Murano accelerate faster than cars like the old Mustang, and making them bigger.

The average vehicle, which 25 years ago accelerated to 60 miles an hour in 14.4 seconds, now does it in 9.9 seconds, a pace once typical only of sporty or luxury cars like Camaros and Jaguars. And vehicle weight now averages about 4,100 pounds, up from about 3,200 in the early 1980's, as many buyers switched to larger, roomier cars or to sport utility vehicles and minivans, and as automakers added safety equipment
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Buyers like the extra zoom and room, but these have come at a cost: average fuel economy has fallen slightly over the last two decades. The government's new standards for light trucks like S.U.V.'s, published yesterday, will require an 8.1 percent increase in miles per gallon over the four model years from 2008 through 2011.
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If 2005 model vehicles, with their better technology, had the performance and size of those in 1987, they would use only 80 percent of the gasoline they do today, according to the Environmental Protection Agency. That alone would get the country nearly halfway to the goal President Bush set in his State of the Union address: to cut American oil consumption enough to nearly eliminate the need to import from the Middle East.

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See http://www.ucsusa.org/clean_vehicles/cars_pickups_suvs/ on how it is fairly easy to build more fuel efficient vehicles. http://www.ucsusa.org/clean_vehicles/cars_pickups_suvs/building-a-better-suv.html specifically shows this for SUVs. "A September 2003 report from the Union of Concerned Scientists, Building a Better SUV: A Blueprint for Saving Lives, Money, and Gasoline, shows how existing technologies can be used to offer consumers an SUV that is safer, cleaner, and more cost-effective, while retaining the size and performance SUV drivers have today."

weight causes tire drag.
air drag, causes drag at higher speeds.

engine is not really the issue
put a small engine in a large vehicle, it would still burn
lots of gas.

I think attention should be directed at the real problems,
not the engine.

If you want a car that is high off the ground,
because you lke to get-in easy,
it will have lots of air drag, no way around it.

air bags, computers and all the sensors, anti-lock brakes, stability controls, overdrive transmissions, 5 and 6 speed automatics (which contribute to better acceleration and economy due to the weight increase from the additional safety features) don't mean squat while keeping the vehicles reasonably priced? And this goes for ALL cars, not just American cars.

Do you know how much a relluctor ring weighs? It was a part that was never in a car of 25 years ago. No solutions are given in the article, only suggestions, and if these folks have the answer, why aren't they in the car business? Most of the items in their blueprint from 3 years ago ARE in production. And Honda has ZERO emission vehicles available now.

There was a funny episode tonight of South Part. All about smug pollution (not smog pollution). I think these scientists need to go to a smugless area and breathe clean air.

On edit;

Why do we all have to drive a people's car yet again? How do you squeeze 6 people and their luggage in a tiny little car for a trip to anywhere? What if you have a hobby like a boat, camper, or water/motor sports vehicles? Must we all forfeit pleasure? NONE of us has the answers, and we never will. Hand wringing and wailing will not change the progression set forth by the auto manufacturers, even the revered and beloved Japanese supermen who now build huge vehicles for the American market.

Union of Concerned Scientists ucsusa.org has quite detailed information on How to build a better SUV (go to their "Vehicle" section).

I don't WANT to drive a Prius, get it. My hunk of shit gets 24 mpg on the highway, and when I can afford a better car it won't be a Prius.

most vehicles currently get, get it?
ucsusa.org has designed SUVs which get 30-50% better mileage, using existing off-the-shelf parts (a few years ago, a professor at a university (in AZ, i believe) had his students do the same sort of thing - with success).

30-50% better using what benchmark? What vehicle? A 6000 lb. Surburban, or 3300LB RAV 4? BE SPECIFIC.

here's a car for the ages, drive this. Then ask yourself why America stopped buying these even in the 70's.

or a train. I know how many it seats, not so good for your boats and motor sports you may well need to learn to love canoes and sail boats. What can I tell you, peak oil and all that. Get used to it, it's a fact! You might be well advised to start giving a flip about your progeny!

Ignoring it is not going to make it go away, we've been trying it & we've all seen how well that works!

WE, you, me don't build automobiles or trucks or buses. And in 30 years or less, I'll be taking a dirt nap. I did my best to conserve and leave a small footprint here. And if hydrogen becomes a reality before I die, great. If not, I'm going to make sure I own something that leaves 100 ft. of rubber behind me as a last salute to the smug among us.

Oh, and speaking of progeny, maybe we should worry about Pittsburgh becoming the new Atlantic shore line, the damage done by the BFEE, and the spread of nukes before we dive into the peak oil argument. You have to unite behind progressive candidates to get the solar/wind/hydro initiatives passed before we run out of petrol products.