Drew Dowdell

It's not the white dash for me, I kinda like it. I don't like the look of the car, I don't like how spartan the interior is. I'm used to driving Buicks, Cadillacs, Oldsmobiles, and LTZ Chevys. I already said if they put the power train in a Regal or Lacrosse I'd be there. I already have an auto trader search for a CT6 PHEV and Fusion Energi Platinums 2017 or newer. No one makes a pure EV that I like. I'm ready to put my money where my mouth is as soon as someone produces the vehicle the way I want it. I waited 5 months for the color and equipment combo we got in the Encore. I'm a patient man when it comes to buying things the way I want them.

A Tesla has a longer cruising range than my Honda.

I can like a power train without liking the rest of the car.

So what was inappropriate in comparison? Breathing diesel fumes will kill you. Breathing exhaust from leaded gas will kill you. Breathing asbestos dust will kill you. It may take a few years... But it'll get you.

Automakers offering an EV or two...and some subset of the population making the choice to buy one is not some grand conspiracy. Don't want an EV? Don't buy one. Personally, I think you're missing out on some fun times.

the last time we repealed major regulations and allowed the free market to choose... the free market chose greed, hubris, and fraud... eventually plunging the country and world into the worst recession since the 1930s. The free market isn't the end all be all.... there does need to be some regulation of it to try to prevent bad things happening.

So much for fresh produce in our grocery stores then. I thought conservatives were all for states rights? California is doing what is best for California.

The impression I got from speaking with Nissan was they were specifically holding off on releasing the redesigned Frontier because it still sells well and pretty close to sticker price. There are rarely any incentives on that truck. So, Nissan is amortizing the costs of the existing truck as long as possible. It is currently built in Canton Mississippi. It would make some decent sense to make a Mitsubishi version of the truck and also build it at Canton. Give it a mildly unique interior and a front face transplant and it would likely be sufficient for Mitsu at this point. Even if they just let Mitsu have the current truck with some updated engines (Really Nissan... it's time) while Nissan goes with an all new design built in the same plant. That could work too. The Frontier is a solid little hauler and I'd consider one if they'd offer some decent incentives on it.

EVs require less maintenance, are cheaper to fuel, and require fewer stops just to keep them running.. (i.e. you don't have to stop to fill up as part of your normal routine, you just plug it in at night and start every morning with a fresh, full "tank")

So remember in my note to you how you'll need to back up your statements? We'll go through your original post.... How? How does a hybrid, which still uses gasoline, limit mobility? EVs are not mandatory... if you don't like the Tesla, don't buy one. Last I looked, the gas-burner F-150 was still the best selling vehicle in the US. There is NOTHING stopping you from buying one. They even just added a diesel option. Nothing is being shoved down your throat. More transportation options are not a bad thing. People suffer from fueling network anxiety with a diesel. I've pointed that out in other threads where I would suggest a diesel to someone but their worry was finding fuel. I like diesels, but it is not the savior you're making it out to be. Its exhaust, without after treatment, is also substantially more toxic than gasoline. That was VWs fault. VW's hubris and greed has pretty much killed any great future for diesel. Blame them, not some conspiracy theory secret illuminati group. As far as range anxiety, that will go away as range gets longer and chargers get more common. In the meantime, nearly every manufacturer has or is coming out with plug-in hybrids for the transition. Getting people used to plugging in creates a demand for more chargers which creates a demand for more plug-ins. Those were the old hybrids. Hybrids now are all about adding power and drivability while also saving fuel. Volvo doesn't make a 400hp / 427 lb-ft 4-cylinder hybrid as their top engine by accident. The 4-cylinder Volvo S90 PHEV will walk away from any normally aspirated V6 and many turbo V6es without blinking. It does so while getting 29 mpg combined when running on just gasoline and 71 mpg when adding its EV only range. This is not your father's first generation Toyota Prius. In case you're thinking the Volvo is an exception, the Cadillac CT6 PHEV is 25 combined and 62 mpg with EV. At a more accessible level, the Ford Fusion Energi is 42mpg combined and 97 mpg with EV. In all cases, the emissions of these PHEVs will be substantially lower than even the cleanest of diesels. It's not "supposedly". It happened. Bosch built the device and specifically warned VW against using it in production. The students performed the test because there was reasonable doubt about VW's claims. VW claimed that they were able to meet emissions standards without any special technology in the emissions control system and wouldn't explain how they did it. Turns out, that they were able to do it by cheating on the emissions test. You've already been spoken to about part of this. Smog and pollution do kill people. Respiratory distress caused by smog is a real thing. Harley sales are a fraction of even just the Jetta. Furthermore, Harley was not selling bikes outfitted with the cheater from the factory... they sold a reprogrammer that was only to be used for competition tuning, it is unlikely that even 5% of the Harleys sold got the modification after the fact. The situations are not at all parallel. As far as being domestic or not.... it's the German/EU government who has come down hard on VW. Not just the US. VW knowingly committed fraud in the sale of hundreds of thousands of vehicles... you think the government should just look away? I don't have an EV or PHEV yet, but when I do, it will be powered by wind. I have energy selection here in PA and at least 20 other states have it too. If someone is environmentally conscious enough to buy an EV, they're probably also going to know enough to switch their energy provider. I have a 2 year wind energy contract and my rate is the same as what I would be charged for coal. Furthermore, coal generation is rapidly declining as it gets replaced by natural gas. While natural gas still releases carbon, the overall pollution footprint is much smaller. If you haven't noticed, all cars are getting this aero and special panels, diesels included. The new silverado has those slits in the front bumper just to direct air around the front wheels. Cars are already a nightmare to fix. I'm not sure what you mean by the "one" transmission.... manuals are going the way of the Dodo already and your choice is going to come down to 8-speed automatic or 10-Speed automatic. Your impression of hybrids appears to be out of date. If you limit yourself to Eco-Green oriented vehicles like the Pruis, then yes, if you drive it hard, the fuel economy suffers... but part of that is because it is a fairly under powered vehicle. Drive an XC90 or S90 hybrid and you'll do way way better on fuel than if it were powered by a normal V6 or V8.... and they do really pull hard when you step on it. You simply won't find a 400hp V6 AWD sedan that can get 29 mpg combined city/highway and also be capable of 71 mpg when you charge it up. I just drove a 400hp AWD Cadillac CT6 from Pittsburgh to NYC and was amazed that I was able to get 27mpg in just highway driving. My city mpg was much lower, low 20s. I know it's a minivan, but the Pacifica Hybrid is stupid fast and will still get amazing fuel economy. It's criminal how fun they made the acceleration on a mini-van and yet 85 mpg-e is still possible. My 2013 Buick takes about a 4 mpg hit when using the A/C.... it's enough that I've been considering having it looked at. My 2004 Honda is the same. When I was in my Honda escaping the hurricane in Florida last September, not running the A/C was the difference between making it to the next gas station or not. As most gas stations were out of gas, range anxiety was a very very real thing for me. Hypermiling it, keeping the A/C off and driving only 60 to 65 mph, I was able to get my best range ever... 300 miles. normally I get only 250. We have people all over the political spectrum here, but more importantly we strive for facts rather than hyperbole. It sounds like a bunch of your facts are out of date..... stick around and maybe we can help update them. I am the site owner and @William Maley is the other primary editor/admin. We both are registered as members of the press and we get direct access to the manufacturers to test cars and write news. We've been doing this a long time so we do know our onions from mushrooms. This site has been around since August of 2001 with many of the members you've been interacting with being here well over a decade. We're not the largest site, we're not the busiest site, we don't have the staffing to be the fastest with the news, but one thing we can be is the smartest site with thoughtful, fact-based, intelligent, and respectful discussions. If that's something you think you can be a part of, then put the ad-hominems away, pull up a chair, and enjoy.

