What would it take to make small cars desirable?

[bowtieguy]

Originally Posted by Snax

I disagree with that last part though, as I believe higher gas prices punish everybody, but is weighted toward the lower and middle class - which are for the most part, the majority of owners of large gas guzzling vehicles.

Higher fuel prices force people to make more responsible choices, and it is the masses that need to be impacted, not the top wage/trust fund earners. (They will drive whatever they want regardless.)

key words: MIDDLE CLASS

good point tho.

should have said,"responsible, low income earners." it goes back to education tho. if gas prices go far up, MANY will keep their gas guzzlers, and charge more(credit cards) to get by. this would continue the cycle and punish families like mine. NO WAY!

taxes...how much is enough? as before, aunt hillary, i mean uncle sam, needs to budget/conserve, not raise taxes!(at least not for the responsible)

[1993CivicVX]

Originally Posted by 1993CivicVX

Aren't small cars really peppy these days? I can't see how a car so small like the Yaris can only get 32mpg. It must be fast?

Yaris does 0-60 in 10.8 seconds (106hp from a 1.5 liter)
My old VX with 180,000 miles, crap tires and a terrible start does 0-60 in 12.6 seconds (92hp 1.5liter)

The Yaris gets an EPA of 32mpg.
Mine gets an EPA of 45mpg.

Say what? We're talking 14 years difference here. I thought for sure the Yaris was going to explain away its dismal numbers with a powerful engine.

And the Camry Hybrid gets 34mpg? It don't make sense.

[VetteOwner]

lol my ol 27 year old 1.6 L chevette got 40mpg last tank, yet only has 64 hp...pish screw new crap, my fully carbed, mechanical/vacum advace distributor puts them to shame...

[Mike T]

Yeah, offering a new old stock Chevette to US car buyers would get everyone into small cars again, LOL

[omgwtfbyobbq]

Originally Posted by 1993CivicVX

Say what? We're talking 14 years difference here. I thought for sure the Yaris was going to explain away its dismal numbers with a powerful engine.

And the Camry Hybrid gets 34mpg? It don't make sense.

It's a bigger car that has to comply with newer emissions standards while dealing w/ consumers who want more than w/ the VX, which was optimized for mileage. An even comparison would be say, an auto civic from that gen compared to an auto Yaris.

[brucepick]

Originally Posted by beatr911

What would it take to make small cars desirable for the US public?...

I think small, fun to drive cars in almost every price range is the key. ...

I gotta hand it to beatr911. I think that's one really good answer. We've had a lot of fun adding all kinds of other ideas to the discussion but small, fun to drive cars in all price ranges would help a lot.

The Europeans do it. We don't see their truly small and low-cost ones on this side of the pond but we do see plenty of their smallish higher priced cars.

Again, it goes back to the USA buyer's expectation of what makes a car fun. If you think it has to weigh a couple tons and sound like a fleet of Harleys, well, you're going to need a major mind set change. And I think it's happening slowly.

Walking in our very (lower?) middle class neighborhood yesterday I noticed a higher percentage of small cars than in the past. Mostly cars under 6 or so years old, too. At least here, people seem to be swapping out the older stuff for newer smaller ones. And definitely a higher percentage of imports than I saw here in the past.

[Snax]

One thing that is likely to change the mindset of the US population quickly would be a shortage - and if the Bush administration gets it's way, we just might have one very soon! (I.e., an attack on Iran might provoke a shutdown of the Straight of Hormuz.)

[northboundtrain]

Originally Posted by omgwtfbyobbq

It's a bigger car that has to comply with newer emissions standards . . .

Does anyone know roughly the percentage drop in FE due to all the current emissions stuff? This would give us a better comparison with older cars like the VX and Metro.

[rvanengen]

Call your congress critters...get them to bump up the CAFE standards, and even give LARGE incentives to manufacturers to produce small efficient cars...let motivated self interest get to work...more $$ for more mpg.

[VetteOwner]

Originally Posted by Mike T

Yeah, offering a new old stock Chevette to US car buyers would get everyone into small cars again, LOL

hehe id buy one! i dunno why the car fascinates me, from the outside it looks tiny, but form the inside its amazingly roomy/comfy! and oddly versitle! ive fit a normal tube 25"TV in the hatch part with the hatch closed and the backseat was still up! that and it can fit a few 2X4's inside with a clsoed hatch. if it were only abput 4" wider i could fit a sheet of plywood in the hatch..(wouldnt close but still fun to think about) ive looked at other newer hatch backs and thier "trunk" area is tiny(or non existant) or the backseats are near implossble for me to sit comfy in. that and finding parking spaces is great! since theyve had to increase parking space sizes for huge suv's and trucks i can park my car and have 2feet or more on both sides before im near the lines.

i dunno personally it would be a tough car for me to replace.(heck id try to find another, can easily snag them for way under $1K )


but back to the topic, i knw one of my friends moms who thinks small cars are death traps (its why she has a chevy trailblazer). maybe if they showed crash testing or made it widely available(like off manufacturers websites) and how well the dummies held up, it might deter some of that thinking. maybe offer some large incentives(kind alike ford did with the focus, no charge automatic tranny) so they seem more appealing or make on ewith a "rich " interior, you know leather seats, wood grain dash trim, all that other useless power crap thats offered on bigger trucks/cars.