A reasonably techno-logical article on the subject (the link here)
Just to repost the history, there have been notable 100mpg prototypes built. I used to work where we regularly built some. But for the consumer, unless the car costs the same or less than a 50mpg equivalent, why bother? At times I've calculated each 1mpg increase as valued at $400 in purchased price. This does depend in the cost of money via a loan. 'Your mileage may vary.'
When I compare a Prius (for single-or-two person commuting) at 54mpg and $22,000 cost to a Elio, the elio values at $34,000 in Prius level equivalency. So IMHO, spending $6,800 returns a investment value windfall of $27,200. And that's probably understated when looking at the cost of maintenance. Note, you have to actually drive it to realize that value.
Extracted from the article...
Building What People Buy
Clearly, a car that gets 100 mpg every time you drive can be designed and built. But, absent government regulation or far higher fuel prices driving consumer demand, will any car company actually do it?
"There's no business case for it," says GM's Juechter. "How many people would spend $200,000 on a car that would ultimately save them a few thousand dollars on fuel over the life of the car?" That's the worst-case scenario in terms of price estimates, but there's little doubt that a 100-mpg car would cost thousands more than today's bigger, more powerful vehicles.
"Small, clean diesel engines run about $3000 and you can add another $4000 for the hybrid," Cole says. "So you're looking at a $6000, $8000 or even $9000 premium for just the car's powertrain. And we haven't even talked about the cost of the materials."
Few drivers would ever make up the cost premium at the pump. However, working out the requirements of a 100-mpg car makes it clear just how feasible it would be to build, say, a 75-mpg car—for far less money. Besides, saving money isn't the only reason people choose a car. It became fashionable to drive SUVs because they projected an image of power and an active lifestyle. It's possible to imagine drivers being drawn to the environmental and national security benefits of efficiency—and to the cutting-edge engineering, as well.
So perhaps people have been asking the wrong question all along. It's not, "Why can't they build a 100-mpg car?" but rather, "Do we really want one?"
Just to repost the history, there have been notable 100mpg prototypes built. I used to work where we regularly built some. But for the consumer, unless the car costs the same or less than a 50mpg equivalent, why bother? At times I've calculated each 1mpg increase as valued at $400 in purchased price. This does depend in the cost of money via a loan. 'Your mileage may vary.'
When I compare a Prius (for single-or-two person commuting) at 54mpg and $22,000 cost to a Elio, the elio values at $34,000 in Prius level equivalency. So IMHO, spending $6,800 returns a investment value windfall of $27,200. And that's probably understated when looking at the cost of maintenance. Note, you have to actually drive it to realize that value.
Extracted from the article...
Building What People Buy
Clearly, a car that gets 100 mpg every time you drive can be designed and built. But, absent government regulation or far higher fuel prices driving consumer demand, will any car company actually do it?
"There's no business case for it," says GM's Juechter. "How many people would spend $200,000 on a car that would ultimately save them a few thousand dollars on fuel over the life of the car?" That's the worst-case scenario in terms of price estimates, but there's little doubt that a 100-mpg car would cost thousands more than today's bigger, more powerful vehicles.
"Small, clean diesel engines run about $3000 and you can add another $4000 for the hybrid," Cole says. "So you're looking at a $6000, $8000 or even $9000 premium for just the car's powertrain. And we haven't even talked about the cost of the materials."
Few drivers would ever make up the cost premium at the pump. However, working out the requirements of a 100-mpg car makes it clear just how feasible it would be to build, say, a 75-mpg car—for far less money. Besides, saving money isn't the only reason people choose a car. It became fashionable to drive SUVs because they projected an image of power and an active lifestyle. It's possible to imagine drivers being drawn to the environmental and national security benefits of efficiency—and to the cutting-edge engineering, as well.
So perhaps people have been asking the wrong question all along. It's not, "Why can't they build a 100-mpg car?" but rather, "Do we really want one?"
