Energy economy was thought to be a significant factor in their selection of a new car by a minimum of 1/3 of buyers in America. Due to the preoccupation today with smog, global warming and America’s dependence on international sources of oil, it’s actually shocking to learn that as long ago as 1992 a car that got 100 miles to the gallon was built by General Motors. There was also a car that looked a lot like the Geo Metro and weighed 1000 pounds, which boasted 75 miles per gallon gas mileage. Advancement of the vehicle, the engine which had 3 cylinders, was dropped because, in order to meet American safety specifications, it had to be reinforced which added 200 pounds to its weight.

This is in no way the only protype designed by GM which ended up on the scrapheap. The GM Lean Machine of 1982, which could achieve 80 mpg, along with the GM Ultralite which realized a fabulous 100 mpg, were two of these vehicles. GM seemed to be presenting cars to the purchasing public in 1992 that did 20 mpg, while Honda was getting 50 mpg with their Civic VX, but right then GM already covertly had cars doing 100 miles per gallon. If perhaps cars that had been able to get 100 miles per gallon had already been developed way back then, why is it that such cars are not being sold today?

It is just a weird phenomenon that some companies promote traditional vehicles in the US, but sell different, more efficient cars in other countries. Consumers in Japan and Europe have for quite some time now managed to get cars that do 70 miles per gallon and more. The Lupo, a Volkswagen, is a perfect example of a car that gets 78 MPG, but has never been sold in the US. Honda introduced to the US market in 2007, a car called the Fit, but known as the Jazz in other parts of the world. The Jazz in Japan has ways to boost fuel economy and a smaller engine, but for the US, the Fit doesn’t even have a smaller engine as an option.

The auto manufacturers tell Americans that they love big cars, and that is what they want to make big cars. Of course they make big money on SUVs, and almost nothing on a small two-person commuter. Commercials have convinced the citizens of the US that Tanks on Wheels are an absolute must to have. The fact that options have never been offered shows where the big companies have their interests. The top in fuel economy may have been General Motors, but they prefer to remain the leader in SUVs instead. The many other auto producers did the same thing by producing fuel-efficient cars, then again denied them to Americans.

We all live in a society that has waged wars over oil, that has been polluted, and car makers have never even given the choice to people in this country of fuel-efficient cars. Just how many people would’ve loved having a car that got good gas mileage, and were never presented with the option? Maybe it is time to get those old plans back out and build a vehicle that has already been built before. Learn more about escalade wheels.