U.S. Government blocks sales of fuel-efficient cars
Have you ever heard of a little German car company called Volkswagon (VW)? Well, what you probably didn't know is that VW makes a car called the Passat Bluemotion 1.6 TDI, and - according to published specs and eyewitness accounts - the vehicle is capable of getting 72-78 miles per gallon under normal load and driving conditions. While the car's engine lacks significant punch, says a review in Autocar magazine, it is certainly economical.
But you can't get one in the U.S. You can, however, get one in Europe.
"How about a projected 915-mile range after a fill up? Or a claimed 71.8mpg at the end of a 36-mile motorway and urban commute? Most impressively, a genuine 58mpg on a drive from southwest London to Sheffield without even trying, with the gauge still reading well over half full with 440 miles' worth of diesel left in the tank at the end of the 406-mile round trip," says the review. "And our car only had 2,000 miles showing on its odometer. There are without doubt even more impressive figures to come once the engine has more miles under its belt."
High-mileage cars you can't get in the U.S.
In an online video, an unidentified American male who labeled himself as "Brian" says he recently returned from a trip to the UK and drove a Passat Bluemotion, confirming the amazing mileage statistics.
Worse, Brian says he called a local VW dealer to inquire about the car and its incredible mileage. He says he was told by the dealer that indeed, the car does get that kind of mileage and that, amazingly, it is even built here at a plant in the U.S., but the government won't let it be sold in the U.S. Those vehicles, Brian says he was told, are shipped to South America and other places - despite the current administration's push for more fuel efficiency for American cars and cars that are allowed to be sold in the country.
One reason the hyper-mileage Passat and other similar fuel-sipping models made by other automobile manufacturers, including Ford, Brian said, is because the emissions standards on those vehicles are not as high as is required for cars sold in the U.S. He says he was told by the VW dealer that high-fuel efficiency motors emit 10 percent more pollutants per gallon of fuel than do U.S.-based cars.
"When you work it out, though, it gets twice as good fuel efficiency, so you actually get less pollutants in the air," even though emissions are 10 percent worse, the man said.
* and this doesn't include the reduced (by 1/2?) amount of pollutants released getting the fuel out of the ground...transported...refined...and to the pump for sale.....