If you extend this around the world you will find that yes, they can make safer cars in developing countries. Do they? No, because they don't have to. They can make cleaner burning cars in third world nations. Do they? No. Again, because they don't have to. The OEMs only make their cars as good as the regulations at the destination country require them to be.

When reviews were done regarding the updating of the CAFE regulations, it was found that trucks and SUVs can be significantly better on gas than they are and that there is much room for improvement.

Is anyone surprised that the car companies, who need the oil companies to have a product, and the oil companies who need cars or they have no product, work together to make sure that the both have booming business?

Soyarma

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sfambro

This is the reason they won't be mainstream. Right now you can go buy a 1985 Honda Civic CRX and get 45mpg, or an old Chevy Sprint with the 3 cylinder engine, restore it to new, and still be under $5,000 compared to these hybrids costing a mint you'll never recoup unless you commute with it for 12 years. The answer isn't a 100mpg car, it's a lot of things, maybe solar panels for the house, or several reasonable things. Even mandatory tire pressure testing for any auto shop that works on a car, that alone would save us a ton of oil if they shop had to inflate the cars tires they were working on to the right pressure no matter the reason it was in for, let the law make them charge a couple bucks for the minute it takes.

Hello_Newman

If today's cars are so great, then why does fuel economy stagnate while average engine power doubles every decade? Where I live, we don't drive faster today than we did in 1985, so the super duper engines are wasted engineering effort. Seems to me that automakers ARE sleeping. They are thinking that adding power sells more cars, when in fact people are finally looking at the cost of operation. Build machines that are tuned for economy, not for enthusiast magazine performance that will never be achieved in the real world by the average driver.

Automakers know how to produce a more efficient vehicle, but they'd rather sell more gimmicks like OnStar and in-dash DVD players rather than offer a practical vehicle. And of course they lobby strongly against a real solution to urban gridlock, which is where a large portion of fuel is wasted: in oversize land yachts sitting motionless on the interstate.

Best of luck to all Automotive X-Prize teams -- may you bring forth the cars that we will all be driving in less than a decade!

my favorite car is a motorcycle

Tommy

FreeMan

rawtoast

100% agree.

For some reason people think car companies are slackers..

You'd think.. if the prius could get 100mpg from the factory.. they would make it.

There is no conspiricy.. in order for cars to get better milage, you have to reduce weight.. take out safety equipment, and remove comfort items.

cafe/epa/iihs/consumer fight for every bit of energy in that gallon of gas..

To sastify any one you need to reduce the appeal/functionality of the others.

I'd much rather see a contest however.. where teams are given identical cars.. say a bunch of gas guzzling suv's.. and the goal is to get the highest milage / lowest emissions while still retaining all the safety features and creature comforts.

WheatKing

DaoistImmortal

There is no low-hanging fruit out there - two sharp outside-the-box-thinkers won't easily develop a 100 MPG car for the masses that offers the power, safety and room of today's 25 MPG BMW 5 Series. What is sold today is pretty damn good.

goatrope

WheatKing