Oil at $100 Barrel

[swh1972]

Also, there has never been a better time that I can recall to promote mass transit.

[dxartist]

Very true. It's the high energy prices that cause people to really think about their personal choices and consider changes in how they get around.

[suburban george3]

I basically ditched my car (still own it but drive it from time to time) and got a scooter last year to commute to work, go for short trips, and get around town on roads with a 35 mph speed limit. I also commute on the Lynx to get to work as well. Honestly, I don't miss driving to work at all. So far, I cut my monthly gas cost by from $100 to about 35.

For special out of town trips, I don't count it as part of the monthly gas expense.

[dxartist]

A lot of folks are changing their driving habits. I fortunately was able to swing a deal to get out of my SUV into a more fuel efficient sedan.

I drive a lot during the week with work (upwards to 2,000 miles per week sometimes) and it seems to me I am seeing more scooters/mopeds/motorcycles in urban areas as well as smaller cars (Prius, Yaris, Focus, Civics, Minis, Versas, SX4's, etc) on the road. Also, it seems like there is less traffic on the highways in the evening and on Friday evenings especially. I think folks are changing their habits and staying at home more.

[suburban george3]

A lot of these 2 wheel and new smaller cars I've seen are new. I noticed today after getting off the interstate in Hickory going to the office, 4 new cars (a Sentra, 2 Kia's, and a Focus) with 30 day tags. I also read that Ford is ramping up production by 30% for it's Focus model because of increased demand.

I do drive a lot for my job, but fortunately my company pays for the vehicle/gas.

[sean]

I do drive a lot for my job, but fortunately my company pays for the vehicle/gas.

[suburban george3]

...it seems to me I am seeing more scooters/mopeds/motorcycles in urban areas...

[sean]

Yeah, I'd love to be a bike shop owner after everybody gets their 'stimulus' check.

[dxartist]

I knew I wasn't crazy! Scooter sales up three fold in the past year.. See here

[wolverine]

Check out some of these predictions. At first I couldn't believe $10/gallon, but the key word is "accelerating" gas prices. Indeed we've made some huge jumps in the past couple years.

http://www2.nysun.com/article/75363

Since I'm from Michigan, I've kept a close eye on the auto industry, especially with my family working for GM. They've made some huge changes, downsizing workforce on making larger vehicles to upsizing workforce/building new foundries for smaller vehicles, and lighter weight parts. There were days when they used to make everything out of iron. Now, mostly aluminum for improved fuel efficiency.

I think we are seeing a definite end of SUV's, except for maybe the wealthy.

Furthermore, just imagine how this is going to change the way we live. Coupled with a poor housing market, it just doesn't make sense to disperse our population across the countryside.

Higher gas could be a blessing in disguise for the sake of our future.

[Charlotte_native]

Higher gas could be a blessing in disguise for the sake of our future.

[Neo]

There were days when they used to make everything out of iron. Now, mostly aluminum for improved fuel efficiency.

I think we are seeing a definite end of SUV's, except for maybe the wealthy.

Unfortunately I see it differently. I see a lot of life left in larger vehicles such as the typical SUV in America's future. American auto manufacturers and customers have been historically notorious for making vehicles larger but keeping gas mileage the same by simply finding lighter materials or making advances in aerodynamics of the vehicle.

Americans are in love with their V8 engine in their seven passenger SUV's when most of the time only one person drives around in it. It is impossible to count the number of times I see a Cadillac Escalade or Hummer leaving my neighborhood with just one person in it. Is such a vehicle really needed? It appears that with gas now quickly approaching $4.00/gallon there is still no slowdown of this behavior, at least not in large enough numbers to really matter. I'm curious as to what the tipping point of this behavior is.

The auto industry, particularly that in America as in Ford and GM, need to do us all a favor and quit making super sized cars and trucks and start making elegant cars and trucks that are smaller but have great gas mileage.

It is quite interesting to go to a Chevrolet or Ford dealership these days, particularly one that has used vehicles from the 90's in a nearby used car lot to make comparisons to. The increase in size of the automobile from these manufacturers has been on steroids over the last few years. Does anyone really need a 500hp Mustang? Does anyone really need a king cab truck to drive around town? I can understand commercial uses for some of these larger products, but it is astounding how many believe they need this much power and size just to get from point A to point B.

