Not Enough

Growing up in this area of the U.S. I have probably lived most of my life sitting in an automobile. In recent years of study it has become clear why this has been. The middle-west was, for the purposes of business growth, systematically engineered to be automobile-dependant in the 20th Century. When I first realized just how much CO2 is pumped out of tail-pipes, and by the cars I had driven alone, it was really shocking. In 2007 I sold my 2.8L, 6-cylinder, 5-passenger, 3100lb. car and purchased a 1.8L, 4-cylinder, 2-passenger, 2300lb. replacement. I thought with the reduction in displacement by almost 1/3rd, and a reduction in weight by nearly half a ton that I would drastically reduce emissions. Well... this turned out not to be the case. The two cars were manufactured in the same year and tuned to produce nearly identical bhp/liter(around 70), and lb./bhp ratios(around 17). Both have manufacturer claimed 0-60 times in the 7-8 second range. This is the performance that I am used to. So, I did some checking and it turns out the new car emits only 20g/km less CO2, and averages only 3-6 miles-per-gallon more. So, everyone buy a Tesla, they will depreciate, and I will be able to afford one before I'm 50.