Comments on: Are Automakers To Blame For Consumer Car-Buying Trends? Auto Alliance Weighs In http://gas2.org/2008/06/25/are-automakers-to-blame-for-consumer-car-buying-trends-auto-alliance-weighs-in/ What is the future of fuel? What's new? What's next? Since 2007, Gas 2 has covered a rapidly changing world coming to terms with its oil addiction. Thu, 24 May 2012 21:04:32 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.3.2 By: Clayton B. Cornell http://gas2.org/2008/06/25/are-automakers-to-blame-for-consumer-car-buying-trends-auto-alliance-weighs-in/#comment-3599 Clayton B. Cornell Sun, 29 Jun 2008 18:50:13 +0000 http://gas2.org/?p=640#comment-3599 Crawford, Make sure you aren't conflating corn with biodiesel. Corn is not related to rainforest destruction in any way that I'm aware of. But biodiesel can be: http://gas2.org/2008/04/11/biodiesel-myth-or-fact-23-biodiesel-is-raising-food-prices/ Crawford,

Make sure you aren’t conflating corn with biodiesel. Corn is not related to rainforest destruction in any way that I’m aware of.

But biodiesel can be: http://gas2.org/2008/04/11/biodiesel-myth-or-fact-23-biodiesel-is-raising-food-prices/

]]> By: Clayton B. Cornell http://gas2.org/2008/06/25/are-automakers-to-blame-for-consumer-car-buying-trends-auto-alliance-weighs-in/#comment-25556 Clayton B. Cornell Sun, 29 Jun 2008 18:50:00 +0000 http://gas2.org/?p=640#comment-25556 Crawford, Make sure you aren't conflating corn with biodiesel. Corn is not related to rainforest destruction in any way that I'm aware of. But biodiesel can be: http://gas2.org/2008/04/11/biodiesel-myth-or-fact-23-biodiesel-is-raising-food-prices/ Crawford,

Make sure you aren’t conflating corn with biodiesel. Corn is not related to rainforest destruction in any way that I’m aware of.

But biodiesel can be: http://gas2.org/2008/04/11/biodiesel-myth-or-fact-23-biodiesel-is-raising-food-prices/

]]> By: Crawford http://gas2.org/2008/06/25/are-automakers-to-blame-for-consumer-car-buying-trends-auto-alliance-weighs-in/#comment-3598 Crawford Sun, 29 Jun 2008 18:01:38 +0000 http://gas2.org/?p=640#comment-3598 People keep saying how ethanol cars are so great. They are not! They may reduce foreign dependence, but it just moves our dependence from the middle east down to the Rainforest. AND, with a higher demand of ethanol, more rainforest is being cut down for farmers to have more room to grow crops for highly profitable biofuels. As most of you should know... cutting down rainforest is the worst thing you can do for the environment. First off it's killing the most valued ecosystem on the planet, some huge percentage of all CO2 emissions are taken in by plants in the rainforest, and rainfalls all over the world depend on the rainforest. That is part of the reason why here in the U.S. the east coast was having droughts, which the west coast was getting flood waters everywhere. People keep saying how ethanol cars are so great. They are not! They may reduce foreign dependence, but it just moves our dependence from the middle east down to the Rainforest. AND, with a higher demand of ethanol, more rainforest is being cut down for farmers to have more room to grow crops for highly profitable biofuels. As most of you should know… cutting down rainforest is the worst thing you can do for the environment. First off it’s killing the most valued ecosystem on the planet, some huge percentage of all CO2 emissions are taken in by plants in the rainforest, and rainfalls all over the world depend on the rainforest. That is part of the reason why here in the U.S. the east coast was having droughts, which the west coast was getting flood waters everywhere.

