must be a government conspiracy

[NeilBlanchard]

Check this very site for such a list...

[rbrowning]

"...ah come on now, just come out and "say it" -- bigger butts need bigger cars!"

Thus the reason I argue for a two seat tandem. Make the care 2/3 as wide but only one seat. Thus the driver has more "elbow" room (or butt room, if needed).

[bandit86]

now why is this car not availible here?

Audi A2 - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

I just read through this, am I reading something wrong or are all sportscars less aerodynamic? seems a camry is more aerodynamic then a corvette
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Automob...ag_coefficient

[hotrodfeguy]

I dont know why Government motors or Suzuki pull the old Metro off the shelf and update it to the new crash specs. I know I would buy a new one for 10-12K. Hell they could even bring back the XFI. I think that model would be spot on for the market now. But then again they may have to sell more Metro's than Suburbans to make money. God knows GM doesnt want to loose its image as a full size car company.

[ShadeTreeMech]

I think your answer to the question of sportscars being less aerodynamic can be found in the article quoted above.

"For best cornering and racing performance, as required in Formula One cars, downforce and stability are crucial and these cars must attempt to maximize downforce and maintain stability while attempting to minimize the overall Cd value"

quoted from wikipedia

A camry isn't designed to corner at high speeds as well as a Corvette. For example, my Maxima corrners very well, but will understeer if pushed too hard. If I were to add a front spoiler, air pressure would press the tires into the pavement allowing me to go a bit faster without understeering. BUT it would make the maxima less aerodynamic.

I was reading a good and very well detailed article on here mentioning the mods that had been made to a 1st gen Prius in Aussie. They talked about how adding a partial belly pan under the front bumper added a bit of instability; ie the steering got light at speed. the reason is the angle the air hit their pan caused lift and taking weight off the front tires. They added some of those aerodynamic wedges found on the back of an Evo to the underside and that stabilized it, possibly from disrupting the air flow.

reading that article helped me to realize simply adding a pan would be a bad idea without first adding an airdam under the front bumper to either induce a bit of downforce or make it aerodynamically neutral. I do too much steering in the Ozark mountains to afford to ignore the need to go around a corner at speed.

[jamesqf]

Originally Posted by ShadeTreeMech

"For best cornering and racing performance, as required in Formula One cars, downforce and stability are crucial..."

But we're not talking about Formula 1 cars here, but about sports cars. And not in the "stuff a humongous engine in it so it'll go fast in a straight line" sense, either. Real sports cars get driven on twisty roads, where you seldom if ever reach speeds where aerodynamic downforces would be significant.

[Lazarus]

It's not a government conspiracy it what the vast majority of people want to buy in the US. Do you see any sub compacs in here?

Top 10 sellers in the US in 2009.

Top 10 sellers
1. Ford F-Series: 179,632 6. Honda Civic: 118,459
2. Toyota Camry: 150,242 7. Nissan Altima: 96,428
3. Chevrolet Silverado: 149,949 8. Dodge Ram: 94,516
4. Honda Accord: 131,043 9. Ford Fusion: 85,146
5. Toyota Corolla: 121,643 10. Honda CR-V: 78,917

53% of the vehicles sold were pickups. That's in a very depressed economy.

[bandit86]

there was a 6 month waiting list for the smart cars whenI went to the dealer. subcompact can be cool, even if it's a little $$ er

[Frank Lee]

If it's the government's fault that consumers prefer gas hogs whenever their budgets allow it, then yes it's a government conspiracy.

[blownb310]

It could also be that alot of us hypermilers are tight wads too. I have to admit that even if a new 70 mpg diesel economy hatchback came out next year, I wouldn't buy one. I usually wait until a car is 10 years old before I buy it for pennies on the dollar.

Mike