My brother drives a fairly new Chevrolet Silverado with an extended cab (long bed). 90% of the time the truck is only for going to and from work which doesn't require but one seat and no storage space thus rendering 95% of the truck useless. Perhaps one or two times a year the truck may actually get used for its intended use. This is just one measley example of a country that has gotten it all wrong and I'm putting a great deal of blame on the manufacturer of these monstrosoties and the fact that they continue to pound us with advertising that makes us believe that we really need such a vehicle. Change must start with the source and I honestly don't see that coming from American auto manufacturers anytime soon.

[runawayjim]

i've heard a lot of the blame falls on the government's mileage requirements and taxation. because SUV's are trucks, they aren't taxed, yet a big station wagon would be plenty for most people, but they don't get the same mileage as a sedan and are taxed, causing the dealers to pass the cost on to the consumer. i might have this wrong, but it's something like that. that's why we saw the end of the large station wagon in the 80's and the rise in minivans and SUV's. unfortunately, minivans lost popularity because of the stigma they carry, while SUV's seem big safe and strong (and are usually just big).

i'm a big fan of station wagons and have been driving them for almost 10 years now (slightly less than the amount of time i've been able to drive). i like the smaller ones (my current car is a subaru outback sport, the impreza version), but the bigger ones are necessary for people with more stuff (kids). once i have kids (if i have kids), i'll likely upgrade to a full outback (need the AWD for traveling up north for skiing).

[Neo]

I think there are differences in what is classified as an SUV and you can't lump that term into everything that looks like a typical SUV. Something like the Honda CRV are most often classified as an SUV but that model is distinctly different than a Hummer or Cadillac Escalade. I wonder if the Honda CRV is taxed the same as the Hummer? Regardless of taxes or government regulation, it is the auto manufacturers that make and promote these monstrosities. Go to any showroom for an American car manufacturer and it will take you a simple glance to see what they're really promoting. They seem to hide the more efficient and modest vehicles.

[runawayjim]

I think there are differences in what is classified as an SUV and you can't lump that term into everything that looks like a typical SUV. Something like the Honda CRV are most often classified as an SUV but that model is distinctly different than a Hummer or Cadillac Escalade. I wonder if the Honda CRV is taxed the same as the Hummer? Regardless of taxes or government regulation, it is the auto manufacturers that make and promote these monstrosities. Go to any showroom for an American car manufacturer and it will take you a simple glance to see what they're really promoting. They seem to hide the more efficient and modest vehicles.

[Captain Worley]

It is funny how the laws of unintended consequences work. In the 70s, emissions controls and CAFE requirements generally ignored light trucks. The primitive emissions equipment of the 70s rendered cars a ghost of their former selves. They were slow, wheezy, and had stalling problems. Pickups suffered little of the same problems, and their sales boomed in the mid-late 70s. Shoot, a Dodge pickuop was the fastest vehicle available in 1977. Faster than the Trans Am, Z28, or Corvette. My parents bought a 454 Suburban in 1978, and it would smoke most everything on the road.

In the eighties, with computer controls running efficient fuel injection systems, and smaller vehicles, cars became more responsive, and got much better mileage. All was good. Then, gas got really cheap. Americans like bigger vehicles, and went looking for the big station wagons, but none were there. However, there were these big old SUVs, because they weren't hit as hard by CAFE. So sales of Suburbans, Broncos, and Wagoneers took off. Then Ford introduced the smaller Explorer, patterned after the Jeep Cherokee, and sales of SUVs went absolutely beserk.

Manufacturers build what people want, and in times of low priced fuel, Americans want big, powerful vehicles.

Trivia fact: Y'all know a Dodge Magnum is classified as a light truck? So is the PTCruiser.

Anyway, this all comes froma guy who absolutely loves tiny cars. Aside from a Ranger (I used it twice for stuff I couldn't have fit in my old Civic), the biggest engine I've had in a daily driver is the 1.8L I have in my current Sentra. I say that to let you know that I don't agree with the bigger is better philosophy. I just understand it.