]]> By: Crawford http://gas2.org/2008/06/25/are-automakers-to-blame-for-consumer-car-buying-trends-auto-alliance-weighs-in/#comment-25555 Crawford Sun, 29 Jun 2008 18:01:00 +0000 http://gas2.org/?p=640#comment-25555 People keep saying how ethanol cars are so great. They are not! They may reduce foreign dependence, but it just moves our dependence from the middle east down to the Rainforest. AND, with a higher demand of ethanol, more rainforest is being cut down for farmers to have more room to grow crops for highly profitable biofuels. As most of you should know... cutting down rainforest is the worst thing you can do for the environment. First off it's killing the most valued ecosystem on the planet, some huge percentage of all CO2 emissions are taken in by plants in the rainforest, and rainfalls all over the world depend on the rainforest. That is part of the reason why here in the U.S. the east coast was having droughts, which the west coast was getting flood waters everywhere. People keep saying how ethanol cars are so great. They are not! They may reduce foreign dependence, but it just moves our dependence from the middle east down to the Rainforest. AND, with a higher demand of ethanol, more rainforest is being cut down for farmers to have more room to grow crops for highly profitable biofuels. As most of you should know… cutting down rainforest is the worst thing you can do for the environment. First off it’s killing the most valued ecosystem on the planet, some huge percentage of all CO2 emissions are taken in by plants in the rainforest, and rainfalls all over the world depend on the rainforest. That is part of the reason why here in the U.S. the east coast was having droughts, which the west coast was getting flood waters everywhere.

]]> By: chrispc88 http://gas2.org/2008/06/25/are-automakers-to-blame-for-consumer-car-buying-trends-auto-alliance-weighs-in/#comment-3597 chrispc88 Fri, 27 Jun 2008 20:31:38 +0000 http://gas2.org/?p=640#comment-3597 Chuchundra - Try digging up some facts before you speak. You said "The SUV was created to exploit a loophole in the CAFE standards". CAFE standards weren't enacted in the US until 1975 - but SUV's have been around for much longer. Oh' sure they may not have been called 'sport utility' but they were the same vehicles. Take the Chevy Blazer for instance, it first appeared in 1969. The Arab Oil Embargo didn't show until 1973. The Ford Bronco was first started in 1966. And of-course Jeeps have been around since the second world war. Face it, the vehicles exist because there are people that want and or need them for any number of reasons and have for years. Chuchundra – Try digging up some facts before you speak. You said “The SUV was created to exploit a loophole in the CAFE standards”. CAFE standards weren’t enacted in the US until 1975 – but SUV’s have been around for much longer. Oh’ sure they may not have been called ‘sport utility’ but they were the same vehicles. Take the Chevy Blazer for instance, it first appeared in 1969. The Arab Oil Embargo didn’t show until 1973. The Ford Bronco was first started in 1966. And of-course Jeeps have been around since the second world war. Face it, the vehicles exist because there are people that want and or need them for any number of reasons and have for years.

]]> By: chrispc88 http://gas2.org/2008/06/25/are-automakers-to-blame-for-consumer-car-buying-trends-auto-alliance-weighs-in/#comment-25554 chrispc88 Fri, 27 Jun 2008 20:31:00 +0000 http://gas2.org/?p=640#comment-25554 Chuchundra - Try digging up some facts before you speak. You said "The SUV was created to exploit a loophole in the CAFE standards". CAFE standards weren't enacted in the US until 1975 - but SUV's have been around for much longer. Oh' sure they may not have been called 'sport utility' but they were the same vehicles. Take the Chevy Blazer for instance, it first appeared in 1969. The Arab Oil Embargo didn't show until 1973. The Ford Bronco was first started in 1966. And of-course Jeeps have been around since the second world war. Face it, the vehicles exist because there are people that want and or need them for any number of reasons and have for years. Chuchundra – Try digging up some facts before you speak. You said “The SUV was created to exploit a loophole in the CAFE standards”. CAFE standards weren’t enacted in the US until 1975 – but SUV’s have been around for much longer. Oh’ sure they may not have been called ‘sport utility’ but they were the same vehicles. Take the Chevy Blazer for instance, it first appeared in 1969. The Arab Oil Embargo didn’t show until 1973. The Ford Bronco was first started in 1966. And of-course Jeeps have been around since the second world war. Face it, the vehicles exist because there are people that want and or need them for any number of reasons and have for years.

]]> By: Clayton B. Cornell http://gas2.org/2008/06/25/are-automakers-to-blame-for-consumer-car-buying-trends-auto-alliance-weighs-in/#comment-3596 Clayton B. Cornell Fri, 27 Jun 2008 20:09:48 +0000 http://gas2.org/?p=640#comment-3596 I feel like a few things have been glossed over here, including the fact that gas prices in this country have always been artificially low. How can anyone argue that the "market" can manage itself without Govt. regulation when it it's never adapting to realistic variables? Why wouldn't we want to encourage change anyway, by artificially manipulating the variables in a way that provides value and security for our future? Example: Thomas Friedman proposes a "price floor" of $4 / gallon for gasoline: http://www.nytimes.com/2008/05/28/opinion/28friedman.html I feel like a few things have been glossed over here, including the fact that gas prices in this country have always been artificially low. How can anyone argue that the “market” can manage itself without Govt. regulation when it it’s never adapting to realistic variables?

