Notice the headlight, safety first!
If you are watching Auto related politics closely, you may have noticed that Americans have lost another Freedom, and that is our right to own one of the real super cars of the century, the Lotus Elise, a high mileage supercar! A car company can only afford to spend so much in order to meet forever changing standards and slightly different world standards, all of which cause manufacturers to create countless tons of carbon emissions to produce cars having parts that might vary as much as 20% from one market to the next. And of course those who set the standards in those different markets suggest their standards are the best.
We can all watch the Gang Greenies yell and scream about AGW, and how we must address the problem, and yet, where there are obvious places to make a huge difference, the opportunities are ignored.
A Wiki page here shows some of the entities that rule over the Auto Industry, but don’t forget the EPA, the DOE, and California’s wacky CARB. Which one of these entities doesn’t have empire building as their Primary Goal? Which entity would sacrifice ANY of their influence in order to build a safer, more efficient car that would produce lower emissions? The answer is likely none of them!
Automobile Manufacturing is as much about politics as anything else, the talk of gray market cars that are non-conforming and not meeting safety standards, but that same car is considered superior just across the border?
How many months would it take to save more carbon emissions than all of the solar PV investments in Spain, if we could just allow the public to buy a car that meets an International standard? Consider all the energy used to make all those different parts, all the shipping, and hauling tons of supplies place to place.. all for what?
Consider the Japanese ‘K’ cars. Here’s where I see ‘LOGIC’ applied. The K class of car there has some rather strict design rules, they can only be so wide, and their engines are limited to 660cc in size. This class of Auto has a yellow license plate, and enjoys some privileges, and most automotive engineers would agree, this auto provides better safety protection than a motorcycle, and it is the alternative to a motorcycle for many in Japan who don’t have the income to afford a less efficient vehicle, OR just don’t want to spend their money on a more elegant, higher emissions, less efficient form of transportation. Yes, as you can imagine, K cars get great mileage, and they are considered by many, the ultimate inner city cars that have been refined over many years to perform with great efficiency.
If we compare the Safety standards in the USA, the thought of offering an alternative to the motorcycle or scooter riders is lacking. Those who would like to spend their money on something other than fuel or the more fancy ride have few or no choices depending on your view. But here in the USA, if you remove a wheel from a car, it becomes a class of vehicle that need not meet Auto Safety standards at all. Yes, those three wheelers are exempt from safety standards last I looked.
But I do think it’s interesting that our Government entities find the little K cars so appealing, and so right for their operations that they import them, and even use them on public roads, both state and country roads! Yes, the K cars appear to be plenty safe enough for them and their employees, but not for you 🙂 It reminds me of the new healthcare, it’s going to be plenty good enough for you, but not good enough for them, but of course the Gang Greenies follow the rhetoric, and pay no attention to the deeds of those who tell us what we can own, and what we can’t.
At the end of the day you need watch what they do, pay no attention to what they say.. it’s all about Empire building, money, power an influence. Saving tons of carbon? That’s really the last thing on their minds.
GB
Can you imagine the Ralph Nader types reaction to importing an affordable car with reduced safety standards? Every charge of racism for would be thrown around. They’d say this was a deliberate attempt at genocide. We’d see progressives all butt hurt about safe cars as a privilege only for the white. People whose main politics are built around envy would have an awesome time.
Bill, since anything can be tied to health, the government will soon be the ultimate authority as per auto design..
You might need get your ticket punched by your Doctor’s aid to drive at all 🙂 Walking is good for your health..
Got this emailed to me the other day and it is a kick in the guts for the greenie gang and puts in perspective about the biggest con in history.
This is something to think about.
Plimer is an Australian geologist, professor emeritus of earth sciences at the University of Melbourne, professor of mining geology at the University of Adelaide, and the director of multiple mineral exploration and mining companies. He has published 130 scientific papers, six books and edited the Encyclopedia of Geology.
Born 12 February 1946 (age 67)
Residence Australia
Nationality Australian
Fields Earth Science,Geology, Mining Engineering
Institutions University of New England,University of Newcastle,University of Melbourne,University of Adelaide
Alma mater
University of New South Wales,Macquarie University
Thesis
The pipe deposits of tungsten-molybdenum-bismuth in eastern Australia (1976)
Notable awards Eureka Prize (1995, 2002),Centenary Medal (2003), Clarke Medal (2004)
Where Does the Carbon Dioxide Really Come From?
