The future of cars according to BP

[cchase]

There was a thread on here a few weeks ago that stated the average age of vehicles on the road in this country was 11.5 years or thereabouts.

To get an average of 11.5, there are a lot of 20 year old cars out on the road.

 

[javacontour]

Keeping a vehicle 20 years is not the same as an average age.

If I keep a vehicle for ten years, then the next guy keeps it for five, then three, then one or two, it gets to be twenty years old.

Don't confuse length of ownership with vehicle age.

 

[Artem]

Yea my 98 Camry v6 is still kicking strong and its coming up on 15 years old with only 1 owner... ME!

There are a TON of older Civics, Corollas, you name it, still driving around. People today try to keep the older cars running because it's cheaper then getting a new car.

It's just silly to throw out numbers about how long we'll keep something.

Lets all prove BP wrong and keep our current cars for another 18-20 years!

I want to add that, the older Civics, etc average 40mpg+ because they are small, light weight and have tiny 1.5L engines. I just don't see these cars hitting the junk yard anytime soon. They are VERY efficient by today's standards... All you gotta do is fix up the exterior / interior to look better (20 years of wear and tear is hard on the eyes)

 

[expat]

Originally Posted By: sasilverbullet
Hmmm, a foreign oil company, that doesn't have a clue what kind of vehicle is needed in rural America, telling us what the future holds? [censored]. Pickups and large SUV's are the work horse of rural America - until someone figures out how to alternatively power them they're here to stay, even at $5 a gallon.



I find it strange that many North Americans feel that 'Their' bit of the world is somehow different to the rest.

In America we NEED honking great, V8 powered, trucks and SUV's,
How else can we manage?

We WILL manage, but managing will require ingenuity, flexibility of mind and willingness to adapt.

I remember when I first came here in the 70's, and most CARS had 5 liter+ V8's or 3.5 liter 6's "that was what is needed here" "if Gas ever got more than $1 per gal the country could not exist"

 

[bigmike]

I can't imagine driving anything but a truck.

 

[abycat]

I wouldnt take anything BP says to heart. They just want your money and they dont give a heck about anything else. They have proved that already. If we figure out a better cheaper and easier way to tow our boats and trailers or whatever we will need trucks and the only thing you cant change in a truck is its crummy fuel mileage. You can improve on it but it will never be the same as any car. International has a hybrid 5-ton, I see it every day. it is owned by the power company here. Its a few years old so the tech has been out for a bit but i cant imagine it gets over 20 mpg on the highway and im sure it sucks in town.

I think BP is the worlds most dangerous, lying, thieving company out there and shame on you for killing soo much of our ecosystem.

Im not getting rid of my jet ski and dirtbike cause i cant buy or own a truck. My versa's owners manual pretty much says your high if you are thinking about pulling a trailer.

BP =

 

[Brons2]

Right on, expat.

We need cargo carrying and towing vehicles, but they probably won't be in the form of today's cargo carrying and towing vehicles.

Over in Europe, you see passenger cars towing travel trailers on the highway all the time. It's the lawyers here in the US that keep us from doing the same. And our expectations that we must maintain 70+MPH at all times, hills and mountains be [censored].

What they use as 'trucks' over there, is a van body front end with a flatbed behind it. Mostly with 4cyl turbodiesels. It seems to get the job done, albeit with less power by far than your Cummins/Duramax/PowerStroke engines used in the US.

And therein is what's really coming, if you ask me. Same sorts of vehicles, but with much less power. Americans are just going to have to get used to it.

 

[Brons2]

Originally Posted By: abycat
I wouldnt take anything BP says to heart. They just want your money and they dont give a heck about anything else. They have proved that already.


Nonsense. They have a fiduciary responsibily to do such long range strategic planning. In this case, they just released their vision of the future to the public. Maybe they should have just kept it internal as to not take potshots from the public.

 

[Trvlr500]

I've been driving a '73 Cadillac Coupe for 16 years. I have no intention of retiring it anytime soon and when I do I may just find another one similar to it. It gets better mileage than a Ford F-150 that we have as a shop truck. BP may WANT the future they predict but they probably won't get it unless we fall into a depression and gas is $10 a gallon. A theory many believe will come true.

A total collapse of our economy is no threat to the oil companies or the banks. They already have all the money. What WOULD benefit them is everything in this country for sale. For pennies on the dollar. It happened to England a long, long time ago.

 

[lovcom]

Originally Posted By: sasilverbullet
Hmmm, a foreign oil company, that doesn't have a clue what kind of vehicle is needed in rural America, telling us what the future holds? [censored]. Pickups and large SUV's are the work horse of rural America - until someone figures out how to alternatively power them they're here to stay, even at $5 a gallon.


Did you even read the article? Nowhere did it tell anyone what to do. No where did it tell Rural America what do drive. Their message is very valuable especially to millions of idiot Americans that drive Pick Ups for NO OTHER REASON than fashion. I'm one of the smart Americans; I drive a car that I can eeek 46 MPG from.

 

[lovcom]

Originally Posted By: RISUPERCREWMAN
Hear is my News Flash BP! Trucks of all kinds built this country & continue to do so! Without the service of trucks our economy would be shut down! Trucks trickle down to the guy who tows his boat to make a days pay on the water fishing! BP, trucks are going nowhere! There will always be a market for them! Do you hear me BP!


