If the government gets it way, cars like Porsche, Ferrari and even Subaru could be in a heap of trouble down the road. You see what the govenment want to do is to classify vehicles by their "footprint," or the amount of square feet they occupy. In doing so a Toyota Camry would be classified along with cars like the Ferrari 612 Scaglietti. That means both cars (mid-size by this new standard) would have to achieve 30 mpg, which wouldn't be that tough for the Camry, but much so difficult for the Ferrari...
A Porsche 911 would be considered a minicompact, and therefore be required to get 40 mpg; same with a Subaru WRX.
So, the future for gearheads like us looks pretty grim. Enjoy the performance cars you now have, as that could change for the worse down the road if this goes through.
Full story here.
So, the future for gearheads like us looks pretty grim. Enjoy the performance cars you now have, as that could change for the worse down the road if this goes through.
Full story here.
firstwagon says:
07:28 AM, 05/13/08
So.... the smaller the car is , the tougher mpg standards it has to meet.
Wouldn't that just encouage car makers to make more larger models that are allowed to get worse mileage?
carlisimo says:
07:49 AM, 05/13/08
Have they learned nothing from CAFE??
blueguydotcom says:
08:05 AM, 05/13/08
Chicken little...here comes the sky!
slickersdrip says:
10:23 AM, 05/13/08
So now we can have 1970's size boats with 800 hp and 10 mpg. Terrific. I'll trade in my 27.5 mpg SRT-4 for one.
bbechtel16 says:
10:46 AM, 05/13/08
Ditto to everyone's comments. This is the stupidest idea ever. Vehicular obesity FTW!
210delray says:
10:54 AM, 05/13/08
Don't fret. It ain't gonna play out this way.
jederino says:
01:35 PM, 05/13/08
Because it's so stupid, I sorta doubt the regulation will happen this way, either. However, it does illustrate the need for regulations to be limited, fair, and reasonable - because the unintended consequences could be worse than the original problem.
flicmod says:
03:47 PM, 05/13/08
Deregulate the auto-industry!!! Get the government out of the market!
Also, vote for Ron Paul.
desmolicious says:
04:40 PM, 05/13/08
Wassa problema here? I canna harldy wait for my-a 30mpg Scaglietti!
Ein 911 mit 40mpg? Wunderbar!
jederino says:
06:15 PM, 05/13/08
Desmo, that's hilarious! If we regulate it, it will come...
blueguydotcom says:
07:50 PM, 05/14/08
It'll come or perish. The 911 won't go away. Porsche bought into VWAG so they can use credits and the like to offset their horrid corporate mileage. They may pay fines but those will get passed to the owners just like the current fines on the M class cars new BMW owners pay.
ateixeira says:
11:45 AM, 05/15/08
I guess the Miata would probably have to get 60! LOL
I'll take one in BRG.
estreka says:
12:35 PM, 05/17/08
Well this solves that Smart car problem we've been discussing.