Higher prices for used cars are due to higher prices for new cars. I'm driving a GMC Terrain this week and the window sticker is $44k. It is a fine car, but that price is ridiculous. Hybrids and EVs aren't a large enough part of the market yet to be having a significant price push on the used car pricing. Used Chevy Volts depreciate fast, so I don't think they are causing any increase in the price of a used Camry 4-cylinder. Also, the economy is unstable at the moment. We're heading for a recession in the next 6 - 8 months. One of the first things people do in uncertain economic times is cut back on car purchases... going used rather than going new. We saw that back in 2008 where the price of used cars went way up, but Ford and GM couldn't give away new Fusions and Pontiacs.

Why the downvote @ocnblu? What did I say that was incorrect? Do you prefer asbestos in your morning wheaties? EV's out torquing a TDI of similar physical size isn't even up for debate. The Spark EV out torques a Silverado 5.3 much less a Jetta TDI. A Tesla power unit is smaller than any V6 TDI you can find and it puts 588 lb-ft of torque at the wheels.

But that's isn't the bulk of the market. There will be internal combustion engines out there for a long time, but they will become more and more electrified. People who like them can still buy them. The CamCord buyers though, those are the people who will force the switch to EVs... Because they don't care about working on cars. Car maintenance is a nuisance to them and EVs offer an ownership experience with much less maintenance. But even modern gassers require some significant knowledge and equipment to repair. I can't imagine changing the cam on that new Silverado 4 cylinder which can run on 2 cylinders and have it come out right. That engine is going to be almost as untouchable as a Tesla motor unit.

We have, over time, learned what things do kill us and have sought alternatives. That's why we don't use asbestos anymore, or lead paint, or leaded gasoline. We adapted and found better replacements. People generally like TDIs for the torque. In that case, those same people should love EVs. EVs can out torque any tdi of similar physical size.

I like TDIs but even the cleanest TDI is toxic. Don't believe me? Sit in your garage with the door closed and the car idling...(no don't, but you get the point)

Ford, Toyota, GM, and Tesla all had battery buyback programs at one point where you get a trade in value for your old battery. I haven't heard anything in a while so I don't know if they're still active or not.

It varies depending on the kilowatt hour of the battery and the type of the battery. I've seen as low as $1,500 for a Prius and $14,000 for a Tesla. The Tesla can be $120,000 car though.

With the hybrid Prius and Ford Escapes that hasn't been an issue, the batteries typically outlast the car. Prius and Escape taxis go multiple hundreds of thousands of miles on their original batteries.

Judge: Which fluids were spilled doing the incident? Officer: All of them.

Another friend of mine who is smart on these matters is now also predicting the same thing... although his estimation is that it will happen sooner than my guess of mid-Fall 2018.

Volvo has managed to reduce core components of their engine lineup substantially while still offering differentiation between vehicles. Every engine is the same basic 2.0 liter 4-cylinder, and then by adding turbocharging, supercharging, and electric motors, they have everything from a base XC40 with 248hp all the way to a top line S90 Plug-In hybrid with 400hp and 472 lb-ft of torque. .... but the basic block, cylinders, and side accessories are all identical. It's a product planner's wet dream.... and I expect a number of other manufacturers to pursue it.

It looks like they're still using the diesel for direct physical propulsion. I've long maintained that the Volt should have used a diesel for its regenerator. Diesels are especially efficient hanging out at single steady RPM.... a task especially suitable for generating electricity to charge a battery or provide propulsion. They could have done a little 1 liter turbo diesel and probably gotten MPG over 90 easily.

Remember that GM now has to pay PSA to build Regals.... so they probably don't care how many they sell.

Older variation... How many Kennedys and Ted drinks till the room spins.