63 Miles Per Gallon Midsized Car?
It's hard to sort out the facts of unannounced products but it appears from a few reliable sources that Honda is going to release a diesel Accord in the U.S. as early as next year. At the same time they will scrap the hybrid Accord but not their hybrid programs in other platforms. What's quite interesting is the car is rumored to get nearly 63 miles per gallon on the highway as well as meet California's diesel emissions regulations, the most stringent in the world. All of this in a very substantially sized car with significant horsepower unlike subcompact hybrids or diesels of similar mileage ratings. Again, not substantiated. While diesels have been mainstream in Europe for ages and have the pollution to prove it, (up to 100 times the particulate pollution of gasoline engines without strict emission standards) the U.S. has shunned diesels for a variety of reasons. Initially because GM dumped diesels on the public with main bearing failures galore in the last bout of high oil prices. By then the U.S. public had no taste for diesels of any make. But, those times are well gone and most of the people who bought those diesels are no longer alive or mainstream consumers. A new opportunity for clean diesel technology? Absolutely.
As someone who believes companies should always try to do what is best for mother earth where financially possible, while making a buck doing it, I find it ironic this is coinciding with the increased Big Three lobbying efforts to kibosh increased CAFE mileage standards in the U.S. Oh, and some auto maker executives comments that increasing CAFE standards would add incredible costs to American autos. Really? Maybe GM should tell that to Honda so they can add their quoted $5,000 incremental cost per auto to the 63 miles per gallon Accord. Want to bet Honda can manufacture that diesel Accord for incrementally less than adding the hybrid componentry to the inferior subcompact tin can Prius and get better efficiency while doing it? Or cheaper than GM can manufacture a full hybrid of a comparable auto? Hybrids have many additional components that add to the costs of procurement, engineering, manufacturing, testing and maintaining the car. In addition, their end of life disposal is very detrimental to the environment without a costly disposal program. Engineering elegance lies in simplicity. Personally, I believe current production hybrid technology isn't long for this world.
If the Big Three's philosophy was similar to long standing corporate ideals held at Toyota and Honda of integrating into the environment with minimal impact, they would be have been leading this effort proactively. To be fair, GM has announced production of a very advanced truck diesel with impressive statistics that also meets California emission standards. Ford deems diesels important enough to replace their procured truck diesels with a new in-house design. All of the large auto manufacturers have advanced diesel technology capable is meeting increased CAFE standards in the U.S. Part of winning over many consumers is not just about great styling and quality. American auto companies only started realizing this a few years ago and still don't have their product mix or styling right. In the end, social and environmental responsibility is here to stay whether oil is $10 or $100 a barrel.
Are you watching Ford stock? It's headed up.
As someone who believes companies should always try to do what is best for mother earth where financially possible, while making a buck doing it, I find it ironic this is coinciding with the increased Big Three lobbying efforts to kibosh increased CAFE mileage standards in the U.S. Oh, and some auto maker executives comments that increasing CAFE standards would add incredible costs to American autos. Really? Maybe GM should tell that to Honda so they can add their quoted $5,000 incremental cost per auto to the 63 miles per gallon Accord. Want to bet Honda can manufacture that diesel Accord for incrementally less than adding the hybrid componentry to the inferior subcompact tin can Prius and get better efficiency while doing it? Or cheaper than GM can manufacture a full hybrid of a comparable auto? Hybrids have many additional components that add to the costs of procurement, engineering, manufacturing, testing and maintaining the car. In addition, their end of life disposal is very detrimental to the environment without a costly disposal program. Engineering elegance lies in simplicity. Personally, I believe current production hybrid technology isn't long for this world.
If the Big Three's philosophy was similar to long standing corporate ideals held at Toyota and Honda of integrating into the environment with minimal impact, they would be have been leading this effort proactively. To be fair, GM has announced production of a very advanced truck diesel with impressive statistics that also meets California emission standards. Ford deems diesels important enough to replace their procured truck diesels with a new in-house design. All of the large auto manufacturers have advanced diesel technology capable is meeting increased CAFE standards in the U.S. Part of winning over many consumers is not just about great styling and quality. American auto companies only started realizing this a few years ago and still don't have their product mix or styling right. In the end, social and environmental responsibility is here to stay whether oil is $10 or $100 a barrel.
Are you watching Ford stock? It's headed up.
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