By Bri Medina
SUVs were once owned by only a few Americans but now they account for 50% of all car sales today. You’ve all noticed the steep rise in prices of fuel but you probably didn’t know that SUVs are a huge cause of that. A sports utility vehicle isn’t even classified as a passenger vehicle; it is a truck. If you saw the gas mileage on these trucks, you would understand why they are creating a huge impact in our market. But as a result of this, many automakers are taking the job seriously and producing SUVs that are as efficient in gas mileage as luxury cars. They are making hybrid cars.
The first successful commercial hybrid car was the Ford Escape Hybrid. Ford Motors had created a masterpiece and revolutionized vehicle technology. The Escape had the best mileage in the world in the category of SUVs. The vehicle gives up to 31 mpg. Other companies like Mercury, Lexus, and Toyota started to come out with their own hybrid versions of their SUVs.
Even though they did try to improve several things about their trucks, such as the mileage and luxury of it, they are still not proving to be the most economically safe car to buy. You would think that consumers would want to buy smaller cars and save money. But the exact opposite is happening. The market for trucks and SUVs is thriving. They are being produced and sold like never before, even with the recession that we are in. People don’t seem to be bothered that they will be paying more money to put gas in their car and they also don’t mind not getting as many miles as they possibly could. The consumer is more concerned about the luxury of the car. They like the size that the vehicle provides and they are willing to sacrifice MPG.
People keep complaining that gas is way too much money right now but they aren’t doing anything about it. If they really tried they could do a variety of ways to improve their gas mileage. First of all, they could drive more efficiently; speeding, accelerating rapidly, and braking wastes gas. Remove excess weight; an extra 100 pounds on your vehicle could reduce your MPG by 2%. Avoid excessive idling; keeping your AC on and keeping your car on when it is parked can use up to half of a gallon per every hour. Use cruise control; it helps you maintain a constant speed and therefore wasted less gas. You could also observe the speed limit. Gas mileage usually decreases rapidly above 50 mph. Assume that each 5 mph that you drive over 50 mph is like paying an additional $0.25 per gallon for gas.
There are plenty of ways to save gas even if you do own a big vehicle like a truck or an SUV. You just have to be willing to be more aware of the things you could do to help your car be more fuel efficient.
Sources
CarMart USA. "Active Question." Are SUV sales down due to the bad economy and high fuel costs?. Reply Inc., n.d. Web. 15 Nov. 2013.
Wanjiru, Muna Wa. "The Impact of Suv Gas Mileage in the Market Today." The Impact of Suv Gas Mileage in the Market Today. StreetDirectory, n.d. Web. 15 Nov. 2013.
Hybrids are at a disadvantage currently mostly because they aren't cool. They are also a step behind because oil companies don't want gas efficient cars to succeed. If cars ran at 50 mpg oil companies would make significantly less money. Until the public starts to change there mindset towards gas guzzlers they will continue to sell and destroy the environment.
ReplyDeleteI happen to disagree with this statement. I think hybrid cars, in the governments eyes, are the right choice, and they are pushing this choice on the public. It is always a nice choice, but each person has a different opinion, and I know many people, including myself, would choose a truck over a smart car. However, I think gas prices have a large effect on cars people buy. Gas is expensive and hopefully, trucks and SUV's will gain in their gas mileage so we can all choose our own vehicles.
DeleteHybrids are all over the place. Tune in to any endurance race and electric cars are everywhere, Toyota, Porsche, Mercedes, and most notably, Nissan. Manufacturers are experimenting with a myriad of electric motors and batteries. Some of the most performance orientated sports cars are hybrids. Mercedes even makes an all electric version of its SLS AMG Black Series, its performance is not compromised, the only thing you don't get is the roar of the combustion engine. In the next few months, three of the most anticipated cars in history will be released. Acura is bringing back the NSX, Porsche with its 918, and McLaren with the P1. And guess what, they all utilize a hybrid system. Even the Formula 1 cars use a hybrid system. They call it KERS (Kenetic Energy Regeneration System).
ReplyDeleteEver more strict EPA restrictions further limit the ability to create high performance gas guzzling vehicles. Though advances in technology such as cylinder deactivation and diesel engines in sedans allow vehicles that would usually be gas guzzlers get decent gas mileage. Aerodynamics and lighter, stronger materials further increase efficiency.
But until we find a reliable and practical alternative energy source, hybrids are here to stay. Even if they are not environmentally sound, they save gas for the rest of us.
It's funny how people constantly complain about how much money they have to pay for gas, yet they do nothing to help themselves, and better yet, buy cars in which they will have to spend more money on gas to fill up. Personally, I would want to spend as little as possible on gas, even if that meant my car had to be smaller and maybe less luxurious than the bigger SUV's and you would think more people also had this mindset. And with the constant rush that everyone is in nowadays, speeding is considered normal. Like you pointed out, if people sacrificed a little time and didn't speed they could save a lot of money on gas.
