Fuel economy was regarded as a significant factor in their choice of a new car by a minimum of 1/3 of buyers in America. Due to the preoccupation today with smog, global warming and America’s dependence on international sources of oil, it’s actually shocking to learn that as long ago as 1992 a car that got 100 miles to the gallon was built by General Motors. There was also a car that looked a lot like the Geo Metro and weighed 1000 pounds, which boasted 75 miles per gallon gas mileage. Advancement of the vehicle, the engine which had 3 cylinders, was dropped because, in order to meet American safety specifications, it had to be reinforced which added 200 pounds to its weight.
It was certainly not the only protype developed by GM which ended up on the scrapheap. The GM Lean Machine of 1982, which could obtain 80 mpg, as well as the GM Ultralite which reached a fabulous 100 mpg, were two of these vehicles. GM seemed to be selling cars to the shopping public in 1992 that did 20 mpg, while Honda was getting 50 mpg with their Civic VX, but right then GM already covertly had cars doing 100 miles per gallon. If perhaps cars that had been able to get 100 miles per gallon had already been developed way back then, why is it that such cars are not being sold today?
It is just a weird phenomenon that some companies promote traditional vehicles in the US, but sell different, more efficient cars in other countries. Customers in Japan and Europe have for several years now had the opportunity to get cars that do 70 miles per gallon and more. A case in point of a car / truck never marketed inside the US and capable of 78 mpg, is the Lupo by Volkswagen. A car known as the Jazz elsewhere in the world was introduced to the States in 2007 as the Fit. There are economy-boosting options with the Jazz in Japan, such as a smaller engine and other ways to reduce consumption, but not so with the Fit in the US.
In America the manufacturers say they have to build big cars because that is what the American public wants. Building a small commuter type vehicle doesn’t make the manfacturer big money, unlike with a large SUV. A Tank on Wheels is the thing to have – that’s the message that the commercials beguile the American public with. Fuel-saving choices from the big companies are uncommon, so it’s pretty easy to deduce where their interests lay. Instead of being synonymous with SUVs, GM today could have been known as a leader in fuel-economic vehicles. Many other manufacturers have also developed fuel-efficient cars, but they’ve all done the same as GM by not offering them to Americans.
Even with climate change and the incredible pollution of the world environment, US car makers have yet to act in response positively and at least give Americans the option of a fuel-efficient car. The question comes up: how many Americans could have appreciated the option of obtaining a car with good gas mileage but weren’t ever offered it? Maybe the instant has come to restart building those cars that were developed only to be abandoned all those years ago. Details about escalade rims.