Maybe new cars are getting more aerodynamic?

[theunchosen]

I think you might be able to get away with the average non-commercial vehicle, but not average car because thats 23-25. . . but I would define Economy car as something like A corolla or a Civic. . .and then its not even close. Especially if both are hypermiling.

[jamesqf]

Originally Posted by theunchosen

I just have 2 questions. Where in Europe did you live?

Switzerland - Just outside of Lausanne (near Geneva). Worked there 2004-2005. Also just north of London, off & on for several years in the mid-90s. Wasn't actually living there, though - my sister's husband was an exec running the UK branch of a company then, so I'd go stay with them for a month or two every year, and use their house as a base to travel around.

...and which Citroens are larger than an American car?

Did I say "larger than an American car"? If so, I misspoke: I meant to say large compared to things like the VW Beetle & Honda Civic of the '70s, which IIRC is when Citroen stopped trying to break into the US market. The DS and SM of that era were fairly large cars. See here for some pictures: Citroën - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

It may be a Hula-Hoop. . .I honestly couldn't tell you so I have to change my argument to Americans buy big cars.

Even there, there's some circularity. A lot of Americans buy big cars because that's what American automakers built, and American automakers build them because that's what they think Americans want - or can be persuaded to buy, thanks to convenient loopholes that e.g. count SUVs as trucks so they don't have to meet the same emissions & economy standards. And that's a big part of the reason why they're in financial trouble: they've locked themselves into selling to the big car segment of the market, and every jump in gas prices shaves some more off their segment.

[jamesqf]

Originally Posted by theunchosen

The person who said why does it need 525 hp in the first place was more referring to the fact that why would anyone not intending to use it on the track need 525 horses.

Well, no, that wasn't exactly what I meant. I was thinking more along the lines of comparing the Corvette to a Lotus, which I think (I'm not really into track racing) will give similar performance on half the horsepower.

Now when you're not talking about racing... My first Austin-Healey Sprite had an 1100 cc engine, producing maybe 60-70 HP. Sure, I could have used a bit more in the mountains, but 100 HP or so in a small, light car would be plenty.

[theunchosen]

I wish I had spent some time in Switzerland while I was over there. I only traveled through it on an overnight. Got stopped for customs and ice/snow buildups on the tracks for about an hour and I stepped out to the station just to have a peak. Really beautiful(I was travelling through Southern Switzerland(not to poke fun but should I even specify, its kind of a small country. ..just kidding))

Yeah ok I can believe that Citroens were about the size of VW and Honda. Today Most of the, or rather a couple of years ago, the main stream citroens I saw were all not tiny but definitely the size of the Civic 2 dr or a little bit smaller, so thats why I said they were smaller. Compared to Ford and GM's mainline cars they are tiny, but compared to most cars they are just a little bit smaller.

Ok yes I can accept that the SUV is a dying breed. I am hesitant to say it and get my hopes up. A future without large consumer cars is a future in which people's tires are not capable of crushing through my roof, and a good future when a substantial number of them run lights late enough for me to be in the road.

Ah as to the horsepower I thought it was either you or Daox or metro and each of you would have different reasons for saying something like that. I totally agree, weight reduction then get the horsepower, not add horses until you get what you want to your 2 tonne car.

Specifications | Ariel Atom 3 | Base Price 65,000 USD 0-60 2.9 seconds curb weight 1200 lbs total HP 250. suck it GTR. And for 30,000 dollars less.

Oops. . .the Atom 1 was going for 44 KUSD, the specs for hp and times are the same. Actually. . .everything is the same except the new ones have more body to them so lower Cd.

[winkosmosis]

Originally Posted by MetroMPG

That's a bit of a stretch. Define "average economy car".

OK, it's a stretch, but it gets high 20s just like a Mazda 3 etc.

[Playslikepage71]

Originally Posted by winkosmosis

The Corvette engine's displacement in place of revs, combined with very aerodynamic body, allow it to get better highway gas mileage than the
average economy car.

You can't really compare highway gas mileage to general mileage. 26MPG is not exactly economy. Some real lunkers can pull numbers like that. An economy car like a Corolla is listed at like 36 and even a big car like a Maxima gets a 26MPG EPA rating.

[winkosmosis]

Originally Posted by Playslikepage71

You can't really compare highway gas mileage to general mileage. 26MPG is not exactly economy. Some real lunkers can pull numbers like that. An economy car like a Corolla is listed at like 36 and even a big car like a Maxima gets a 26MPG EPA rating.

I think a Corvette can get 30mpg highway, regardless of the EPA rating.

I can't even do that with my Miata.

[evolutionmovement]

My sister's 2002 Maxima struggles to get 23. The same as Colorado 4X4 my brother-in-law had. I average around 29 per tank in my Mazda 3 and I wouldn't mind some of the Corvette's low end torque (or the low end torque of my old Subaru even) in traffic.