ReplyDeleteBri this was a great piece and one I can relate to as well. I'd also like to add in that I disagree with Aidan, some of the hybrid Suv's are very cool, if you've ever seen one. In addition to that it doesn't come to much of a surprise that SUV's are in a high demand, my aunt recently purchased one. Another reason why people probably don't mind paying more for gas with trucks or SUVS's is because they're safe, sure you pay more for gas but if you get in an accident you're better protected. Whereas in a car you may not always be as safe, and money can't replace a life, so paying the extra money for gas, due to safety precaution is something more and more people are also taking into consideration when it comes to purchasing vehicles. But in regards to this piece I completely agree with it, there are many alternatives to saving gas and we the people should utilize these tricks more.
ReplyDeleteMany people do want to buy a bigger vehicle for more space and whatever else they may want but they aren't really phased by the price of gas because they don't realize that it will cost them more money each time. Hybrids are getting bigger but still aren't entirely trusted yet. They do have their advantages but people still think going with a normal vehicle would be the safer route.
ReplyDeletePeople are buying SUV's because they are practical. When you need to fit a family of five with two of the kids soccer stuff, even a full size sedan would not cut it. Therefore they have few choices, a minivan, a real van, or an SUV. Vans are a bit overkill, and minivans are just plain uncool. SUV's can be cool and have almost as much space as a minivan. I even believe that the typical soccer mom has an SUV now, instead of a minivan. Personally I would rather own an SUV than a minvan, if I needed the space.
ReplyDeleteI think that hybrids are an excellent invention. While the price of gas continues to fluctuate, these cars save on gas, while giving you the luxury of an suv. Gas and oil aren't going to be around forever, and eventually they will become scarce. Unless we find new ways to get more oil out of the ground, the supply of gas and oil will go down, and with the population of the world continuing to increase, the demand will go up increasing the price. Therefore, hybrids are an excellent alternative and we defiantly are heading in the right direction with these vehicles.
ReplyDeleteHaving an SUV has many advantages and disadvantages, by buying a larger vehicle if you have bigger family it will benefit you most because you will be granted lots of space and traveling will become a lot easier and more safe. A disadvantage that you will occur is the obscene amount you would be spending on gas. As much as we complain about spending so much money on gas we truly don’t know enough about it. Just by slowing down we could save a little bit of gas and even maybe not buying the most luxurious cost just to save us money in the long run, SUV’s may be the most nice looking but are they the most nice to our bank accounts.
ReplyDeletepeople that have big trucks they aren't phased by gas prices of today.in today's world hybrids play a big part in vehicles but they aren't fully reliable yet. the american people love the idea of the hybrid car but still it seems as if we still have normal vehicles.
ReplyDeleteIt's been interesting to see products to become more green over the years and it's also true that it is beneficial to consumers who buy these products. Because not only are they receiving a more efficient and longer lasting unit but the government may even pay the consumer for purchasing the item as part of American efforts to become more eco-friendly. Even if the government doesn't pay for consumers to purchase hybrid cars, in the end the purchase will help you save money on gas and go farther with what you have already paid for. Hopefully when gas prices were substantially lower than they could be thereafter.
ReplyDeleteI think it’s great that companies are trying to create more efficient cars. Cars are already very harmful to the environment, and SUVs and trucks just add to that issue. They waste so much gas and pollute the environment while doing it. I would not mind paying more money for a hybrid car like these because they improve gas mileage which in turn helps the environment, and you eventually end up paying less for gas which should make up the extra costs of the car.
ReplyDeleteI don't think there will ever be a replacement for trucks and Suv's, at least not soon anyhow. If you have a practical use for a vehicle that has bad gas mileage then go ahead and buy one. I do think that there are to many people now a days that go out and buy a big truck or SUV and don't even use them for the right purpose. If people were practical with there buying there wouldn't be as much of a worry on poor MPG vehicles.
ReplyDeleteSUV's do use a lot of gas, but I didn't realize this made an increase in the prices of gas. There is no way people are ever going to let go of this trend, though. Many like the look of SUV's and that probably won't change. I think things will just keep increasing either way because our fuel supply will get lower either way. And the rarer something is, the more money! But I really do believe it is a very good thing they are trying to make these cars more efficient because people are always going to have SUV's.
ReplyDeleteI think this is a very relevant topic to bring up, because not only are SUV’s gas guzzlers, but they also affect the economy by being such. What we purchase as people of America, affects our entire nation. We must be wary of both producing and purchasing products that will in the end hurt us. My car is a VW Jetta and takes diesel and it gets about 45 mpg. I bring this up because my dad has reminded me several times how good and important the car is. With this car we have the opportunity for using less gas and in doing so releasing less toxins into the air and also depleting our oil resources less fast. You make a good point Bri.
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