Did you even read the article? Lots of posters that seem not to have read the article.

And you are WRONG! Pick ups as fashion is in fact dead. Most of the buyers almost never haul anything. They buy them because they are trying to compensate for the too little piece of meat between their legs.

So as gas prices go up, up, the market for PU's will crash down because again, most buyers buy them for reason other than to haul heavy/large items or tow stuff.

I'm not talking about PU drivers that really do need a PU, by the way.

 

[cchase]

Originally Posted By: expat
Originally Posted By: sasilverbullet
Hmmm, a foreign oil company, that doesn't have a clue what kind of vehicle is needed in rural America, telling us what the future holds? [censored]. Pickups and large SUV's are the work horse of rural America - until someone figures out how to alternatively power them they're here to stay, even at $5 a gallon.



I find it strange that many North Americans feel that 'Their' bit of the world is somehow different to the rest.

In America we NEED honking great, V8 powered, trucks and SUV's,
How else can we manage?

We WILL manage, but managing will require ingenuity, flexibility of mind and willingness to adapt.

I remember when I first came here in the 70's, and most CARS had 5 liter+ V8's or 3.5 liter 6's "that was what is needed here" "if Gas ever got more than $1 per gal the country could not exist"


Don't confuse the "need" for trucks with the "need" for large engines.

This country runs on trucks. Whether or not the trucks will forever need large, thirsty engines is another matter altogether.

 

[expat]

Yes, we ARE talking about two things, Transport Trucks and Domestic Trucks that are more RV (but with some utility)

I was talking to a company exec of a French paper mill about seven years ago, The company was looking to expand to North America. He was over here Crunching Numbers. He felt the 'Deal Killer would be Transport! I asked why, surly fuel prices were lower here?
He said the Killer was allowed Payload for the Trucks and that axle loading differed from State to state.
Paper is heavy, if you need two trucks where one might do, transport costs skyrocket.

Consider Australian Road Trains.

Traditional Rail systems (he thought) were not sufficiently developed.

 

[3311]

Originally Posted By: RISUPERCREWMAN
Hear is my News Flash BP! Trucks of all kinds built this country & continue to do so! Without the service of trucks our economy would be shut down! Trucks trickle down to the guy who tows his boat to make a days pay on the water fishing! BP, trucks are going nowhere! There will always be a market for them! Do you hear me BP!
Bingo!! My trucks are an essential tool in my business.

 

[Bluestream]

Originally Posted By: abycat
I wouldnt take anything BP says to heart. They just want your money and they dont give a heck about anything else. They have proved that already. If we figure out a better cheaper and easier way to tow our boats and trailers or whatever we will need trucks and the only thing you cant change in a truck is its crummy fuel mileage. You can improve on it but it will never be the same as any car. International has a hybrid 5-ton, I see it every day. it is owned by the power company here. Its a few years old so the tech has been out for a bit but i cant imagine it gets over 20 mpg on the highway and im sure it sucks in town.

I think BP is the worlds most dangerous, lying, thieving company out there and shame on you for killing soo much of our ecosystem.

Im not getting rid of my jet ski and dirtbike cause i cant buy or own a truck. My versa's owners manual pretty much says your high if you are thinking about pulling a trailer.

BP =

Very bizzare posting..

 

[TFB1]

Originally Posted By: lovcom
I'm one of the smart Americans; I drive a car that I can eeek 46 MPG from.


Good on you, go buy a couple more so you can save even more gas that I can burn in my thirsty V8s...

 

[Bluestream]

Originally Posted By: MarkM66
Doom and gloom, doom and gloom. Our future sucks... tired of hearing it.


Funny, I got the opposite message..

 

[MuzzleFlash40]

Will I down-size my vehicle when it's time to get a new one in 6-7 years? Maybe. Thats not saying much, since pretty much all cars sold now are smaller than mine, lol. I was impressed with the new buick regal and lacrosse. The V6 Lacrosse made 30mpg on the highway when we rented one a few weeks ago. Much improvement over the 2.4L we drove a year ago.

 

[01rangerxl]

Pickups and SUVs won't go away, but fewer people will be buying them. I remember 10 years ago when every other passenger vehicle was an Expedition or Tahoe, but a lot of those people have since downsized. For a lot of people a vehicle like that doesn't make sense. I just wish it had been allowed to happen on its own and not with the destruction of thousands of perfectly good vehicles that some of us can use.

Pickups are a major driver of the economy here. Tons of businesses, contractors, landscaping companies, couriers, etc. use them because they are the best vehicle for the job. I don't use the full capabilities of my truck daily, but I use it frequently enough that I wouldn't be able to do what I do without it. If worse came to worst and gas became unaffordable, it's an FFV so I could in theory grow and distill fuel for it.

 

[91344George]

I agree 4 $ /gallon gas for more than several months WILL put the USA right back in a major recession, if it lasts for a year or more the powers that be will finally admit what we have actually been in for several years now....a virtual depression. It is only going to get worse from here on in.

The financial analyists like Jim Rodgers have been right about this all along he has been calling what we have a legit mild DEPRESSION.

http://www.cnbc.com/id/43328325/US_Is_Nearing_Even_Worse_Financial_Crisis_Jim_Rogers