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09/18/2008 06:03:05 PM · #76 |
Originally posted by citymars:
Originally posted by Spazmo99:
BTW, Did you know that Ford sells a 65mpg car in Europe that it won't bring to the U.S.? Link |
That's a shame. I wonder what reasons they have for not selling that in the U.S. |
Well, Ford claims that it wouldn't sell, since Americans don't like diesel cars and it would cost more than the Prius mainly because the engine is built in a UK plant. |
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09/22/2008 10:50:22 PM · #77 |
Interesting editorial story about the financial crises with Fannie and Freddie in Investor Business Daily
Excerpts:
"It all started, innocently enough, in 1994 with President Clinton's rewrite of the Carter-era Community Reinvestment Act.
Ostensibly intended to help deserving minority families afford homes Γ’ a noble idea Γ’ it instead led to a reckless surge in mortgage lending that has pushed our financial system to the brink of chaos.
Subprime's Mentors
Fannie and Freddie, the main vehicle for Clinton's multicultural housing policy, drove the explosion of the subprime housing market by buying up literally hundreds of billions of dollars in substandard loans Γ’ funding loans that ordinarily wouldn't have been made based on such time-honored notions as putting money down, having sufficient income, and maintaining a payment record indicating creditworthiness."
...
"President Bush, reviled and criticized by Democrats, tried no fewer than 17 times, by White House count, to raise the issue of Fannie-Freddie reform. A bill cleared the Senate Banking panel in 2005, but stalled due to implacable opposition from Democrats and a critical core of GOP abettors. Rep. Barney Frank, who now runs the powerful House Financial Services Committee, helped spearhead that fight." |
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09/23/2008 08:09:49 AM · #78 |
Originally posted by RonB:
Interesting editorial story about the financial crises with Fannie and Freddie in Investor Business Daily
Excerpts:
"It all started, innocently enough, in 1994 with President Clinton's rewrite of the Carter-era Community Reinvestment Act.
Ostensibly intended to help deserving minority families afford homes Γ’ a noble idea Γ’ it instead led to a reckless surge in mortgage lending that has pushed our financial system to the brink of chaos.
Subprime's Mentors
Fannie and Freddie, the main vehicle for Clinton's multicultural housing policy, drove the explosion of the subprime housing market by buying up literally hundreds of billions of dollars in substandard loans Γ’ funding loans that ordinarily wouldn't have been made based on such time-honored notions as putting money down, having sufficient income, and maintaining a payment record indicating creditworthiness."
...
"President Bush, reviled and criticized by Democrats, tried no fewer than 17 times, by White House count, to raise the issue of Fannie-Freddie reform. A bill cleared the Senate Banking panel in 2005, but stalled due to implacable opposition from Democrats and a critical core of GOP abettors. Rep. Barney Frank, who now runs the powerful House Financial Services Committee, helped spearhead that fight." |
That's like falling asleep while you're smoking and blaming the fire on the match company. |
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09/23/2008 09:42:44 AM · #79 |
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09/23/2008 09:46:07 AM · #80 |
Originally posted by Spazmo99:
Originally posted by citymars:
Originally posted by Spazmo99:
BTW, Did you know that Ford sells a 65mpg car in Europe that it won't bring to the U.S.? Link |
That's a shame. I wonder what reasons they have for not selling that in the U.S. |
Well, Ford claims that it wouldn't sell, since Americans don't like diesel cars and it would cost more than the Prius mainly because the engine is built in a UK plant. |
There are very very few diesel cars in the US. THe only one to really sell much was the Rabbit Diesel back in the mid 80s and it was s l o w.
And all diesels then were smelly and noisy. I hear the newer ones are not any of that, but then the EPA has a super strict emission rules regarding sulphur and that has made it very very very hard for companies to sell diesels in the US as they won't meet emmissions. They need catalytic converter type deals now. Diesels have always cost more, now add the extra parts, low sales numbers and the fact that diesel fuel costs 10-20% more than gas and is harder to find and you'll not get a lot of interest in diesels.
Back before computers and fuel injection and 400HP V8s and hybrids Honda made a Civic that got over 50mpg on the highway and cars that got in the 40s was relatively common. With the huge increase in efficiency that EFI and computers and such offer (a vette has 600hp from the same size engine that back in the 80s didn't hit 200hp!) I think they could make normal, gasoline cars that get 50 to 60mp. They'd be smaller than many of today's cars, but we lived with that 20 years ago just fine and can do so again.