Professor Ian Plimer could not have said it better!
If you’ve read his book you will agree, this is a good summary.
PLIMER: “Okay, here’s the bombshell. The volcanic eruption in Iceland . Since its first spewing of volcanic ash has, in just FOUR DAYS, NEGATED EVERY SINGLE EFFORT you have made in the past five years to control CO2 emissions on our planet – all of you.
Of course, you know about this evil carbon dioxide that we are trying to suppress – it’s that vital chemical compound that every plant requires to live and grow and to synthesize into oxygen for us humans and all animal life. I know….it’s very disheartening to realize that all of the carbon emission savings you have accomplished while suffering the inconvenience and expense of driving Prius hybrids, buying fabric grocery bags, sitting up till midnight to finish your kids “The Green Revolution” science project, throwing out all of your non-green cleaning supplies, using only two squares of toilet paper, putting a brick in your toilet tank reservoir, selling your SUV and speedboat, vacationing at home instead of abroad, nearly getting hit every day on your bicycle, replacing all of your 50 cent light bulbs with $10.00 light bulbs…..well, all of those things you have done have all gone down the tubes in just four days.
The volcanic ash emitted into the Earth’s atmosphere in just four days – yes, FOUR DAYS – by that volcano in Iceland has totally erased every single effort you have made to reduce the evil beast, carbon. And there are around 200 active volcanoes on the planet spewing out this crud at any one time – EVERY DAY.
I don’t really want to rain on your parade too much, but I should mention that when the volcano Mt Pinatubo erupted in the Philippines in 1991, it spewed out more greenhouse gases into the atmosphere than the entire human race had emitted in all its years on earth.
Yes, folks, Mt Pinatubo was active for over One year – think about it.
Of course, I shouldn’t spoil this ‘touchy-feely tree-hugging’ moment and mention the effect of solar and cosmic activity and the well-recognized 800-year global heating and cooling cycle, which keeps happening despite our completely insignificant efforts to affect climate change.
And I do wish I had a silver lining to this volcanic ash cloud, but the fact of the matter is that the bush fire season across the western USA and Australia this year alone will negate your efforts to reduce carbon in our world for the next two to three years. And it happens every year.
Just remember that your government just tried to impose a whopping carbon tax on you, on the basis of the bogus ‘human-caused’ climate-change scenario.
Hey, isn’t it interesting how they don’t mention ‘Global Warming’
Anymore, but just ‘Climate Change’ – you know why?
It’s because the planet has COOLED by 0.7 degrees in the past century and these global warming bull artists got caught with their pants down.
And, just keep in mind that you might yet have an Emissions Trading Scheme – that whopping new tax – imposed on you that will achieve absolutely nothing except make you poorer.
It won’t stop any volcanoes from erupting, that’s for sure.
But, hey, relax……give the world a hug and have a nice day!”
Bryan,
AUS and USA are so much alike, we have people here who want their Nannies at any cost.. same as AUS…. and then there’s people like you and I… we take offense when Nanny pisses on our backs and tells us it’s raining.
Great add to the conversation.. follow the Money, Power, and Influence..
One minor point. Trivial, really. I doubt kids work on green revolution projects. Green revolution was what they called it when science and engineering were applied to farming and it multiplied the worlds food output so that food scarcity became unknown in developed countries and there was such surplus that it was sent as charity to undeveloped. This is considered a bad thing by the progressive left of today. We are supposed to be ashamed of the plow, agrichemicals and most of all gmo. The correct way to get food is now is to grow it in our pathetic gardens, like mine, or ride to the food coop and get it from a vegan earth mother.
smiling here..
Sorry, but you’ve lost me there. I have yet to see the value of agrichemicals or GMO. Science can be just as false a religion as Greenism.
Krasnoborski,
I always imagine what a poor King I’d make.. People in my Court who give testament that agrichemicals are of no value? Ok, if you are caught consuming so much as a single pea grown with an agrichemical, and have not yet recanted, off with your head!
Ahh yes …the old walk the walk ploy. I admit, I still eat standard American commercial food, although I try to avoid it. Not dead yet. Would like to stay that way a little longer. Just seems like it would be easier if the food didn’t have a heapin’ helpin’ of Roundup in it. Unfortunately, I have little time and no land to grow my own. My bad.
