Fuel Economy Improvements Since the Model T

No doubt about the original workhorse that both started the American auto industry and the  US assembly mass market production line was the venerable Ford Model “T“.   The Model T had no power steering mechanism and on top of that a hand or strong arm manual mechanical starter mechanism.  No electric starter motor here.  The car – or automobile that “started it all”  could not even drive at faster speeds than 40 miles an hour or so – unless you had a tremendous wind pushing the vehicle down the road.

However unlike the “boats”  of the 1960′s the Model T got 21 miles per gallon. On top of that the Model T was way way ahead of time being fully “Flexi-Fuel” being able to use alchohol as a fuel that was readily available “on the farm”  and gasoline in town readily available at local gasoline stations.

On the other hand in 2010 contrast this to  US Environmental Protection Agency contention that the average fleet mileage calculations for the year of 2008 work out to  20.8  mpg miles per a gallon.

Isn’t that amazing – a vehicle that is considered primitive by any means – achieved basically the same result as our high tech , electronic gadget controlled cars.

Where have our car makers and politicians been since 1973.  The cars for clunkers program should of emphasized what consumers what in this era – yet auto makers were content – and reinforced by their self serving short sited marketing research to do the exact opposite.   Note the clueless statements of the GM auto exec who went on to become Obama’s auto Czar.

Despite continuous developments in technology , and even in fuel products fleet fuel economy has actually been on the road of  continual degradation in the 70 or so years following the Model T’s introduction itself.  In  1975 for example the typical American “gas guzzler”  automobile averaged  13.2 miles per gallon mpg rating.  The fuel crisis of the 1970′s spurred then rapid focus and a betterment to an average of 23.4 miles per gallon by 1987 – mainly the result of a shift to smaller , front end transmission cars , which as a result were also lighter in weight as well.

Guess we had not learned our lesson well .

http://wpgauto.com

Vancouver Auto Car Truck Kijiji Craigslist Deals

Winnipeg Supply Service | Winnipeg Furnace Repair | Winnipeg Heating

Edmonton Fort McMurray  Craiglist Kijiji Auto Specials Online

Winnipeg Auto

• Figure Out Your Miles Per Dollar Instead Of MPG. I just came across this site called Miles Per Dollar which has a handy dandy calculator that enables you to see how much it costs you to drive your car...
• Seattle Prius Gets Over 100+ MPG Seems Ryan Fulcher of Seattle likes saving money on gas and reducing the pollutants from his car. You see, he just had another battery put in his Prius, which allows...
• Comparing The Cost Of Moving - Do It Yourself Or Hire Movers? So, in 10 days the movers are coming to take all of our stuff to New Mexico, leaving us with only some clothes, some food, an air mattress, 2 sleeping...
• Figure out your miles per dollar spent on driving. I just came across this site called Miles Per Dollar which has a handy dandy calculator that enables you to see how much it costs you to drive your car...
• Where Will We Re-Charge Our Plug-In Hybrid & Electric Cars When Not At Home? Dear EarthTalk: With plug-in hybrid and electric cars due to hit the roads sometime soon, will there be places to plug them in besides at home? And if so, how...
• The US Braces for the Diesel Hybrid Congress has made a offer to car manufacturers which has the auto makers scrambling. They are working to create a short term plan for the release more fuel efficient vehicles...
• I Cannot Wait For Gasoline To Be $5.00 Per Gallon. Before you start screaming at me, hear me out. I honestly think that there could be nothing more positive for the environmental movement than gasoline to become increasingly more expensive....