Filed under: Hybrid, MPG, Chrysler, Ford, GM, Honda, Nissan, Toyota
Maine auto dealer has 11 dealerships, says customers want high-mpg vehicles. So where's Detroit?
Adam Lee is no stranger to selling cars. His family has been in the business for 70 years and he's now the owner of 11 car dealerships. He's been a proud seller of Chrysler vehicles for those seven decades, but he felt the need to write a detailed essay in today's Automotive News (subs req'd) explaining why he's glad he owns some foreign-car (Toyota, Nissan and Honda) dealerships now, too. You get one guess why this is. Here's Lee:
In May, sales of hybrid cars and trucks in the United States were up about 88 percent over the year-ago month, while overall sales were up 5.0 percent. Although hybrids accounted for only about 2.8 percent of the U.S. market in May, it is a good indication that consumers want cleaner, more fuel-efficient cars than the Detroit 3 are offering.
As the largest hybrid dealership in Maine, we sell foreign cars that get 45 to 60 mpg and pollute very little. They are more expensive than nonhybrids, but consumers are willing to pay for them. And as gasoline moves past $2.50 and $3 a gallon, those cars are becoming more economical.
If we had a Jeep hybrid or a Ford Focus with a diesel hybrid, we would have customers lining up to buy one. And I could continue to sell American cars. As it is, I have to sell cars that consumers want to buy.
The whole article is worth reading, even if it's just the view of one man in one part of the country. Lee argues for stronger emissions and CAFE standards, and says the Auto Alliance is wrong to fight against the possible increase.
Lee's message is one that is becoming more and more prevalent: the Big Three "are losing market share because they do not have the cars that consumers want and need."
[Source: Automotive News]
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
jeremie 4:33PM (6/18/2007)
People are waking up and smelling the "CAFE".
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TIMMAH! 5:53PM (6/18/2007)
I thought that was Hugh Grant...
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Chris 7:05PM (6/18/2007)
The Maine auto dealer is telling the truth...at least from what I could read. (The rest requires a subscription)
I have been waiting for a Tahoe/Yukon truck that has diesel for YEARS. They can easily get 20-25MPG in real world mileage and don't have to be a hybrid to do so. Add Bio-Diesel as a fuel option it has minimal effect on the environment as well. I would order one today if they existed. Instead we are stuck with gasoline... or I have to buy a pickup truck to get a diesel engine. So what gives Detroit?
Hybrids are a passing fad too. Too much complexity and cost and the gains of 5-7mpg per car are not worth it. Wait until you have to fix one of these things too, you'll LOVE the bill. They are a stopgap measure for this decade only.
Also, the drive should not to be just upping fuel mileage standards constantly...but also providing renewable fuels and fuel alternatives so we can drive what WE want with something that gets reasonable mileage. If its renewable we can stop worrying about new mileage standards every year too. This is why a lot of cars get cheaper and cheaper quality wise every year. Lightweight cheap materials do save fuel, but at the cost of the vehicles becoming stripped down plastic junkboxes that no one wants.
So where are the everyday cars/SUV's like they have in Europe that run on diesel, get 35-50mpg, and are not overpriced, stripped down or plastic hybrid solutions? They exist in Europe now.
So Detroit??? WE ARE WAITING!
What's the holdup???!
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Laguna Knight 8:31PM (6/18/2007)
Mr. Lee is a silly man. Jeep offered the Liberty CRD. Ford has the Escape Hybrid. Saturn offers the Aura Green Line. Ford's Fusion comes with the option of AWD and a V-6, while producing good mileage and superb handling. The Focus has been ranked as the Best Small Car by Consumer Reports for years. The Ranger may be an old rust-bucket, but is a PZEV vehicle and has the best mileage of small- and medium pickups.
Chris, I would disagree with you about gas-electric vehicles being a fad. Diesel is not nearly as available as petrol in the United States. In fact, because diesel vehicle sales have only around 5% (in spite of the press hooplah of new diesel models for the past four years), diesel fuel has usually been more expensive than petrol until the recent price surges from the past three years, where there have been examples of diesel selling as much as or less than regular-grade gas.
Of the diesel vehicles offered, they have offered a substantial premium that is around the same as those asked for by HEVs. Gas-electric vehicles permit vehicle owners to continue to frequent any gas station and fill up as usual, instead of having to search for a station that serves diesel. The complaint by diesel fans that gas-electric engines lack the durability (and have battery concerns) has failed to materialize since HEVs hit the market ten years ago.
The United States exports a good portion of its diesel to Europe, where the demand is much higher and where approximately 51% of vehicles now sold are diesel-powered. One benefit to diesel's current state is that the price is close to that of petrol. Logically speaking, if the number of diesel users was to jump in a big way, that would affect the price of diesel by using the law of supply & demand. If the price jump is significant (and you factor the vehicle's diesel-trim premium), there would be no financial benefit.
I applaud any efforts to buy a fuel-efficient vehicle. But let's not attack one form of that over another.
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Joseph 2:55AM (6/19/2007)
Of course consumers want high-mpg vehicles, but they're not willing actually have a vehicle that'll be smaller and/or less powerful. American consumers are too used to large/powerful vehicles and think that magically fuel-economy can be lifted into the heavens. It doesn't work that way.
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ThwartedEfforts 7:08AM (6/19/2007)
You say that, but there are large-capacity diesel variants of cars such as the A8, 7-Series, S-Class and Phaeton, all of which deliver more than 30mpg and 600 miles from a tank but are capable of hitting 155mph. So you really can have your cake and eat it. Only protectionist anti-diesel legislation stands in the way.
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susan.kraemer 10:35AM (6/19/2007)
Someone should tell him he should just import the Smart EV from Switzerland! Zero gasoline is the way to go! And Chrysler makes the Smart. He should put the pressure on Chrysler.
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