Posted on 02/24/2017 4:02:49 AM PST by IBD editorial writer
Regulation: If President Trump wants to help autoworkers and car buyers, he doesn't need to attack imports. All he needs to do is junk the government's misguided 40-year campaign to force consumers into smaller cars.
For those who don't know, the federal government first imposed the "Corporate Average Fuel Economy" standard in 1975, in response to the government-caused energy crisis. The standard requires automakers to meet annual fuel economy targets based on the fleet of cars they sell in a year, or pay stiff penalties.
By the time the standards started to bite in the early 1980s — which forced a radical downsizing of the domestic fleet of cars — President Reagan had deregulated the oil industry, thus ending the energy crisis. And now, with fracking, the country is awash in domestic oil supplies.
But the CAFE standards persisted, and President Obama hiked them in 2009 and again in 2011. If left in place, cars will have to get an average 54.5 mpg starting in 2025 — less than eight years from now.
This was a thinly disguised effort by the Obama administration to force electric cars onto the market, since not a single conventional vehicle comes close to that mileage standard today.
The little Honda Fit, for example, manages just 36 mpg. Even hybrids struggle to hit the 50-mpg mark.
(Excerpt) Read more at investors.com ...
Examine the amount of BTUs from a typical coal fired power plant to charge up an electric car overnight, and you’ll find the information surprising. These things are not as efficient as the government would have. Us believe. Couple that with what it takes to produce the batteries.
“CAFE def has to go, but so do the special California regulations and standards.
Manufacturers can’t be successful while excluding the California market, and as a result, their cars suffer across the board, in all states.
Not sure how to get around this.”
Easy. Americans in the rest of the USA can demand to buy cars with no CA crap on it.
Just like buying a lawnmower, they sell mowers that can’t be sold in CA, and it says so on the label.
Do awat with the auto industries cafe regs and start making good ole American muscle cars again that have actual style and get away from Prius’ and every other sedan that looks the same as any other, we may actually get mens testosterone flowing again and start to reverse the sissification of men in this country.
I agree that seems to be the solution, but from what I’ve read, CA is such a big part of the market, it’s not cost effective to build CA-specific cars. It’s not quite doubling the number of models you have to produce, but it’s significant.
Maybe the approach is to not build CA-friendly cars. If enough residents get upset about fewer car choices, maybe they’ll vote for change.
I’d give my kid more money so he could buy a car with airbags.
But the CAFE standards persisted, and President Obama hiked
them in 2009 and again in 2011. If left in place,......
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IF... the big question and that will depend upon the new
administration as to how they decide it best to govern.
Obama is gone albeit his policies are left but can be changed.
“Make one car model that sells in California only.”
‘Won’t you look stylish when you show up at the poetry ‘reading’ in your... Hybrid, Dual Fuel, Solar powered, Kia POS.’
‘Cruising down the highway with one smallish friend at nearly 55 mph, your Kia POS will be the talk of the drum circle.’
That’s interesting. What engines were in those? I always thought the 300, 302 and 351’s were stout workhorses. But I’m was Mopar guy, so I don’t really know Fords.
I had a 1985 Dodge W150 with a 360, and that thing just wouldn’t die. And I abused the hell out of it off roading. Used to get all sorts of battle damage and keep running.
-Ran a half an hour without coolant (radiator was penetrated).
-Ran it 75 miles without oil pressure (snapped front driveshaft yoke took out the oil filter)
-one time the automatic choke linkage that I disconnected at one end came off at the other end and was ingested into the engine... turned into a shot peen and only managed to close the spark plug gaps in four cylinders. Compression test was good on all cylinders. Found the ball with a telescoping magnet through one spark plug hole, regapped the plugs and it just kept on running and running and running.
Had 135k on it when I gave it to a dude on the base when I left the service.
There is already quite a few cars/trucks that can’t be sold in CA. You just have to check the labels.
CAFE isn’t why American cars stink. Bad management approving bad designs and allowing them to be poorly executed are why American cars stink.
The complication of cars is much more consumer than government driven. 99% of the features in your car don’t “have” to be there. But nobody anymore is buying a car with no AC, no power windows or locks, 70s steering, no stereo, no range estimate etc etc etc. And of course modern cars are much more reliable, even with all those doo-dads.
My wife had three Ford hybrid vehicles. Worked fine and the later models drove great. However when the temperature dropped the gas mileage plummeted from mid 30 mpg to as low as 20 mpg. Her current Ford Escape with the small turbo charged 4 cylinder gets every bit as good mileage and has power enough to even pull small camper. In hybrids and electric cars batteries eventually need replacement at thousands of dollars...one of the reasons she switched to a non hybrid option. Imagine having a hybrid vehicle with 100,000 miles that suddenly needed $5k worth of batteries. I wouldn’t touch a hybrid or electric as a high miles used car.
The 302. The unworn part of the cylinder, which is at the very bottom where the shape of the piston skirt has little to no contact with the wall, was mic’ed. The cross hatch pattern was still visible, meaning zero wear.
Not all cylinders were sized the same. A couple up to .020 larger than they should have been.
The rod & main bearings had little to no wear, but the journals on one main was .010 too small.
It was poor quality workmanship.
Ford corrected the problem and had commercials with Roddy McDowall pitching “Quality Is Job One”.
That Bronco I mentioned was garbage from bumper to bumper with quality and design issues.
When it comes to leading a car company visionaries are better than bean-counters.
There were some beautiful cars in the luxury and sport luxury categories in the mid to late 70s. ie, Caddy Coupe DeVille, Lincoln Mark IV and Mark V. Pontiac Grand Prix, Chevy Monte Carlo, Olds Cutless Supreme, Buick Riviera, etc. Not sure how good they were mechanically, but they sure looked and road real nice.
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'75 Buick Riviera
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'77 Cadillac Coupe DeVille
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'77 Pontiac Grand Prix
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'77 Chevrolet Monte Carlo
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'77 Lincoln Mark 5
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'76 Lincoln Mark 4
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'76 Lincoln Mark 4
My first convertible was a completely restored ‘66 MGB. It did have the optional lap belts, but the steering column was essentially a steel pipe aimed directly at the driver’s heart. I suppose it would have kept me from being thrown from the vehicle in the event of a collision :-)
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