I would be proud if the Prius was an American development

Re: I would be proud if the Prius was an American developmen

Honestly I don't see how we havn't self destructed by now.

can you hum along to this one?
'Ahh ya don't believe we're on the eve of destruction"
(Barry Mcguire 1966)

Keep up the good work George!

 

I have had such a bad experience with American automotive engineering (over-engineering gadgets, under-engineering important stuff like drivetrains), that if the Prius were American made, I would not walk but run SCREAMING in the other direction.

I've always supported Americans first, but I have been screwed by their lack of engineering where it matters for the last time.

 

the big 3 have not had the best car on the road for years. last night i went to my nephew's graduation and he simply stopped naming cars before he would name an american car that he would have wanted.

and this may come as a big surprise to many considering his age, but he is a very practical person and not interested in horsepower. just wants something economical and reliable. he btw also works at All-Star Ford

 

Re: I would be proud if the Prius was an American developmen

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(alanmushnick\";p=\"98490)</div>

The Prius was developed as a direct result of Toyota being denied membership in the USA-based next-gen vehicle initiative that Clinton started up in the 90s. The drivetrain however, seems to be a common idea that's been around since 1970s. Love it for that.

Bush himself killed NGV ~2001. What did come out of it after 10 years, the EV1? Most of them are crushed into itty-bitty pieces now. A Caltech guy did build a hybrid in a Buick Skylark back in the 70s and that was crushed by the EPA.

Why is this a bad message? Are you implying that the Japanese racially shouldn't be able to do this at all?

It's a VERY accurate and real message that the USA and government doesn't care. Like the VCR, the USA had many chances, but the mega-corps (like RIAA/MPAA) only cared about the near-term bottom line and squandered any future potential opportunities. Some of the best tech has been coming out of Japan for years. This is nothing new. Just as the Russians have the best long-term space life-support systems and reliable launch/delivery vehicles for quite a while.

The USA currently cares more about the Iraq quagmire and feeding more money into it, than investing the same money in itself as you can see in the priorities for science and education funding. Tell the kids and future voters why they should be more upset about this.

 

Even the Iraq qaugmire is a diversion. The goal in America now is to totally seal the supremacy of the corporate model.

As for the US being at the forefront of auto engineering, had GM and Ford failed in their goal to eviserate CAFE standards, we just might now be at the forefront of world auto engineering.

Just another example of the fact that a little government control over corporations is better than none.

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(Tideland Prius\";p=\"98579)</div>

That's already happening with them considering taxing by-the-mile, or raising gas taxes.

 

Re: I would be proud if the Prius was an American developmen

I have commented in the past about taxing by the mile, in multiple Prius forums and it just won't work. All of your questions about that are totally valid. I'm too lazy right now to go looking for an appropriate link.

Taxes and government and economies are a very simple relation. History has told us over and over again, No society has ever taxed itself into prosperity, not a single one.

Every time a tax of any kind is increased, regardless of who it is supposed to target, it impacts the middle class first and hardest. If you have no middle class because all of their hard earned money is being drained away in taxes, you have no society.

I'm still proud to be an American. I'm still more than willing to go out there and purcahse domestically built items and am usually happiest when I do. I have no regrest about buying a Toyota, but when the time comes around again to buy a new car I will be looking at Ford's hybrid offerings. They will be there and they will be competitive. I think that people forget that Ford is offering a hybrid right now, a very competitive and attractive product, built on a proven platform. I don't care if they licensed a little, more than a little or all of the technology from Toyota, or if they are licensing it just to keep out of court, they are making a hybrid right now and demand outstrips supply. Ford chose to introduce a hybrid in a market which was, at the time of announcement, untouched by other auto manufacturers. Very smart! You don't enter into a market selling the same thing as another guy if you want to be successful out of the gates.

 

Re: I would be proud if the Prius was an American developmen

It depends on your definition of technologically advanced. Up to now American manufactures (and most of the public) that getting the most horsespower and highest speed makes a car more advanced.