I think it's disgusting that the Smart gets the mileage it does. It should get 50 or 60mpg!
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09/23/2008 10:04:45 AM · #81 |
Originally posted by Prof_Fate:
Originally posted by Spazmo99:
Originally posted by citymars:
Originally posted by Spazmo99:
BTW, Did you know that Ford sells a 65mpg car in Europe that it won't bring to the U.S.? Link |
That's a shame. I wonder what reasons they have for not selling that in the U.S. |
Well, Ford claims that it wouldn't sell, since Americans don't like diesel cars and it would cost more than the Prius mainly because the engine is built in a UK plant. |
There are very very few diesel cars in the US. THe only one to really sell much was the Rabbit Diesel back in the mid 80s and it was s l o w.
And all diesels then were smelly and noisy. I hear the newer ones are not any of that, but then the EPA has a super strict emission rules regarding sulphur and that has made it very very very hard for companies to sell diesels in the US as they won't meet emmissions. They need catalytic converter type deals now. Diesels have always cost more, now add the extra parts, low sales numbers and the fact that diesel fuel costs 10-20% more than gas and is harder to find and you'll not get a lot of interest in diesels.
Back before computers and fuel injection and 400HP V8s and hybrids Honda made a Civic that got over 50mpg on the highway and cars that got in the 40s was relatively common. With the huge increase in efficiency that EFI and computers and such offer (a vette has 600hp from the same size engine that back in the 80s didn't hit 200hp!) I think they could make normal, gasoline cars that get 50 to 60mp. They'd be smaller than many of today's cars, but we lived with that 20 years ago just fine and can do so again.
I think it's disgusting that the Smart gets the mileage it does. It should get 50 or 60mpg! |
The new diesels ARE cleaner and quieter. Probably cleaner than gasoline cars now. Until recently, Volkswagen sold a TDI (the D stands for Diesel) version of the Jetta and Beetle for some time now in the US and, indeed, they will be bringing diesel back with a version of the '09 Jetta. Also Mercedes makes and has made several diesel cars. As for the EPA restrictions, the European restrictions are just as tight and diesel cars are very popular there. Diesel engines also last longer, require less maintenance and the increased efficiency more than makes up for the cost premium on fuel. I don't know about where you are, but there are few gas stations around here that don't have diesel.
The European version of the Smart car, a diesel, gets around 70mpg. |
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09/23/2008 10:51:27 AM · #82 |
Originally posted by Spazmo99:
The European version of the Smart car, a diesel, gets around 70mpg. |
Are those the same sorts of gallons? You have to be careful comparing fuel consumption between US and the UK for example because the 'g' means different things. |
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09/23/2008 11:50:59 AM · #83 |
Originally posted by Gordon:
Originally posted by Spazmo99:
The European version of the Smart car, a diesel, gets around 70mpg. |
Are those the same sorts of gallons? You have to be careful comparing fuel consumption between US and the UK for example because the 'g' means different things. |
I didn't use anything from the UK.
I took the numbers from SMART's press release of 3.3 liters per 100km and converted to mpg. It actually works out to 71.2mpg
Message edited by author 2008-09-23 11:53:11. |
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09/24/2008 08:56:51 AM · #84 |
"Dear American:
I need to ask you to support an urgent secret business relationship with a transfer of funds of great magnitude.
I am Ministry of the Treasury of the Republic of America. My country has had crisis that has caused the need for large transfer of funds of 800 billion dollars US. If you would assist me in this transfer, it would be most profitable to you.
I am working with Mr. Phil Gram, lobbyist for UBS, who will be my replacement as Ministry of the Treasury in January. As a Senator, you may know him as the leader of the American banking deregulation movement in the 1990s. This transactin is 100% safe.
This is a matter of great urgency. We need a blank check. We need the funds as quickly as possible. We cannot directly transfer these funds in the names of our close friends because we are constantly under surveillance. My family lawyer advised me that I should look for a reliable and trustworthy person who will act as a next of kin so the funds can be transferred.
Please reply with all of your bank account, IRA and college fund account numbers and those of your children and grandchildren to wallstreetbailout@treasury.gov so that we may transfer your commission for this transaction. After I receive that information, I will respond with detailed information about safeguards that will be used to protect the funds.
Yours Faithfully,
Minister of Treasury Paulson
Henry Merritt Γ’HankΓ’ Paulson Jr. is the United States Treasury Secretary and member of the International Monetary Fund Board of Governors. He previously served as the Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Goldman Sachs."
Source
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