I've been catching up on my commercial viewing during the NFL football season and, as per usual, I've been surprised by the stories advertisers are telling us. Some of the most egregious lies seem to be coming from the much-maligned auto industry.
Automakers, instead of actually building more fuel efficient vehicles, have decided instead to try to convince us that 24 miles per gallon (mpg) is fuel efficient--which is patently absurd. 24 mpg is only about 2 mpg more than the average, which has been stagnant for almost 30 years. The fuel efficient label, such as it is, should only apply to cars with a 35 mpg rating or higher (highway).
In the ad above, by the way, that's 24 mpg highway (always read the fine print); the city rating for the new Ford Flex is actually 17 mpg. Seriously.
Kind of boggles the mind when you're driving your TDI, doesn't it?
Indeed! Laryn is referring to our VW Jetta TDI, which is Volkswagen's diesel model. We've been driving it for about nine years and we consistently get around 50 mpg.
By the time we need a new car (perhaps another nine years from now?) I'm hoping that VW will have introduced a diesel hybrid. I read about a production model they had built that was getting a rating of over 90 mpg. Wouldn't that be amazing?
A new HondaFit is not as fuel efficient as the 1979 VW Rabbit I once owned. 30 years with no improvement!