Shouldn't there be a law mandating fuel economy indicators in all new cars?

Well, it was more rhetorical than anything I think. The manufacturers will NEVER get on board, EXCEPT when they have fuel efficient cars and want to show that off. Imagine if a PU or SUV driver had to watch their mileage all the time. Not gonna happen. Of course no law would ever be passed like this. I think the CAFE standard is good enough, along with a guzzler tax.

I just thought, we could put a meter on the dash of the PU and SUV that says this is how big you think your weiner is that would grow in inverse proportion to gas mileage. Ooops, did I go too far? :kiss:

 

Unfortunately, "light trucks" that include SUVs, minivans, pickups and some vans are currently in a separate fleet for CAFE purposes which has a lower standard than that of passenger cars.

Also, unfortunately, ALL "light trucks" and beyond are exempt from the gas guzzler tax. As it stands, the gas guzzler tax only affects high end, high horsepower cars which sell in tiny quantities compared to monstrosity class SUVs.

 

Absolutely NOT......have you not seen how people drive today.....they don't give a rats A>>s about fuel economy......if they do......they drive a Prius

 

Well, yes, I have noticed that, too. I think most folks don't see a problem until it beats them over the head. Just human nature.

 

Not all people with mustaches are genocidal psychopaths like Adolf Hitler. Not all people who drive trucks or SUVs have non-functionally small genitalia. Not all Prius owners are tree-hugging liberals who want to take your guns and require that if you own a truck or SUV you must drive it off-road or haul more than 1,500 lbs at least 3 times per year.

It seems to me that the answer to this particular problem is educating people that just because something they dislike occurs disproportionately in their small slice of the human experience among people who appear share certain arbitrary characteristics, it doesn't mean that all people who share those characteristics are equally deserving of their disdain.

Perhaps this is the reason for their popularity. In fact, years ago when the minivan was created, it was to skirt expensive NHTSA safety standards by the big 3 automakers.

The same can be said of SUVs. Manufacturers began building trucks and SUVs with luxury appointments like CD players and leather and air conditioning because they made it a lot easier to comply with uneven government regulations. Then people began buying them because they were marketed as being much more convenient than cars because they could haul so much stuff. And buyers could purchase them without having to pay hefty gas-guzzler taxes.

In short, people were getting more for their money, manufacturers were getting more for their money, oil companies were selling more oil-- everybody won. Except for the people who were maimed or killed when they were involved in crashes, and the environment, and those who were maimed or killed in wars whose primary (or secondary or tertiary) purpose is to secure oil supplies and so forth. The reality is that these vehicles became socially expensive automaker subsidies.

 

Imagine if a PU or SUV driver had to watch their mileage all the time. Not gonna happen.

High end PU and SUV often have trip computers and MPG displays.

Why doesn't Toyota make a hybrid truck for those hard working types that need to haul those 12 foot 2X4's around to make a living?

 

What you're missing is that these regulations apply to vehicle manufacturers, not owners.

Emissions testing is part of the plan that states submit to EPA to meet National Ambient Air Quality Standards. There is a federal emission standard, but it only has to be met by the manufacturer at the time of first sale. I'm all for a continuing federal standard, since it has been shown that the majority of vehicle pollution is caused by something like 10% of vehicles... but no doubt someone with your mindset would come along and complain about the "smog police" (they already complain about it in CA, iirc).

 

Because Toyota wanted to make the biggest, baddest half ton truck on the market, and in doing so abandoned their fuel economy edge to Ford and GM.