Stylish Fleet

Taste makers were asked to send in a picture of themselves and the wheels they love.

[read more]

thanks to Travellers Diagram

It's amusing to see what kind of vehicles designers and artists drive and ride. What struck me are two cars that you don't see in this country — the Audi A2 and the Mercedes SmartCar. They're teeny little suckers that get great gas mileage. What a silly thing in the country of giant SUVs.

----------

This is a nice article about a nice car and worth reading. But what struck me was in the middle of the article.

Toward a More Perfect Accord

By contrast, the Chevrolet Cavalier, a fairly fuel- efficient car, has been significantly redesigned only once since 1982. Despite a low list price of $14,900, G.M. has for years been forced to offer a rebate on the Cavalier to keep it selling in volume, which it must do to help the company meet government Corporate Average Fuel Economy standards while it continues to sell large volumes of thirsty trucks and sport utility vehicles. During this same period, the Accord has been back to the drawing board for total makeovers six times. (...)

What may ultimately be troublesome for domestic carmakers is their decisions to pour resources into making ever-larger trucks and S.U.V.'s and to acquire foreign companies in lieu of regaining competitiveness in the car market. Mary Anne Keller, a longtime industry analyst, says that as a result of its choices, the American auto industry is in danger of flat-lining.The 1990's were a gift from God to the American auto industry, and they didn't take advantage of it. They should have made vehicles that were competitive. Instead, the American response has been to do what they always did: make it wider, make it faster, make it heavier. It was almost as though they gave up on cars entirely.'' [read more]

thanks to Travellers Diagram

If our upcoming oil grab should backfire in the least, our domestic car companys will have nothing to sell that anyone can afford to drive. It will be the mid-70s all over again with high gas prices and the American car companys will be toast.