While Pres. Bush has done little to further the cause of environmentalism IMO, the Japanese were already 10 years ahead of American car makers by the time Bush came to term.

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(Tideland Prius\";p=\"98672)</div>

I agree.

However, my lovely, misguided state (Oregon) has already begun a test project in the Portland area wherein volunteers are installing Orwellian GPS trackers in their vehicles for the purposes of paying the state MORE money. From the press statements I've read, they appear to be quite serious about this.

Portland's county already has a 1.5% income tax for RESIDENTS - doesn't matter where you work; you pay that income tax if you live within the county.

 

Re: I would be proud if the Prius was an American developmen

It is an established fact (whether we like it or not) that the Japanese Corporate culture is more likely to advance ideas and technologies because "it is the right thing to do". Toyota is well and truly cashed up to be able to afford dabbling in other streams. In terms of R&D, they are less focussed purely on the short term bottom line and tend to think more long term.

 

Re: I would be proud if the Prius was an American developmen

A large segment of the American population believes that homosexuality is a disease, that Jesus wants us to bomb brown people and that the Earth is six thousand years old--and our governments are letting these folks run the educational system.

We're not going to be leading any more scientific or technological advances. We're coasting, until they start burning intellectuals at the stake in ten years.

 

Re: I would be proud if the Prius was an American developmen

Hey, why not let Japan take over technologically? They've out done us for decades on that. Hell, we're letting Korea beat us out on Stem Cell Research, and a lot of our scientists could be doing the same thing, if only we would let them. It seems one of the few people in our Government that is against it is our beloved President. Like a crying child who leaves and takes all his toys with him....I got your veto right here! If I sound bitter about it, well, I am...being type 1 Diabetic for nearly 20 years now, I would welcome the chance for us to advance scientifically and technologically. But alas, we're the "greatest country in the world" right?

Did I mention I was a democrat? :lol:

Well, just think about the big 3 car makers when you want to be proud of an American development. Except, you'd have to track all the way back to the 60's and 70's to have a time when we could be "proud" of American Auto Manufacturing. The next Big 3 in the US is going to be Honda, Toyota, and Nissan by the year 2020, if not sooner.

 

Re: I would be proud if the Prius was an American developmen

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(Hybrid_Dave\";p=\"99216)</div>

Did you know the president actually said,

"I am concerned about the scientific PROGRESS in the stem cell research in South Korea."

He really said that a few weeks ago!

 

Re: I would be proud if the Prius was an American developmen

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(kazu88\";p=\"99231)</div>

Did you know the president actually said,

"I am concerned about the scientific PROGRESS in the stem cell research in South Korea."

He really said that a few weeks ago![/b][/quote]

Yup, heard that too...I know what he's concerned about, he's concerned we're going to look like chumps if this thing actually proves to cure diseases. Notice I said if, I'll be the first to admit that we can't be sure it will cure diseases or grow new parts, etc....but how will we know if we never try. But, we digress...I hate discussing politics anyways :wink:

Lewis Black said it best "On one side you've got Democrats, which is a party of no ideas. On the other side you've got Republicans, which is a party of bad ideas. The only thing that's worse than a Republican, or a Democrat, is when they work together. A Republican stands up in Congress and yells 'I've got a really bad idea!!!!!!' Then a Democrat stands up and yells 'And I've got a way to make it sh**ier"!!!!'

Gotta love Lewis Black

Dave.

 

Re: I would be proud if the Prius was an American developmen

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(alanmushnick\";p=\"98490)</div>

What, you mean something like this?

[Broken External Image]:http://media.popularmechanics.com/images/tb_10663_lead.jpg

Not a looker perhaps, but GM's Precept hybrid test vehicle gets 80mpg and beats the Prius in a lot of technical areas (like weight, layout, Cd etc). As mentioned above though, the project got canned! I can only speculate as to why....

http://www.popularmechanics.com/automotive...rs/1267946.html