America’s Fuel Problems

It’s everywhere you go, your morning news to your drive down to the grocery store: petroleum problems. Today when we go to gas stations to fill up whatever we may drive, we almost literally cringe at the high prices. Recently, crude oil went over $100 per barrel, which is a mark never before imagined before recent times. Even though we don’t want to admit it, we as American’s are responsible for the steady and never-ending rise of gas prices. Having to have everything “our way”, we go out and buy Hummers and large SUVs that get at best 15 miles per gallon. Now don’t get me wrong some people need larger vehicles because they have a large family or they live on a farm and absolutely need something to haul things such as grain and tools in, but when people are driving around for leisure by themselves in a vehicle that gets 15 miles per gallon it makes my blood boil.

Why be driving this “fuel hog” when you could be just as easily be driving a hybrid? It wouldn’t even have to be a hybrid there are also hydrogen cell cars that are on the verge of coming out and even diesel cars. My parents have a 2007 Volkswagen Jetta TDI (turbo diesel injected), which nicely gets 45 mpg CITY. Although that may be impressive, you also need to know that it will go up to 49 mpg highway.

Most of all the other countries in the world are taking on fuel consumption and having mandatory mpg minimums that in places such as England reaching in the mid 40’s. To give you an idea of how committed these foreign countries are I will give you a fact. The Jetta TDI car that I mentioned earlier will have a 2008 model released in early spring much later than most other cars. You care to know why? Because they promised 60 mpg and they wouldn’t release it until it was that high. Now that is downright commitment. There is so much more that can be learned about better fuel efficiency if we only open our eyes to the truth: times are changing and we should demand better fuel efficiency in America.