"David VanHorn" wrote in message news:25b178740711281111p7bce8c7dha341d01965dc521b@mail.gmail.com... > On Nov 28, 2007 1:31 PM, Martin wrote: >> I call shenanigans on your Passat TDI getting the same mileage as a >> Prius. Maybe on the highway. Not a chance in the city. Battery disposal >> is a non-issue in the Prius. They get recycled. > > My '87 ford escort wagon with every power gizmo they offered, and > throttle-body injection got a consistent 32mpg with air on, and a mix > of in-town and highway driving. > When going downhill, my add-on (zemco) engine computer showed fuel > consumption of 0 gal/hr if the grade was steep enough. > In the late 70's there were conventional engine cars with as much as > 50mpg. My dad's 1980 VW Rabbit Diesel got about 50 mpg on the highway and a bit less in the city. > Why is it that now anything over 30 seems to be a big deal? Because the mileage standards on cars have not increased in a long time and before gas was over $3 a gallon in the US, most US consumers cared little about mileage. Now that gas is higher, some people are starting to care more about mileage. Still, big gas guzzling vehicles are a status symbol in the US. Driving a Hummer H2 shows you have the money to not care about gas mileage. Jeff -- A clever person solves a problem. A wise person avoids it. -- Einstein -- http://www.piclist.com PIC/SX FAQ & list archive View/change your membership options at http://mailman.mit.edu/mailman/listinfo/piclist