Fuel efficient vehicles that are reasonably safe?

[Jeff396]

GSXR1100,

You might be right though I'm not sure how many car batteries one of these vehicles would use in place of the D cells. I always have a picture of a golf cart in my head.

I'm also into RC.....tried the heli thing when I was poor and failed miserably due to inferior equipment. I had a GMP Cricket with no collective and was trying to use my FG Futaba airplane radio to fly it without a gyro.....very frustrating!!! My most recent plane is an 80" CAP with a DA50cc gasser. I looked at the prices of the Sanyo batteries for this plane and was shocked especially when you consider I wanted two 5 cell packs rated at 1800 mah and one 4 cell pack rated at 1100 mah. I ended up getting an off brand for a fraction of the price that were recomended by fellow club members. I am not at all familiar with the price of NIMH D cells but figured there might be lesser cost alternatives available.

Either way, I sure would want to know what the cost of their replacement would be and about how long they last before I plunked my money down on a new hybrid.

Whatever happened to propane?? In AZ they had a big propane conversion offered by the state going. The program nearly bankrupted the state. I haven't heard a word more about propane as an alternative fuel source. Unfortunately, both of my vehicles were not eligible for the switch at the time.

Jeff

 

[RonL]

For those of you that are thinking of a VW diesel, I would think twice about that. I had a TDI diesel that turned into a lemon. Traded it for a Passat wagon that turned into a lemon. VW is having a massive quality control problem and they are not standing behind their cars. In concept, I thought it was a good idea to buy the TDI. In reality, it was a nightmare.

RonL

 

[Av8r3400]

For every story like yours, there are hundreds of satified TDI owners like me. /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif

It's been a great car and I would buy another one in a minute. Almost 300k on my '86 IDI non-turbo, and 60K on my 2001 TDI. Both are great runners and will have a long life with me in the future. I would recomend them to anyone.

 

[Dozernut]

RaT
I attended a demonstration/seminar on the hybrid vehicles put on by the fire department. What they were advising is that a hybrid vehicle involved in a crash, has the potential to deliver a lethal shock. This was a demonstration for rescue personel and they were telling them not to rush up and try to rescue hurt or entrapped victims without checking to see if the crashed hybrid was hot. I believe they said there has been a death involving an EMT. This has been a few years ago so maybe the car companies have addressed the issue.

 

[milkman]

Last summer, I almost bought a TDI for the wife to drive to work, 70 mi. each way, I was a little detered by the negative reports I had heard and read, however, I have a nephew that has a Jetta TDI and he drives the snot out of it, not had a single problem. I hear and read comments about how great the PSD is, but the two that I know of owned by family members have been "problems" and that is putting it mildly, won't catch me owning one of those. Besides, real diesels have their cylinders all in a row.
I bought a used Corolla with a bazillion miles on it from a friend, and it's doing great, 35.5 mpg in winter, 38 and 39+ in warm weather. You can hear and read all kinds of stories, but I tend to go with what I see for real. JMHO

 

[RobertN]

The hybrids still are not that great on fuel, IMHO. 15-18 years ago, before my wife and were together, she had one of the Chevy Sprints. It had a turbocharged engine in it. It got 45-50mpg, and could haul tail if the throttle was mashed down. I do not know how it was for safety tests though...

So, here we are, 15-20 years later. Now we have hybrids. Hybrids, which do not get any better mileage than a similar size car 15-20 years ago. For all the technology we have, we still aint got better than 50mpg in a small car.

 

[aardvark]

</font><font color="blue" class="small">( So, here we are, 15-20 years later. Now we have hybrids. Hybrids, which do not get any better mileage than a similar size car 15-20 years ago. For all the technology we have, we still aint got better than 50mpg in a small car.)</font>

It's unfortunate. However, so long as the vast unwashed masses keep buying the 12 mpg SUVs, we will never use our technology to improve fuel mileage. This is even more unfortunate.

 

[hazmat]

<font color="blue">So, here we are, 15-20 years later. Now we have hybrids. Hybrids, which do not get any better mileage than a similar size car 15-20 years ago. For all the technology we have, we still aint got better than 50mpg in a small car. </font>

Yes & no. Today's drivers are demanding more performance from vehicles. I'll bet the today's hybrids have better 0-60 times than the Sprint.

Lets compare my 1985 F150 straight 6 - 150? HP, 15 mpg. My 2001 F150 V8 - 260 HP, 14 mpg. I get almost 2X the horsepower, same gas mileage, more towing capacity, more safety features - airbags, anti-lock brakes etc and less emmisions. The 2004 has 300HP!

Today you can easily get 150HP out of a 4 banger, but how many 1/2 tons would Ford sell with a measly 150 HP?

 

[OkeeDon]

Haz, you just described the problem!

 

[Robert_in_NY]

What problem did he describe?

Vehicles today get as good of mileage as the older vehicles but put out more power and performance and are still better for the environment then the motors from the 60's and 70's and even the 80's. The consumers want more power yet the car companies are stuck at certain emission standards so to get more power they are constantly improving the motor. Some day it will get to a point where someone will design a new engine that will make a lot of people happy and a lot of middle eastern people mad.