"but for me rather an issue of being forced to do something against my will by anybody"
so your “will” is unassailable,and unerringly correct? One Question: Do you self medicate? Your argument is intellectually bankrupt and you should be ashamed for equating “Freedom” with irresponsible behavior.
That is probably a good idea. 
The US (and Canada) have different environmental regulations than Europe. North America is more concerned with NOx and unburned hydrocarbons, and soot. Many diesels won’t meet US emission requirements.
Don’t forget:
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Crash safety. The smallest European cars won’t meet US (and Canada) safety standards for occupancy protection. This keeps them off the roads as well.
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Emissions: the “Smart ForTwo” when introduced in North America (actually in Canada) the only engine option was a .9 liter diesel, as the European gas engine couldn’t be made to meet emission limits, without having to tack on a large amount of extra equipment, that wouldn’t fit in the car!
Why do you need a Sierra because you cannot walk up hills?
actually,it takes roughly 1 and a half hours from east to west(not including wales),and north to south(not including scotland)about 4 hours!to drive,thats when theres no traffic!
Noggersville! As they say, well, somewhere. Or right on! Owning a gas guzzler car is the absolute height of stupidity. For my next car, I’m waiting for the Chinese plug-in electric car. Now that makes sense.
Doug, Knoxville, Tennessee
The United States Is About Freedom And Choices
To take away freedom and choices is to take away America. Although I don’t fit the descriptions of activities that you find so offensive, I will fight to defend others’ choices. These are all legal activities. Be careful what you wish for. Somebody else may decide that some of your choices are offensive.
America, What A Country!
Calling Someone’s American Rights To Freedom And Choice Stupid, Is To Be Critical Of The American Way Of Life.
Why wait? Get over there and have those communists put you in the vehicle of your dreams. By the way, while you’re living there, you may feel a little uneasy about the crowded streets, restrictions imposed by the government and the pollution problems. Don’t let it get you down, you’ll look mighty fine driving that Chi-Com Electric Mobile. Be careful what you wish for.
America, What A Country!
In Soviet Russia, you protect crumple zones.
Also, a large V8 gas guzzler will still pass you as your electric car runs out of juice 20 miles from home. And refueling one will take a minute or two, while an all electric vehicle will require hours upon hours to recharge and tax the electrical grid even more
From eastern Maine to western California it’ll take almost 3 days of continuous driving to get there. From Miami, Florida to northern Minnesota will take almost 2 days of continuous drive time. That’s not counting going to Alaska through Canada or traversing the Pacific to get to Hawaii.
If you lived in Key West Florida(one of the more southerly points in the US, and wanted to go to Fairbanks, Alaska(mapquest won’t list directions to Barrow, Alaska, probably the northernmost city, for some reason), expect atleast 4 days straight drive time to get there
Even with all he technology of today cars are about the same as 20 years ago.
You have no idea what you’re talking about…
Cars today get MUCH better gas mileage. Take the same weight vehicle and size today as compared to 20 years the gas mileage is easily 20% higher. Cars like the Carmy Hybrid …there’s no car I know of made 20 years that’s near it’s weight and size that gets anything CLOSE to what the Camry hybrid does today.
And as for hybrid SUVs they don’t get much better milage then the non hybrids on the highway.
Yukon Hybrid 21/22
Yukon non hybrid V8 14/20
Hybrids for SUV’s are a joke…especially the way GM implemented it. Hybrids also get the best mileage in city stop and go driving.
Even when gas was $4 a gallon RVing was cheaper than finding a motel, especially if you boondock at a truck stop or a Wal Mart instead of getting a motel room. Now that gas is cheap again, the RV will save you money even if you stay at a campground.
I travel on the cheap and I would rather drive an RV and boondock at a truck stop than pay $70 for a motel room.
Keeping your bass boat at a marina will limit the lakes in which you can fish. Not being able to tow it from the lake to the everglades would defeat the purpose of owning a bass boat.
wow!i bet england would fit into florida!
