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There is what looks to be an interesting documentary coming out discussing the death of the electric automobile. I have been saying for years that the auto companies and oil companies have been holding hands and holding back innovation because they were filling their pockets with money. Look at Toyota for example. Think of them what you will, they make reliable, affordable, efficient automobiles. They have full size cars, compacts, and SUVs now that all get over 40+ miles per gallon - IN CITY driving condition. If you want an American car, the best you can hope for his mid-20’s MPG. We should be seeing 60+ MPG on the highway, without hybrid technology - in full size trucks! There is no reason that in the past 20 years automobile manufactures have not been able to decrease fuel consumption in their products.

Here is a perfect example. I drive a 1991 Chevrolet Cavalier. The MPG for this 1991 car is a combined 27 and by year 2005, a combined 28. The full document can be viewed here. So you are telling me that in 15 years GM was only able to squeeze one more MPG out of this car. It is the same motor, the 2.2L (a solid, reliable motor by the way). They even added a 4th gear to the automatic transmission.

And don’t get me started on the crappy plastic interiors on many of the recent domestic automobiles. The buttons are all flimsy, parts don’t fit nicely together, and everything feel cheap. Now hop in a VW, Honda, Toyota, etc and everything feels solid. Parts seem engineered to a higher standard.

GM, with its woes, has no one to blame but their greedy selves. Look at the 2006 Buick Lucerne for example. I have driver a half dozen of these cars, what GM is touting as a Lexus rival. In three of the six I have driven, The door handle on the drivers door is not attached properly to the door. When you pull the door closed, it feels a little loose and makes a creaking noise. That is not going to impress any Lexus driver, no matter how much money you throw at marketing the damn thing.

Produce high quality, efficient, durable, and reliable automobiles and you will sell more than your competitors. Its that simple. No politics, just service to the customer.

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