To say that the Hybrid strategy is simply a smokescreen shows how little you really know. Developing the hybrid technology in the Prius was no simple task... It's taken them decades, hundreds of million of R&D dollars, and hundreds of thousands of design man hours... This is an investment that goes far and beyond one vehicle. The effort that Toyota has put into the design and the engineering of their hybrid technology is what you're forgetting, and doesn't make sense if it was just a publicity stunt or a distraction... They actually did it, and the Prius is a reality, not some vaporwear like electric vehicles or hydrogen vehicles... Moreover, people like you have been bashing Toyota for releasing the Highlander Hybrid and the RX400h, and say that they don't give any fuel economy gains. #1, that's not true, #2, those two vehicles address emissions concerns first and foremost. They are both SULEV... Look... I don't necessarily disagree with you that Toyota has some gas guzzlers in their fleet. Their truck business is not "green" of course... We've established that. They are a car company, and all car companies contribute to emissions, contribute to our dependence on oil, etc etc... But I noticed something significant from your post above... you asked what if Toyota never invented the Prius... you treated the Prius as an exception. Why? Here's how I look at it. The Prius isn't an exception... it's the first step in a larger strategy by Toyota, and an even larger trend across the industry toward better fuel economy and emissions. Toyota has said it intends to hybridize it's entire fleet... and before you go off on how even that statement was just another PR spin used by Toyota to brainwash us... I mentioned before that they spent an extraordinary amount of effort into developing their hybrid technology. That's a fact. The only way for it to pay off for them is if it goes into every vehicle they make sometime in the future...The fact that such a vehicle like the Prius exists with such exotic and expensive to develop technology proves that they are committed to using it big time in as many vehicles as possible for it to pay off. What you see now is Toyota in transition... turning their whole fleet 'green' clearly isn't something that can be done overnight... What exactly do you want of Toyota? a ) to admit they lied to the American public b ) stop making trucks completely... Considering you're a truck driver yourself...
There are no timing belt issues with the HSD... and what do cars that get into the 30s on the highway have anything to do with the Prius? Driven correctly, the Prius can do twice that. And once you start talking about city mileages, 3X... Well if this is about trucks and suvs, then the whole discussion is moot anyway. I'm a firm believer that SUV sales will continue to drop for every car manufacturer as the American public continues to wisen up with rising gas prices... some car companies are in better positions to deal with this new reality than others.
Toyota did this mainly to keep from having high tariffs imposed on them. By keeping the US companies in business the pay less in tariffs. Good business strategy
Same goes for big SUVs in my book. I hope the trend of SUV sales falling, and increased awareness of fuel economy and emissions continues.
Many "American" cars (Ford, GM, etc) use timing belts. So what of it? Oh, better do your homework a wee bit more carefully. The Prius uses a timing CHAIN, as does the Echo Hatchback and Echo sedan.
Amen! I sincerely hope in the not too distant future every Suburban, Durango, Explorer, Expedition, Blazer, Envoy, Sequia, XTerra is put up on cinderblocks and used to grow weeds. The alternative is to continue pointless wars, support terrorism, and prop up deranged crackpot dictators. I'm willing to bet at the office coffee machine tomorrow that Malorn will take option #2.
"I know most of you are not economists, but that is not good for any of us." I might not not be an economist. But you're just downright unintelligent. I'm guessing you believe carbon dating is a government conspiracy...
A GM Trucks site would pound the drums and burn a "heretic" at the stake. I also am disgusted with Toyota cranking out pointless SUV's and pickups. However at least they offer serious cars that can deliver fuel economy, ultra low emissions, and dependability (Prius, Echo Hatch, and Echo sedan use timing chains). What does GM offer? The Cavalier? HA! The Aveo? Please! I really don't "get" your point. I'm not sure if you are a GM employee about to lose his job thanks to GM corporate bungling, a deranged "patriotic" GM buyer who unwisely thought he could "trick" us, or something else. I distinctly get the impression you are blaming every Prius owner for every problem with the U.S. economy, and especially with the General. Let's try this again: The sheeple voted for politicians who have made extraordinarily bad decisions. Consumers have made extraordinarily bad purchasing decisions. Our large corporations have laughed all the way to the bank, over and over, while pulling the wool over YOUR eyes (I’m thinking of GM here). Since the mid 1990’s we have subsidized the artificially low price of gasoline by a never ending military quagmire called The Mid East, supported crackpot dictators in Venezuela, and generally looked the other way as long as the cheap oil kept flowing. We have also jumped off the cliff on a Credit Binge that will leave our grandchildren paying for it. Thanks to artificially low credit cost, folks are buying those 5,000 sq ft homes and consuming far more resources in the process. Here is a scary thought regarding the Credit Binge: since Americans and Canadians ceased to be savers a long time ago, who is buying our debt? In other words, who holds the IOU? Think China and Japan. Of course, it was the Car Culture Dream that made GM wealthy, and the same Car Culture created our mess of far-flung suburban bedroom communities. The same Car Culture literally has us by the short and curlies but you somehow are trumpeting the General’s vision of it while knocking down every other foreign interpretation of it. I used to have an energy efficient home in the burbs, with utility bills a fraction of my neighbors. Several years ago I sold that two story 2,500 sq ft home as it was really foolish for a single guy to have a huge home. I dramatically downsized to a 1,460 sq ft highrise condo which is actually far more comfy and more suited to my lifestyle. What have you done? I notice you’re driving pickups and SUV’s, how very patriotic.
Ssshhh you'll make him paranoid. Don't mention how the Prius constantly records audio and video, which is transmitted back to Secret Toyota Headquarters buried under Mt Fuji. Or how Toyota is implanting Mind Control Chips into pre-schoolers.
Again in this very same thread, I must bow down and observe a reverant moment of silence to Jayman. U D Man!
Even the HUGE SUV'S (Excursion - which they aren't making anymore), have a place in socienty. How about a family with 8 kids?? What other vehicle could they get around in And I agree - sales will definetely continue to decline. Ideally, my family would be a 3-4 car family. My Prius for everyday driving. My wife's Subaru (got a great deal on it, so it's not going anywhere anytime soon - when it is replaced, it will probably be with a hybrid), a pickup or SUV (I'd like to be able to tow - could be a hybrid) and I really like the Toyota Volta So we'd each have a car for every day driving, 1 for towing and heavy labor and 1 for plain fun. In reality though, someday we'll probably just add a 3rd vehicle for towing. Or if my wife gets her (current) wish, she'll end up with a forester and I can tow with that. Hmm.. I guess we won't be buying american.. oh well
I am sure most of you have seen today's headlines, GM and Ford down 25% from a weak October 2004. More plants will be closed, more suppliers will close, but it will be ok because for every 2 jobs that are eliminated Toyota, Nissan and Honda create .8 jobs!
