Dan's Papers - July 3, 2009

STOP THE PRESSES! I always wanted to say that, along with "Follow that cab." What's gotten me excited is that finally our government has proposed a law to amend corporate miles per gallon rules and will take effect by 2016. The new rules will mandate a fleet average of 35.5 miles per gallon for cars and 30 miles per gallon for light trucks and SUVs. The current rule is 25 mpg for cars. Thank you, President Obama.

All the gas hogs that America has been producing for the last few decades have literally put all of Detroit into bankruptcy. Even though we closed the gate after the horses have escaped from the barn, there is a chance for salvation. If Chrysler pairs up with Fiat of Italy, it will have a partner that has a history of making some of the most practical and interesting small, economical cars in the world. If Ford imports or at least utilizes the technology of some of its European line, it will be very competitive. If giant GM finally grows up and starts building some modern engines and uses its vast manufacturing acumen, it again can be leader of the pack. "Only the strong survive" doesn't work anymore. Today in the world automotive arena it's "Only the smart survive."

There's no secret to getting high fuel mileage. All vehicles have to be smaller and lighter with extremely fuel efficient and smaller engines. Most European cars, where the fleet average is about 40 mpg have engines under two liters. In fact, in many European and Asian countries, a car with an engine larger than two liters gets a substantial tax. Even Ferrari, when it manufactured its best selling 308 series of sports cars in the '80s, made a tax saving, fuel-efficient, two-liter identical model called the 208. The current Mini Cooper S has a 1600cc engine with 170 hp and the soon (hopefully) to be imported Fiat 500 Abarth model has a tiny 1400cc engine with 138 hp. Yet, both of these cars are a sports car driver's delight. They do zero to 60 in around 7 seconds and both go over 130 mph. The Mini currently gets 35 mpg and the Fiat about 40 mpg. That is the future, and it's not so bad.

Currently, both Honda and Toyota make two new Hybrids. Even though it's more attractive than the Toyota Prius, I find it rather bizarre that the new Honda Insight Hybrid bears an eerily close resemblance to the Toyota. It's also strange that the totally new Prius (about to hit showrooms as you're reading this article) looks almost the same as the old Prius. I sometimes wonder what goes on in the minds of some Asian car designers. Too much sake? Styling aside, these are both excellent, full sized cars. True, they don't go and handle like BMWs, they weren't designed to, but both handle quite well. They were designed to be family hacks that get fantastic fuel mileage, and they live up to their goals. The Honda gets 40 mpg and the slightly more expensive and more luxurious Prius gets an incredible 50 mpg. What really bugs me is that while Detroit was building giant SUVs and pickups and was so busy engineering how many cup holders it could fit in, the Asians were designing these truly futuristic high tech, high mileage Hybrids.

I certainly hope Detroit catches up. However, it's not only Detroit that has to have a new mindset, it's also the American buying public. Everyone agrees that as the economy improves, gasoline prices will rise. The word benevolent is not in the vocabulary of the Texas oilmen. These guys have been ripping us off for the last decade. As gas prices in the near future hover around $3 per gallon-plus, you can be sure that the American car buyer will demand better mileage from their vehicles. It makes absolutely no sense to burn up hard earned dollars through a gas hog's tailpipe. I truly hope Americans will wean themselves away from giant cars. The highways will then finally become a level playing field of normal size vehicles that make sense.

Finally, the future of transportation in America has promise. For ultimate fuel economy, the most promising powertrain would be a diesel electric hybrid, but I don't know if that would fit into the new, tougher emissions rules. That's one for the engineers to work out. High fuel economy is a win-win situation for everyone. We can all save the planet and money to boot. We can stop financing Arab's Rolls Royces. Why we might even become tolerant of Texans and their oilmen.

Bob Gelber, an automotive journalist living in the Hamptons, appears regularly on TV as an automotive expert. You can e-mail him at bobgelber@aol.com