 |
Rust in Peace: The Sport Utility Vehicle |
 |
The SUV is dead. Or at least it’s on life-support. As gas prices continue to rise, sales of the guzzling behemoths have hit rock bottom. As a result, the major auto makers are giving their corporate strategies an overhaul. According to Chris Sorenson of the Toronto Star:
General Motors Corp. yesterday cited a “structural shift” in the U.S. vehicle market, which has long been dominated by sales of pickup trucks and truck-based SUVs…Â GM said it will instead focus on making smaller cars and is considering a sale of its Hummer brand, the poster child of North American vehicular excess…Â Toyota Motor Corp. said May sales of the Camry and Corolla sedans outsold for the first time Ford Motor Co.’s venerable F-series pickups, the best selling line of vehicles in the U.S. for the past 22 years.
Add to this the fact that demand in the U.S. for gasoline has finally started declining, and we might be feeling some of those benefits of high gas prices that some have been talking about. Certainly, this is a good development in the fight against global warming. Less carbon emissions are less carbon emissions, whether it comes through voluntary measures or the coercion of the world petroleum market.
Too bad all this causes so much hardship for the poor and the working class…
Almost two years ago my pride and joy a 1969 GMC C-10, finally became so unreliable as to push me into my local Chevy-GMC showroom. Thas right, bought me a brand new ‘06 Silverado with every new-fangled option you can imagine. GPS…got it. SatRadio. got it. OnStar..got it. Separate heater controls..got it. Swivel Captain’s Chairs…youbetcha…4wheelDrive…uh huh…Special option Sun/moon roof…whatcanIsay…20″ Chromes…bling. Special Option tow package..(country boys HAVE to have this, even though my old truck would tow anything I have. But as the salesman told me “This baby will tow EVERYTHING you have”. I’ll admit it…”I’m a sucker for…shiny stuff”.
As fate would have it, my truck is @ 400 pounds overweight. The sticker said 16-20mpg. I actually get 11-14. That wasn’t SO bad…nearly two years ago. Now I’m trying to find another sucke@, errr, smart buyer to unload on. I tried to trade my truck for my 14 year old nephew’s MOPED but he’s demanding the truck AND $750. Freakin’ brat…got me starting to weaken…:-)