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The 65 mpg Ford the U.S. Can't Have

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page 179 of 221

Rick Sep 8, 2008 6:11 PM GMT Diesel needs to be part of the solution to our vehicle engery needs worldwide. I drive a 2000 F250 Super Duty Ford (a three-quarter ton that seats six and has a monster 7.3-liter diesel V-8) that gets the same or better milage than a gas-powered V-6 in a smaller truck or a mini-van. (15-17 mpg now, hoping for 21 mpg after some modifications.) My wife has a "long" commute (about 45 miles a day) and her next vehicle (to replace a Nissan Altima at 26-28 mpg) hopefully will be hybrid and/or diesel. All the automakers need to wake up to diesel. Getting diesel and alcohol from cellulose, plus biodiesel from waste vegetable oil, will help supplement petroleum and maybe one day partially supplant it.
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William Sep 8, 2008 6:06 PM GMT They don't think Americans would like a 65mpg car based on misconceptions about diesel, correct?Americans are less concerned with what is in their car than with how far it will take them. To say, "they will not buy this car because Americans don't like or understand diesel fuel" is an insult. The problem is that fuel profits might drop a penny, so clearly this is an unacceptable vehicle. It's completely unamerican and no one will want it.
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DMO Sep 8, 2008 6:04 PM GMT I live in Europe, I am looking at a current model fiesta from my office desk as I type. As a European car enthusiast I would question almost every number quoted in the article.The new fiesta is great and all - but;-Seat 5 people - are you kidding me? 4 adults would be a tight squeeze.Are your mileage figures accounting for the fact that the Euro gallon is 20% larger than a US one?Nissan have been selling diesel engine cars in Europe for as long as I can remember (30 years), Honda introduced their first diesel engined car in Europe in 2003. The prices of the UK cars includes taxes, did you adjust before doing your conversion or did you just look at a UK retail price list and convert that number?In the UK and Ireland diesel cars make up about 25% of the car fleet, diesel is about 6% more expensive than gas right now. In Europe where diesel is not taxed as highly diesel cars do make up about half of the fleet.DMO
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Micah Sep 8, 2008 6:00 PM GMT Actually there are a few dealers that have the 2008 Prius for under $24k but most have around 1600 miles or more on them.This one is $23,950http://www.cars.com/go/search/detail.jsp;?tracktype=usedcc&searchType=21&pageNumber=11&numResultsPerPage=50&largeNumResultsPerPage=0&sortorder=ascending&sortfield=PRICE+ascending%2cPRICE+descending&certifiedOnly=false&criteria=K-%7cE-%7cM-_47_%7cD-_2916_%7cN-N%7cR-10000%7cI-1%2c7%7cP-PRICE+ascending%2cPRICE+descending%7cQ-ascending%7cZ-23605&aff=national&paId=286380618&recnum=560&leadExists=trueChecking cars.com the cheapest in the U.S.A. anywhere with less than 50 miles and 2008 was $27k as of this writing.Of course the new 2009 Prius is next to impossible to find and that is what drives the cost up past $30k even though the company claims to sell for between $22k and $25K All hybrid cars need to be driven 15K+ miles for 4+ years to warrent the extra cost though which is also something to keep in mind.
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seo Sep 8, 2008 5:42 PM GMT The idea that the labor costs of building a diesel engine in England makes it unfeasible to import to the US is absurd. How many hours are involved in building a diesel engine, anyway? Maybe four?And if that's the big sticking point, export the components to North America and assemble them here. I believe that many Japanese car engine "built in US" are actually "assembled in US from Japanese components. This reduces investment in casting and forging operations, which are expensive. Engine assembly lines are relatively simple. Seems to me that the real problem is that Ford is still yearning deep in its heart for the good old days of the F150 and the Excursion. Big cars, Big profits. Big stupidity.SEO
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gerry Sep 8, 2008 5:04 PM GMT Not realistic to remove all the fuel taxes, as that is where the states get the money for highway maintenance and construction. The biggest reason they charge more for diesels is that, unfortunately, in this country diesel means large trucks - and because of the high weight of those vehicles, they inflict something on the order of 80% of the damage to roads from use. With the introduction of efficient cars like this, it would be plausible to drop the diesel tax rates to be equal to gasoline and the states would still make enough to support the road infrastructure.
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Matt Sep 8, 2008 4:45 PM GMT We should remove all taxes on fuel and let the market, in this case every person that drives decide which fule is best. Any state that doesn't remove their fuel tax should have their federal transportation funding cut by the amount of taxes they collected at the pump.
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Dave Sep 8, 2008 4:38 PM GMT Where can you get a Prius for $24K?
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Frank in Ohio Sep 8, 2008 4:38 PM GMT This car won't exist in the U.S. because BIG OIL controls the Car manufacturing industry and they control the politicians in Washington. I know for a fact that they squash independent innovators from creating new fuel efficient engines. It's a sad state of affairs.
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Phil Sep 8, 2008 4:35 PM GMT I seem to recall in the 70s that many people bought diesel because of that era's fuel crisis. It wasn't any more available then than it is now yet people snapped up the cars.Pretty weak arguments from Ford. BTW -> who builds a manufacturing plant in a high priced labor market like Britain? Seems like a major strategic error.
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