HI Stephen,
If my problem were as simple as yours I would be in a prius or a mini-cooper, or better yet, a smart car! I drive 75 km to work in heavy traffic surrounded by trucks and large SUVs. I drive in 16 cm or more of snow, since my road is not usually plowed before I leave in the morning. My concerns are having a vehicle that is high enough of the ground to clear the snow and substantial enough to avoid becoming a pancake. If it could run on a fuel cell rather than gas (Prius only goes to electric when you are not accelerating) it would be perfect. I only need to go 80mph.
Find me this car! Please! I must replace my current car in 2 years!
as long as the driver doesn’t touch the emissions controls on the existing exhaust, he/she is not producing much, if any, more pollution than he/she would with the stock exhaust. If the truck is billowing black smoke, then the drive is probably running a tuner which will dump more fuel into the engine.
What’s irresponsible to one person isn’t necessarily irresponsible to another.
The Hybrid Escape does quite well compared to it’s gas only V6 counterpart.
What if you just want a fast car and prefer the sound of V8 to that of a 4 banger, and don’t want to break the bank. An F1 car cost millions, and BTW sport V8’s and get about 2 MPG. Your suggestions smell of socialism/borderline communism. Yes, let’s allow the all-knowing , all-mighty government decide what the plebeians get to drive.
I think that you have some good points, but your delivery seems to cause irritation. Please don’t assume that all Americans have the same habits. Back in 1988, I was looking for a new vehicle because 3 children were getting bigger and we like to travel. I searched for many months, and was not happy with any of the offerings. Then Nissan came out with the Stanza Wagon. 2L, 4 Cyl. I bought one. $10K USD. Front wheel drive. I chose the manual tranny. All four side doors opened in such a way that the entire side of the wagon was accessible. Large back hatch, too. Got 30 mpg on the highway, fully loaded, 70 mph, with A/C. It would pull 2000 lbs, though the mileage suffered when I did that. (I used to help my neighbor haul wood for the winter for his wood stove. I had a 500 lb trailer, and we’d load it with a ton (literally) of wood.) In the mountains of Utah, @ about 8000 ft ((2400 m) I out-pulled some other vehicles, such as the 4WD Eagle. I had to let it warm up for 5 minutes before I tried to climb any steep inclines, such as I might find if camped by a river.
I drove that car for nearly 300K miles, and finally gave it away. Everything still worked. Great car. Great to travel in. Great mileage. Strong gears in the manual tranny. Oh yeah, I nearly forgot. I drove the //second// one nearly 300K miles. At about 100K miles in the first one (1990), we were on the way back from a camping trip when we were hit on the highway by an errant 18-wheeler. We were tossed around the highway like a toy boat in a storm, but the Stanza Wagon held together well, and when we finally stopped - on the guardrail, facing traffic, and half the windows blown out - we found that we all came through it with minor bruises. We were actually lucky that we were on the way back from camping because the kids had their blankets and pillows out and that helped protect them.
So I am convinced that most folks can get by with fairly small power plants. But the US culture (where I live) has become accustomed to larger engines and wasteful driving habits. With the current economic crash, gas guzzlers are going begging. One dealer even had an ad for a short time to the effect that if you bought a truck, he’d throw in a compact car for free. No kidding.
I currently drive a 2001 Maxima with a 3.0L engine. Wish that it had a smaller engine. Just because I want a car with some room in it doesn’t mean that I need a large power plant. Even so, I get nearly 30 mpg routinely in mixed driving, and that is 3-4 mpg more than others with the same car. Driving habits.
The post that mentioned what is available in the US is on target. But it is a case of the chicken and the egg. Dealers advertise and offer big cars because they think that is what folks want. It pretty much is true. But folks want what they see advertised. I am constantly surprised by the advertising claims for small cars that tout 30 mpg. I get that in my 3.0L Maxima! I think that the next few years here will see a change in auto offerings.