Quote:
Originally Posted by Bumble Bee '77
I'm paraphrasing here, but I read in Scientific American, (yes I read nerd mags too), that the total COMBINED C02 emissions from humans, (breathing, cars, industries, ect) is less then 4%. Plants, animals, volcano's emit far more c02 per year then humans do in 10.
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while i read a similar article (probably the same one), its not just C02 that we need to look at.
global warming is not... IS NOT.....
IS NOT a human creation by itself. its part of a cycle that the earth goes through, heating, then cooling, then heating again, then cooling.
however, we are adding to it. the earth is constantly warming right now, we are reaching a climax point where we will dip back into a cold age. its going to happen. all we can do is try and slow down the rate at which its going to happen.
we are adding to the natural effect of the earth warming. we are increasing the rate at which the temperature is raising.
but since we arent seeing any immediate serious effects, no one really cares.
Quote:
Originally Posted by rmyers
By "the situation we are in now" are you referring to gas being under $2 per gallon? The gas prices in the summer were largely a result of speculators forcing the price up, and China buying up more than they needed. All the experts predicted after the Olympics were over, the prices would start coming down. Heck I'm not an expert and I predicted to my family gasoline would be under $2 before Christmas and I was right.
gas prices will go back up. its only a matter of time.
If on the other hand you meant the situation the automakers are in, well trucks and suv's were the most profitable items they had. That is exactly why they should build them.
thats why they did build them.... in excess. look at the truck/suv market right now. gas prices are falling below $2.00 and dealerships STILL cant move trucks and suvs off their lots. hell, there's a dealership down in florida offering a buy one get one free for 2008 model pickups. and ur right, they have all the right in the world to build whatever vehicle they deem fit. but the problem comes in when the american public no longer wants a big truck/suv and now the auto manufacturers are stuck with profit loss, cus they built crap tones of the vehicles in the thought that people would still buy them, but then gas prices went up and everyone traded them in.
On another note, I woulld like to know if anyone has done a study that reflects average distances traveled by automobile for Americans compared to the rest of the world. I am not talking about commuting to work only. When you consider the fact that some of our states are larger than some countries, and that we can freely travel in and out of those states with complete anonimity, I am sure that has a lot to do with the types of cars the American market requires.
The important part is that car companies should be free to build whatever the market demands. And if that market demands SUV's then they should be building them. The companies should not be pressured into spending money on cars that no one wants just because it seems politically correct.
I'll go even futher by questioning the practicality of buying a hybrid or any other emerging technology when the price required would not be recooperated based on gasoline savings, unless you keep the vehicle several more years then the average car owner keeps a car. With gas prices under $2 per gallon, their ROI won't be realized now for twice as long.
When the hybrids are priced comparatively, then they will sell and the market will accept them.
For the time being, I'll keep driving my gas guzzling 505 hp LS7..Oh did I mention this old-technology easily gets 26 mpg on the highway!
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thats awesome man. I was getting just shy of 30 in my 13 year old Z28 till I started moving away from the street and more to the track.
and I totally agree with you on the hybrid sales part. im not a big fan of hybrids to begin with. JMO, but the volt is about the only setup I really like, and thats not a biased remark for the brand name.
the volt uses electric motors to power the vehicle all the time, and only fires up the gas motor to recharge the batteries, which means that you can tune the gas motor to run at the most efficient rpm to add to the amount of fuel savings for it.