What I find astounding is that it's not as though there haven't been many people talking about "peak oil" for over a decade, so the higher ups at GM, Ford, and Chrysler should have seen this coming. But the big three are like crystal meth addicts with their SUVs and light trucks.
It looks as though the auto industry has finally hit a "tipping point."
2 comments:
As it seems the terminology (American) "big 3" is no longer. Toyota is #1 in sales for the current year – And they have been up in the top 3 for some time.
The American auto executives, board members, and developers need to review their old Economics 101 notebook to brush up on some concepts. Build something people want/need to drive, and people will buy it. Huh, isn’t that what happened with fancy yuppie pseudo-trucks and posh SUV’s? There does not always have to be tons of extra options as in the previously mentioned vehicles to make money; one can make money in volume of sales. Low price and volume sure seems to work pretty well for Wal-Mart.
Also the government federal fuel-economy regulations increasing to 31.6 miles per gallon by 2015, seems to be a joke. If we are still stuck on oil, what do you think a gallon of gas will cost by that time? Not to sound like one of the quacks that Mulder would consult during an episode of the X-Files. As a side note, Scully was hot! Might I digress, anyway we have the technological capacity to do better especially within the small car market - Why have one blanket mileage quota for every type of vehicle?
Also since the fact that American automakers did not hear about the demand and limits of oil, maybe they have not heard of alternative fuels either. Who knows?
Kenson
PS / Request- While I am in the ranting mood, need some posts about Ethanol.
One of the most lucid comments I've seen on my blog so far has been "Scully was hot." Well done, fella.
While increasing mpg is a noble goal, the fundamental problem is how our cities and metropolitan areas are constructed. Modern construction of subdivisions and cities are not structured for humans--they are structured for cars, premised on the assumption of "cheap oil," a phrase that we'll no longer get to talk about anymore except for the sake of nostalgia.
Ah, but I remember $.89 gas back in Kville.
Cellulosic ethanol has some promise, but corn-based ethanol is a scam. When you factor in everything, the production of corn-based ethanol actually would create more CO2. Not good.
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