lbrande

For cross country, I prefer my Volvo XC70. For fun, I prefer my M5. For trailering, I prefer my Toyota Tundra. I'm not fond of the SUV's of any style.

Muddyvalley Loc: McMinnville, Oregon

LOL: Formula 1 cars get about 6mpg. Any filtering down goes to the "super cars", not your daily drivers.

cmc4214 Loc: S.W. Pennsylvania

They don't make cars like that anymore. Small SUVs have very low towing capacities, 1500lbs. (682 kilos) or less, cars, even less than that

cmc4214 Loc: S.W. Pennsylvania

Ok, alcohol is technically not fossil fuel, but still a waste of energy.
Also:
I have nothing against auto racing, I was just pointing out the contradiction between what the OP said and his avatar

burkphoto Loc: High Point, NC

Unfortunately, calling people stupid for doing something stupid does not magically make them smarter. If you want to change minds, you have to use arguments that meet them where they are and take them to where you want them to be. Running them down is not a sales technique!

I choose to set an example... I drive a Prius, as do my wife, one of my twins, and my mother-in-law. The other twin drives a hybrid Lexus, and my wife's sister drives a hybrid RAV4. Hers is the closest any of us come to owning an SUV. It gets about 39 miles per US gallon of fuel.

Our strategy is to RENT a truck, van, or SUV as occasional needs arise. It's a helluva lot less costly than owning any of them, and yet it allows us to target our precise needs with the correct vehicle to get the job done. (None of us has a job or lifestyle that requires a pickup or van or SUV.)

I have used that strategy in many areas of life. If I need an expensive tool once every couple of years, I'll rent it. If I need a rare or expensive lens or camera for a specific project, I'll rent it.

Our attitudes are that vehicles of all types are "holes in the road we throw money into." Most of the time, our current vehicles are saving us a ton of money on fuel, tires, brakes, insurance, taxes, and repairs, not to mention financing charges and the cost of buying a larger vehicle. They're a way to get from A to B. If we get there in relative comfort and safety with low cost and a great stereo, we are happy. But when we need a different ride for a specific purpose, we summon a rental with no qualms about it.

alberio Loc: Casa Grande AZ

I know, but just had to throw that in 😎😎😎 and I don't think Nitro Methane is either, but they sure work well.

wasatch Loc: Salt Lake City, UT

And they are safer. We had a Honda Pilot and a lady ran a red light at 40 miles per hour and hit us on the side towards the rear of the vehicle. My wife and son were on that side of the car and are still in physical therapy (it was about three months ago). I was on the passenger side and consider myself blessed that I was okay. I have been dealing with pain issues for 35 years after someone ran a red light and broadsided me in a Toyota Corolla. It basically destroyed my car and broke my neck. I was lucky it didn't paralyze or kill me.

So don't be so degrading about some of the SUVs. They are not the huge pickups that some drive.

Dannj

I haven’t done the math but are you assuming it was empty at each fill-up? Maybe he just keeps topping off (filling up) a nearly full tank.

JacksonHD Loc: NorCal

Not exactly. Top fuel and funny cars run on a mix of nitromethane and methanol (methal alcohol). Nitromethane does not mix with gasoline. (Nitropropane however.... )

Last time I was around that stuff, they did squirt some gasoline into the injectors to help start the motor. Once is starts it is run on 100% methanol for a few seconds, then switched to nitro. Thay no longer run on "pure" nitro. Rules allow a maximum of 90% nitro to keep speeds down.

F1 cars run on unleaded racing gas (no more of the "who knows what" that Honda used to run).

Indy cars used to run on methanol with a bit of "pop" (nitromethane). Now (and for sometime) they run on ethanol (ethyl alcohol), which is more suitable for drinking, but is considered more eco-friendly.

Diesel engines were tried at Indy 60 years ago or so, without success.
Ford used gasoline at Indy, again 50 or 60 years ago. The theory was it made less horsepower, but would make fewer pit stops. It was somewhat sucessful, but gasoline is considered less safe (fire hazard) than alcohol, so it was eventually banned.

Just fyi....

fantom Loc: Colorado

You are the one who is ignorant of the world. I know and have known many people who could not get to or from their homes without a SUV, during certain seasons of the year.

I suppose the next thing you will be preaching to us about will be how people in wilderness arctic locations should use dog sleds and not snowmobiles because the snow machines pollute and you can't eat them if they break down and you are stranded.

alberio Loc: Casa Grande AZ

I didn't know F1 cars used unleaded racing fuel. Why? Just curious.

JacksonHD Loc: NorCal

I don't have any direct knowledge of F1, but as I recall they always used gasoline, racing gas, high octane (detonation resistance). When Honda was in F1 they supposedly blended their own gas, which apparently met specs for specific gravity, etc., but which reportedly contained a carefully selected and blended array of distillates, along with some other pretty toxic stuff. (Benzine was pretty common in racing fuels for many years, may still be, but it is considered pretty toxic.) Like tire rules, fuel rules are supposed to "level the playing field." But in those days, as Smoky (Yunick) said, "They didn't say you couldn`t."

Why unleaded? To be green and eco-friendly. Lead is a lot cheaper and helps exhaust valve life, but it is certainly toxic. I believe NASCAR is using a blend of unleaded gas and ethanol, E15. Again it is green (literally in this case) and eco-friendly (if you believe it is better to turn corn into gas rather than food), and I suspect the alky helps detonation control. Alky was originally added to gas to lean-out the mixture in the carburator days, to reduce hc emissions. It continued in use into the FI days to augment limited fuel supplies.

robertjerl Loc: Corona, California

Yes, you have climb down in to some of those small cars. Our son had a Saturn Ion I called the Submarine because I (5'8") had to climb down into it. He went in the Army and it got shared by his sister (5'4") and my wife(5'7") when she didn't want to drive the huge station wagon she got after her mother died and her little Subaru AWD wagon gave up the ghost.

blackhorse 1-7

Excuse my blunt response but your argument is absurd. Today's SUV's is less weight, uses less steel and is significantly more fuel efficient than the cars of the 50's, 60's and 70's. And they are also safer. A single occupant of a modern SUV pollutes so much less than a big fin 60's caddy or 70's Oldsmobile. Your bias is clearly showing.

clint f. Loc: Priest Lake Idaho, Spokane Wa

Alcohol made from corn? Some cultures find it odd to burn food.