Fuel standards will force lighter autos-(rolling death traps)

ap ^ | 11/22/07 | DAN CATERINICCHIA,

[Flavius]

WASHINGTON - The energy bill President Bush signed last week mandating tougher fuel-economy standards sent a simple message to automakers: lighten up. ADVERTISEMENT

The new rules certainly give makers of aluminum, carbon fiber and other lightweight materials something to smile about, analysts say, though the steel industry's piece of the auto-industry pie is likely to shrink.

[LibFreeOrDie]

“In a Yugo”

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pz2eCFoafXk

[org.whodat]

WV diesel and Jeep liberty diesels already get 40 + miles to the gal.

[Chode]

goodbye ZR-1...

[Chode]

er ZR-6, or what ever it's up to now days... 8^)

[durasell]

-(rolling death traps)

---

Uh no, carbon fiber is an awesome material.

[Flavius]

for toys

[silentreignofheroes]

Never happen,farmers have to have heavy vehicles to do their job,,would be nice to have a duelly that gets 35+ to the gal. though...

[BallyBill]

Towing my boat will be fun with a plastic go kart.

[Flavius]

how bout breaking with 1500-2500 lbs vehicle while towing 4500 plus

how will that work exactly

[wally_bert]

If anyone remembers, Bobby Bowfinger's only major production was "Triumph Of The Yugo" in the movie "Bowfinger". I thought it was a pretty good movie.

[theymakemesick]

From what I've heard from "Skeeter" (talk show host on AM 700 in Houston on Saturday) that economy on the VW TDI will cost you greatly in maintenance, just saying.

Merry Christmas!

[Tomato lover]

“(rolling death traps)”

Looking at the news today and seeing all the 50+ auto pile-ups on the roadways, I am amazed that the public has been so dumbed down that they don’t have the sense to slow down or stop when the visibility is next to zero. Whatever happened to ‘defensive driving?’

Maybe my tagline says it all . . . .

[Rudder]

Uh no, carbon fiber is an awesome material.

Ah, just the person I was looking for. I'm looking at a good-size expedition yacht made by a very reputable maker. In every way it's ideal except it's hull is made of carbon fiber. That stuff must be very rigid, because all the interior rooms are suspended and the engines are doubly shock-mounted to reduce vibration. My concern: a collision.
Even with a small, but hard, object a collision at sea (e.g., with a partially submerged shipping container) can bust a gaping hole in fiberglass hulls. Steel and aluminum usually suffer only dents under such mishaps.
Can you tell me anything about the collision-resistance of carbon-fiber (panels, plates, hulls, etc.) ?

[CGTRWK]

Not by the 2008 EPA test they don't. Older models were not retested using the new rules, but based on previous results the EPA estimates the 06 diesel Jeep would score a 21, and the various VW diesels would score from 31 to 33.

Gaming 35 out of that test essentially mandates a battery assist hybrid powertrain. 35 out of a conventional car means you're driving one of these:

[Mike Darancette]

We can risk our lives so that China can build more coal fired gereratirs.

[jiggyboy]

Good. Maybe if the soccer moms are driving something they aren’t sure will absorb a direct hit from a Mack truck, they’ll drive a little more carefully.

[theymakemesick]

LOL,funniest thing i've seen all day, reminds me of the road kill I see every day on my way to work, not that road kill is funny. I see dogs, cats, possums, racoons, even saw a great horned owl last week, went back and got out of my car to make sure because I've seen bald eagles in the area (southeast Texas) and thought it might have been a juvenile. Yes, it was a great horned owl. Yellow legs about the thickness of a quarter, I wanted to take one as a trophy but that would probably get a "redneck" like me life in prison since a dead bird has much more value than a productive tax paying American citizen.

Funny how life goes on regardless of liberals.

[Flavius]

same should get a picture of this with the purchase of whatever it is Oprah or Martha tells them to buy

since that is what im sure they see on daily basis in front of them as they are dialing their i somethings

[reg45]

Since some environmentalists consider human life to be a threat to the earth, they think that the more humans they can kill off the better. So if cars are less safe ....