You likely would not be eating today were it not for the green revolution. America’s added over 100 million people since I was a kid not that long ago. The human population on earth has doubled since I was born in 1967. Do you think using hundred-year-old agriculture technics farmers could’ve doubled their food using pre-green revolution tech? Do you think the world could’ve doubled it’s cropland and will double it again and again in the coming years? What, are we going to fill in the oceans?
Bill,
We can do so much, but can the application of science fix the free lunch crowd? We’ve given them the vote, and in their minds.. all things are simple.
The application of their simple ideas delivered by the ballot box will more than likely arrest the world’s population growth, and after that happens, they’ll brag they fixed it all. The first to die will be children in India where the cost of food will spike, and some might say.. they are better off dead than well fed with the help of science!
My Senator Patty Murray is a perfect example of a simple woman who has been carried to a lofty position. Not on the on backs of voters, but via their minds…those who see all things simple.
I do think the air powered car is a prime example, air is free, and thus the car must be free to drive. If it were on the Ballot, the enlightened ones might ban all cars… all save those that are ‘air powered’. Beth Buck Naked, she will be a Senator soon!
hey George, i like this Bryan fellow! 🙂
The problem with the green goobers and their marching bands is their ideas and beliefs are all superficial and in the big picture, invariably do more harm than good.
I’m sure if Gubbermints the world over banned every type of car from the roads except hybrids they would be dancing in the streets.
The will tell you about better mileage and lower emissions out the tail pipe.
They won’t mention however the hugely increased amounts of energy and resources expended in building those vehicles. They won’t tell you about how the deadly toxins in their batteries that have to be replaced every 5 years or less are shipped all round the world to be manufactured or how they can’t be recycled or that the only way of disposing of them so they don’t kill everything in a 10 mile radius is to seal them up and bury them in the single landfill in the world that will take them.
They don’t tell you these vehicles have less recyclable material than conventional vehicles or that overall, their total energy consumption from cradle to the grave and the emissions that they cause is far worse than ordinary vehicles.
And that’s just one thing. They also won’t tell you the “Green ” household products they champion are often made from more deadly chemicals than conventional ones, that there is more emissions and waste created in their production and that most of the time their green packaging is also worse for the environment in the full and undisclosed picture.
As long as the end product is cleaner or greener, just forget about the huge pile of crap that producing them causes. I’m sure if you put nuclear waste in a spray can and called it fly spray that contained no chemical additives and was a re-use of a waste product, they would be happy as pigs in the proverbial and say what a great thing it was!
They can never be satisfied that while the “traditional” way of doing things may not be perfect, it almost always is in the big picture with the available technology the best.
Yep, your pry arse may save a few gallons of Juice but as far as what is really the least environmentally damaging in the real world, sorry but you are still a hell of a lot better off with that efficient VW diesel that gets as good mileage as the pry arse anyway.
Maybe in 20 years things may be different but right this minute, the ld technologies that have evolved over the last 100 years are still the least damaging to the big blue ball.
For the green goobers, It’s always about the end product and the snippets of truth that are convenient to the cause rather than the big picture and the full facts of the matter.
I want there to be an international Green lobby supporter register so all these morons who tout their green crap and inconvenience and cost the world so much for nothing can be held accountable when in the future, this whole green crap thing is exposed for the scam it is and they can pay for the trouble and damage their stupidity has caused.
Of course when the scam is exposed, you won’t be able to find a single person that will admit to supporting it.
Typical.
David, when it’s well understood how stupid much of their thinking is, they’ll claim they never thought it. The same class of scammers and extortionists that attempted to scare us with an Ice Age some time back, well they’re still here among us, it would be a good move to brand them.
Meanwhile, incredible cars like the high mileage Lotus Elise, an exercise in efficiency, and so much innovation in getting more done for the energy invested. The Idiots that rule over us here, swept it off the table, and we allow them to do such insane things..
It is truly insane that the United States, Canada, the EU and Japan can not harmonize their vehicle safety and emissions regulations. American taxpayers and auto owners pay thousands of dollars too much on every vehicle, regardless of whether they drive a domestic or imported vehicle, and the North American auto industry loses many export sales because of this nonsensical situation.
James,
You make a very accurate and concise comment. Beyond the staggering cost, You’d think the Greenies would be on board knowing of the reduction in emissions via standardized parts and less shipping.
https://www.motortrend.com/reviews/2025-toyota-imv-0-pickup-truck-first-drive-review-japan-mobility-show/
I doubt this will achieve any MPG records but it does demonstrate what we are denied by progressive government.