There are some exciting small cars on the horizon, and more hatchbacks, too. All hope is not lost.

[suburban george3]

In the eighties, with computer controls running efficient fuel injection systems, and smaller vehicles, cars became more responsive, and got much better mileage. All was good. Then, gas got really cheap. Americans like bigger vehicles, and went looking for the big station wagons, but none were there. However, there were these big old SUVs, because they weren't hit as hard by CAFE. So sales of Suburbans, Broncos, and Wagoneers took off. Then Ford introduced the smaller Explorer, patterned after the Jeep Cherokee, and sales of SUVs went absolutely beserk.

Manufacturers build what people want, and in times of low priced fuel, Americans want big, powerful vehicles.

[Captain Worley]

Note that I said BIG wagons. The only big ones were the Caprice and the LTD/Grand Marquis, and they weren't nearly as big as the land yachts from the 70s.

But I agree with the wire wheels/woodgrain statement.

[monsoon]

.....

Manufacturers build what people want, and in times of low priced fuel, Americans want big, powerful vehicles.

......

[Captain Worley]

LOL, when I said times of cheap fuel, I was talking about the 90s.

Except for handling, the Thunderchicken wasn't that good. 220hp was the top dog engine. Yeah, it was the most you could get in a US made car, but the emission controls made it pretty doggy. And yeah, dang things drank fuel

[suburban george3]

My recollection of the 1970s was that the highest demand cars, by far, were the Honda CVCC followed by the Civic, Accord and Prelude, the Toyota Corolla, Datsun B210, Volkswagen Rabbit. and their follow-ons.

[Captain Worley]

^^Agree. A small, light car can be a hoot to drive and still get good mileage. I so wish Toyota would gut out a higher horspower, tuned handling version of the Yaris.

[Neo]

^^Agree. A small, light car can be a hoot to drive and still get good mileage. I so wish Toyota would gut out a higher horspower, tuned handling version of the Yaris.

I remember listening to a segment on NPR several weeks ago and Toyota was being discussed, specifically their truck line. It was mentioned that Toyota had a hard time gaining any of the truck market in the US until they put out a much larger truck with a much larger engine (and obviously lower mpg).

Americans have fueled (pun intended) the near $121/barrel oil that we're seeing today and I for one have no sympathy. We choose where to live and what to drive. WE choose to have a vehicle that guzzles the high priced oil yet most of us complain and expect the government to do something about the high prices. Regardless if the oil companies are padding their profits, we as Americans have brought this on ourselves by buying increasingly larger vehicles and living ever so far away from our places of work and play.

[ChiefJoJo]

Well, hopefully the era of large SUVs and other gas guzzlers are nearing an end. I certainly believe the era of cheap (<$3) gas is over for good.

The future for cars in the near term is with hybrids and clean diesel. IIRC, VW has plans to bring 50-state legal diesel cars that can get up to ~50mpg. We'll continue to see better hybrids, but I think diesels will be good options for familes with kids and lots of stuff wanting to move down from a Sequoia or Yukon, but not able to sacrifice for a smaller hybrid. I could see a VW Passat diesel wagon achieving 35-40mpg, and the performance of these cars is not bad. Europe has had diesels for many years, but they could not meet US AQ standards, and frankly were not very appealing with engine noise and soot issues. A lot of that has been worked out, and it represents a promising market.

[dxartist]

Well, hopefully the era of large SUVs and other gas guzzlers are nearing an end. I certainly believe the era of cheap (<$3) gas is over for good.

The future for cars in the near term is with hybrids and clean diesel. IIRC, VW has plans to bring 50-state legal diesel cars that can get up to ~50mpg. We'll continue to see better hybrids, but I think diesels will be good options for familes with kids and lots of stuff wanting to move down from a Sequoia or Yukon, but not able to sacrifice for a smaller hybrid. I could see a VW Passat diesel wagon achieving 35-40mpg, and the performance of these cars is not bad. Europe has had diesels for many years, but they could not meet US AQ standards, and frankly were not very appealing with engine noise and soot issues. A lot of that has been worked out, and it represents a promising market.