The end of high powered cars?

Sergius64

Member
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2009 Mazdaspeed 3 GT
Apparently all new cars will have at least 42 mpg by 2016:

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/30810514

I don't really see how they'll manage to make performance vehicles with that kind of milage in 7 years... Maybe with diesel or something. What do you guys think?
 
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i think you mean 42mpg...

its a progression of technology. v8 engines are being dropped for smaller, more efficient turboed v6s. High powered cars will always be around...
 
i think you mean 42mpg...

Yeah, sorry. Edited that mistake out.

It's one thing to drop the v8's, but even our turboed i4's aren't close to that milage. Hell, even the normal Mazda3, that I've heard refered to as an 'econobox', only gets 22-32 or something?
 
its still an average economy rating... they'll offer up another couple of uber tiny cars, and still make at least a couple gas guzzlers.
 
Ah, I thought that was the minimum allowed rating.

"While the 30 percent increase would be an average for both cars and light trucks, the percentage increase in cars would be much greater, rising from the current 27.5 mpg standard to 42 mpg starting in 2016. The average for light trucks would rise from 24 mpg to 26.2 mpg."
 
It'll be easy for GM is the EPA allows them to rate the Chevy Volt as 100 mpg (when it runs on electric only). Of course, how many Volts will they sell at the supposed price of $40k...
 
blame cars like the prius and insight for the govt once again trying to control the US because they think that either they can change the whole earth or everyone else will follow.

it's like the new guy at work that does things faster and more efficiantly, and doesn't pace himself like the rest of the veterans. so when the boss sees him doing that much more stuff than the others, he ends up thinking that everyone should be able to work at the same level as the new guy. so the boss changes the output numbers to help compensate.
and now since one guy can do something that much better, it forces all the other guys to bust their humps to keep up

just another way the gov't is trying to control everything. where is a dennis leary freedom rant when you need one?
 
YOu all should know where this is going.

The reality is the average American is fine with 25mpg if they can get 300 hp. It doesn't matter if its a pickup, sportscar, or luxury sedan.
This is going to force down power levels.

Eventually people will slow there car buying as why trade in our 370Z for the new modle with 100 less horsepower?
Or if you cant get a sports car worth crap in performance for $35000 anymore why not just get the $20,000 sedan?

As this happens manufacturers will start to fail again and will beg for bailouts and government help as people refuse to buy these green Bore Machines.

Congress will likely allow them to make whatever they want and can sell again but that car will be taxed worse then cigarettes are now.

So all of this is just going to mean that 35 MPG is going to be the new "Gas Guzzler" level. Meaning people will buy even less.



Once again the government is completely missing the point and will likely screw up 100 times before they do something right.
If they want to do this correctly, the Government should be offering tax breaks and R&D dollars to those manufacturers that can build, market, and sell a fuel efficient car that people want. And for the love of CHRIST take the insane restrictions off of diesel and this 42 mpg thing in a hot car might be possible. I would take a 270z with a 400hp turbo diesel :)
 
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^^^^yea...i could definitley jump in the seat of a hot diesel. bimmer has a nice one in europe now, and of course you have audi raping everyone in the la mans
 
I hate seeing these things legislated. Big Brother at work. That's not to say I'm not excited to see where technology takes us- I am particularly interested in seeing if we can't get battery technology to a point where we can get a high performance pure electric car to give a range of 200-300 miles to make it practical.

I'd much rather see the Feds use incentives for automakers to increase efficiency than try to legislate it. But that's what they do.
 
Liberal Democrats with full power are letting their true socialist colors show. Whats sad is young people void of historical knowledge think socialism is better than capitalism. Obama's biggest fan base is young people whom he and his party are going to leave a mountain of debt for their inheritence.
 
Liberal Democrats with full power are letting their true socialist colors show. Whats sad is young people void of historical knowledge think socialism is better than capitalism. Obama's biggest fan base is young people whom he and his party are going to leave a mountain of debt for their inheritence.

This country NEEDS more regulation. I'm as sad to say it as anyone, but its true... millions of dollars were being spent that never existed... and now we're surprised when nobody can pay on the debt they've wracked up? The fact is the citizens have followed the poor example of the government and now we're all paying the price. I only hope we've all learned our lesson.
 
The free market will regulate it's self if companies/people are allowed to fail when they do stupid things. Stop bailing out the loosers.
 
Either electricity or hydrogen powered vehicles will move in anyway. There's only a couple of decades left where gas powered vehicles will be sold in significant numbers.
 

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