I knew this would happen:

http://money.cnn.com/2006/11/01/maga...ex.htm?cnn=yes

Gas guzzling SUV sales have skyrocketed again...

 

Great!!!!!

Anyone interested in a 1997 Ford Explorer V-8? So what if it gets 15 - 18 mpg. Gas is going to stay at $2.00 a gallon forever (until it goes down). On a related topic, what can you tell me about purchasing a Ford Escape Hybrid.

If people want to start buying these bohemeths (sp?) with their larger profit margins who can blame the car companies for shrinking their bloated inventory. Just would be nice if they invested some of the profits into more efficient technologies in anticipation of the next gas price increase when everyone starts yelling, "I want better mpg now!!!!"

 

It's the child in them that's acting...

 

Also, I believe that the prices of pick-ups and some suvs have dropped over the past year. This may have attracted those folks who were pondering a purchase to say, "what the heck, if I can get an F150 for under 10K, why not." The marketing guru's are laughing all the way to the bank saying "we gotchya".

 

Also, there really isn't an open-bed, pickup truck hybrid or utility van. We only have glass covered SUVs and they are not the type of simple, utilitarian vehicles needed by many buyers.

The Silverado was a lite-hybrid but really aimed at contractors who need on-site power. Put the drive train of a Ford Escape or Highlander in a simple, stripped down, open-bed pickup truck and then you'll see the cross-over.

Those buyers are extremely cost conscious and they understand the difference between capital dollars versus operational dollars. What they can't do is buy a hybrid that does not meet their requirements or is not forsale.

Bob Wilson

 

Well... This probably means that Ford/GM will be even *further* behind in automotive technology when the next gas crisis occurs. I've read that the "peak" could be as early as 2012 and as late as 2035. Either way, it's *going* to happen. The automakers who have figured out how to squeeze 100 MPG (or more) out of a gallon of gasoline are the ones who will survive when peak oil hits and gasoline is suddenly $10/gallon (or more).

GM will probably have an Escalade III out by then, complete with a 15.0L v12 engine which seats 14, takes up 2 lanes of traffic, and gets 3 MPG. It'll probably be offered with an optional caterpillar drive for offroad use. Oy!

 

Actually, I benefitted. I was able to have a choice of Prius to buy, with no wait.

I've been watching the car lots the last year. Conventional Civics have been in very short supply with virtually none at my local Honda dealer. Civic Hybrids have been unobtainable, with my local dealer getting only one per month.

I needed another car with winter coming on. I get around on a BMW motorcycle in the warmer months. It gets 50 mpg and has a catalytic converter, so it is a green machine.

Prius availability is higher now with the (temporary) drop in fuel prices and also because the tax credit for them has been halved recently.

Hey, the more SUV's out there, the more we can laugh our asses off.

I love the Prius. It's my kind of car.

Harry