CAFE expected to change vehicle distribution and composition

By Laz #1, Posted: 8/13/2008

Is this a justification for a $40k Chevy Volt?

By Michael D. #2, Posted: 8/13/2008

I think this whole thing is pointless bureaucratic and downright stupid. It chips away at all that good and desirable! It essentially sets everything backwards - I, like many others, to not want to see the malaise period of the 70s & 80s all over again! Personally, I want a real vehilce I can be proud of, not a little, dumpy, humble, putt-putt econobox that can't get out of it's own way.

Don't get me wrong, econoboxes, have their place and function - alongside and along with of the "real" cars & trucks, but not to take their place. To quote GM;s Bob Lutz: "Forcing consumers into smaller vehicles is like giving them smaller clothes and saying, 'here, go on a diet'", and "It won't sit to well with luxury car buyers if they can't purchase nothing larger than an Aveo".

I just don't want to see all the progress disappear, all that is desirable disappear and the loss of a freedom that we have and love.

By Chris #3, Posted: 8/13/2008

michael.. you have to realize that the car enthusiast is a dying breed for the most part, and currently we make up a very small portion of the market. if everyone starts making bubbly underpowered mid and small sedans, thats what most of the market will buy. some brands will still offer hopped up versions of their cars, some companies will still offer large RWD sedans and pick ups. the problem is, the operating cost will deter most, the technology cost to make these vehicles fuel efficient will make them cost prohibitive for many more, and the idea of GM designing an entire vehicle from scratch just so that maybe 5,000 people a year will buy a RWD sports car just means that the engineering costs will be higher and higher per vehicle.

it's the reason why trucks and SUV's have been so damned cheap in the USA. so many of them were made, and sold, that ford could invest several billion dollars into the platform every time they needed to redesign it, then sell the units at firesale prices for several years and still make a huge profit off the vehicle.

people are just going to have to get used to the idea of small and midsized cars that don't get huge power boosts from one generation to the next, but fuel econ boosts. if you want more power, you're going to have to pay for more advanced tech (which costs more) or a bigger engine (in a market that no longer invests into large engines, making the development costs that much higher, and meaning the sticker price is going to go up BIG TIME, not to mention operating costs). you want a large RWD sedan? you want a chrysler 300 in 2030? expect to pay big sanctions... companies will offer these products but they aren't going to offer them at cost.. they'll have to factor in low production numbers, high engineering costs, and the economic penalties that such vehicles will incur. thats the world you will soon live in.

By Michael D. #4, Posted: 8/13/2008

Chris,
It make the future sound bleak, dark and backward. I want to see all move forward!
Also, I never liked four-cylinder powerplants in any shape of form (outside of an econobox or a tuned four in a smaller sportscar) for they are lumpier, buzzier, thrashier, and I feel that being that they have to work much harder to meet the same demands and loads where greater cylinder counts handle with more ease and confidence - and as a result, there really isn't any significant MPG gain, but it's public perception that the smaller, lesser cylinder-count engines are more economical.

Also, typical people's reactions...
Large and luxury sedan, coupe, sport & GT and higher end SUVs & crossovers: Ooooooh! Woah! Cool! Awesome! Nice!!! Sweet!

An economy car or mini or subcompact vehicle: Oh that's cute.

An ordinary, mainstream or vanilla sedan (appliance vehicle perhaps): Hmmph, nice.

Also, RWD has more cachet than front drive. Front-drive bias all-wheel-drive gets some respect, than plain front-drive, however.

By peste #5, Posted: 8/14/2008

This is all going to be moot when battery and electric motor technology evolves to the point where you'll be able to put it in the smallest subcompact all the way up to the largest truck and SUV and get ICE equivalent range.