Why wouldn’t we want to encourage change anyway, by artificially manipulating the variables in a way that provides value and security for our future?

Example: Thomas Friedman proposes a “price floor” of $4 / gallon for gasoline: http://www.nytimes.com/2008/05/28/opinion/28friedman.html

]]> By: Clayton B. Cornell http://gas2.org/2008/06/25/are-automakers-to-blame-for-consumer-car-buying-trends-auto-alliance-weighs-in/#comment-25553 Clayton B. Cornell Fri, 27 Jun 2008 20:09:00 +0000 http://gas2.org/?p=640#comment-25553 I feel like a few things have been glossed over here, including the fact that gas prices in this country have always been artificially low. How can anyone argue that the "market" can manage itself without Govt. regulation when it it's never adapting to realistic variables? Why wouldn't we want to encourage change anyway, by artificially manipulating the variables in a way that provides value and security for our future? Example: Thomas Friedman proposes a "price floor" of $4 / gallon for gasoline: http://www.nytimes.com/2008/05/28/opinion/28friedman.html I feel like a few things have been glossed over here, including the fact that gas prices in this country have always been artificially low. How can anyone argue that the “market” can manage itself without Govt. regulation when it it’s never adapting to realistic variables?

Why wouldn’t we want to encourage change anyway, by artificially manipulating the variables in a way that provides value and security for our future?

Example: Thomas Friedman proposes a “price floor” of $4 / gallon for gasoline: http://www.nytimes.com/2008/05/28/opinion/28friedman.html

]]> By: Kirk http://gas2.org/2008/06/25/are-automakers-to-blame-for-consumer-car-buying-trends-auto-alliance-weighs-in/#comment-3595 Kirk Fri, 27 Jun 2008 19:53:07 +0000 http://gas2.org/?p=640#comment-3595 I'm not so sure. Apparently the high gas prices are affecting consumer satisfaction (http://blog.buyingadvice.com/2008/06/fuel-prices-aff.html). It's probably somewhere in the middle. Manufacturers pushed cheap to make SUVs off on a public that was too embarrassed to drive station wagons and minivans. Really, it comes down to vanity. Most Americans only need either a a) compact car b) station wagon c) minivan or d) pickup truck. But since practical isn't cool in this country, we go around chasing idiotic trends to the brink of destruction. I’m not so sure. Apparently the high gas prices are affecting consumer satisfaction (http://blog.buyingadvice.com/2008/06/fuel-prices-aff.html). It’s probably somewhere in the middle. Manufacturers pushed cheap to make SUVs off on a public that was too embarrassed to drive station wagons and minivans.

Really, it comes down to vanity. Most Americans only need either a a) compact car b) station wagon c) minivan or d) pickup truck. But since practical isn’t cool in this country, we go around chasing idiotic trends to the brink of destruction.

]]> By: Kirk http://gas2.org/2008/06/25/are-automakers-to-blame-for-consumer-car-buying-trends-auto-alliance-weighs-in/#comment-25552 Kirk Fri, 27 Jun 2008 19:53:00 +0000 http://gas2.org/?p=640#comment-25552 I'm not so sure. Apparently the high gas prices are affecting consumer satisfaction (http://blog.buyingadvice.com/2008/06/fuel-prices-aff.html). It's probably somewhere in the middle. Manufacturers pushed cheap to make SUVs off on a public that was too embarrassed to drive station wagons and minivans. Really, it comes down to vanity. Most Americans only need either a a) compact car b) station wagon c) minivan or d) pickup truck. But since practical isn't cool in this country, we go around chasing idiotic trends to the brink of destruction. I’m not so sure. Apparently the high gas prices are affecting consumer satisfaction (http://blog.buyingadvice.com/2008/06/fuel-prices-aff.html). It’s probably somewhere in the middle. Manufacturers pushed cheap to make SUVs off on a public that was too embarrassed to drive station wagons and minivans.

Really, it comes down to vanity. Most Americans only need either a a) compact car b) station wagon c) minivan or d) pickup truck. But since practical isn’t cool in this country, we go around chasing idiotic trends to the brink of destruction.

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