tvashtarkatena

Diesel, bio or not, produces significantly worse global warming emissions than gasoline (fuel efficiency taken into account, etc) due to particulates: (25 to 400 times more than for gasoline). The EPA consistently rates higher mileage gasoline vehicles as being more environmentally friendly than diesels. I think 40 mpg AVERAGE is pretty damn good for any conventional car, considering that's about what my motorcycle gets. Daimler could probably easily engineer a higher mpg gas car, but HP/performance might quickly fall below acceptable levels for the American consumer to snag those last few MPGs. Considering the success of the vehicle in Europe and Canada so far, it seems that they did a pretty good job of balancing competing design criteria.

I checked into this last time I looked for a car about 2 years ago. From memory: the only non hybrid cars sold in America that ever got 40 mpg or better highway were the Honda CRXs and Geo Metros of the early 90s. It's pretty common for folks to think they get close to that with their smaller cars, but they just don't. MPG across the board went down after that. One data point: A friend has a Prius. She did a road trip to Utah with 2 people and camping stuff. 50 mpg average on the nose.

I kind of doubt that. We have a 92 Miata, in excellent condition, and its always got 23 mpg average consistently; about what it's rated for. 92 Miata mpg (EPA site)

Nah. The Smart Car averages 40 mpg, rather than 30 for the Corolla, a substantial difference. The Corolla also sells for about $3K more; another substantial difference. The Corolla is also longer, and therefore does nothing to mitigate congestion or parking space shortages. Finally, at 2400 lbs, the Corolla requires considerably more resources and energy to produce than the 1600 lb Smart Car. The Smart Car is designed for 1 or 2 people who don't want to buy more car than they need, which is pretty much the primary problem in America right now. Most car trips in this country have one person and no cargo on board. Personally, I could get by with a Smart Car for about 80% of my car trips, including those to the mountains. Cargo capacity is 12 cubic feet; more than enough for 2 full packs.

Nah. The 2008 Corolla manual gets 28/37 = low 30s average: Toyota.com The 1998 Tercel gets 29 average: EPA mpg site

Since the bowhead whale population seems to be stable and well managed, it seems fair to a) continue to let the Makah to hunt per the treaty while b) requiring them to hunt in a skilled and humane manner. If the bowhead population collapses, however, should the Makah still be allowed to hunt them? Plains indians used to hunt on foot by driving buffalo herds off of cliffs and then picking a few off the top of the pile. Would we allow this type of tribal hunting today even if it were guaranteed by a treaty?

My guess is that if the gas version of the Smart is a hit in the USA, the turbo diesel will quickly follow. Each model's design has to be modified to meet US standards, so there will probably be a lag time.

Don't know about that. The casino biz is booming. The man on the far right looks like Geronimo. It's amazing how long he held out against the best we had at the time. After years of pursuit, the Army never did capture him; he finally surrendered.

The Kawi Ninja 250 seems like a lot more bike and versatility for the $ and mpg than the Honda. You've got to wear the required Quicksilver shorts, Metallica T shirt, and bassetball shoes to be seen on one, though. Until gas hits $10 a gallon or someone just flat out gives me one of these things, it's not worth me buying even a well used 250 to supplement my 800 for around town use. A bicycle's the way to go for the short sprints, anyway.

If I understand it right, it seems that the spirograph theory is a unique solution for the relationships between the fundamental constants of the standard model, with gravity included, whereas string theory suffers from a lack of uniqueness in solutions, as well as backround dependence. Also, this one's prettier lookin'.

They're available in 2008, so all will (maybe) be revealed. They're a Daimler product, so I wonder if Chrysler dealerships will service them. The MSRPs are listed on the website. You can 'reserve' one now. Given the combo of sticker price and economy and fun factor, and that half of Seattle households consist of only one person, I predict they'll be very popular. Another form of high mpg transport I'd like to see make a big comeback is the small displacement motorcycle. You don't see many 250 cc and under bikes these days. The Honda Rebel and Kawasaki Ninja 250s will get 70 mpg for a sticker price under $3K. Cheaper, safer, and more useful (freeway capable) than a scooter while delivering same fuel economy. Even better for traffic congestion, especially because motorbikes can use HOV lanes. The new models even have pollution controls.

Dude: no speedos.

Yes, but does it go to 11?

Other advantages: With a 1600 lb curb weight, less embodied energy is required to manufacture them. Components are made to be recycled. They're short: 2 Smart cars can fit into one parking, and smart cars take up only half the room of an average vehicle on the highway, which eases traffic congestion. And they're simple, which SHOULD mean less maintenance. And...they are $11,000 cheaper than a Prius, which means fewer commutes required to save the money to purchase one.

They're really safe. They do very well in crash tests, and have four airbags (2 more for side collisions). They also do not roll very easily. All in all, they are very likely safer than SUVs, which have some of the worst injury statistics of any type of vehicle due to their tendency to roll easily. The way to do something about the SUV ratio in this country is to do something about the SUV ratio in this country. If not you, who? If not now, when? Or something like that.

and they're pretty cheap: Smartcar USA Back to the future: From left to right: The Messerschmidt Kabinenroller and BMW Isseta from the early '50s alongside today's Daimler AG SmartCar

On a related front, I spotted a guy sporting this T shirt today in Ballard:

Ownership of LAND. Not the house on the land. Not your condo. The plot itself. The dirt.

Watch it, Kevbone. This comes from the master of originality.

Hey Prole, who are you to go up against Shitfeather's huge body of photojournalistic work? Or his gold standard: FOX News? Why, just one of his riveting TRs alone could crush this poor kid's career hopes forever. It's OK, Dannible. You didn't measure up to Shitfeather's standards, but with enough therapy, you might eventually recover. And don't bother defending yourself; you're basically confronting a skidmark. Just grab a clean pair of undies and carry on.

Ah, Triple Couloirs. One of the best climbs you'll never do.

I'm sorry, Sexy, could repeat that? pUWkySpoEC8

Hey, thanks again for some eyewitness reporting, Dannible. There are a few pricks around here who aren't comfortable with confronting anything first hand, but then again, they're not comfortable with much of anything. Our attitude around here is pretty much "fuck 'em". Cheers to your for taking a personal risk, buddy. Or buddette. Or whatever.

How unfair....I deserve at least honorable mention for the general fat f*ck theme of late. All FW did was zero in on certain protrusions. No. You're just another trained parrot. Sorry. No originality points for you. Sexy, you are WAY funnier when drunk. But then again, we all are, right?

Jesus. A Fairweather joke recycled through KKK now recycled through you. Considering who your muses are... ...ouch.