The Oil Drum

“So, how many miles does it get?” It was a Sunday morning, and we were looking at my car, and so I mentioned that I had started to change the way I drove. As a result (driven by a little monitor display) I was now getting about 10 – 20% better mileage than the estimate I was given when I bought the car. “Yup,” said the pickup driver I was talking with, “I’ve started doing the same sort of thing. Slow down a bit, don’t accelerate as hard, the little things. And you know what?” He went on, “ a lot of other folk have started driving that way too. Of course you’ve still got the hot rods, but in general . . . .” Of course it helps that we live in a relatively small town, in more of a rural setting.

This is a guest post by Lorna Li, a dedicated a Green activist, rainforest crusader, social innovator, and technology enthusiast.

Recently, a large group of auto workers and dealers have broken from the industry in order to support the 35 mpg by 2020 fuel efficiency standard that is currently being debated by Congress. This is the latest high-profile group that has joined the ranks of a broad coalition of environmental organizations, student groups, musicians, and trade associations that have been lobbying Congress to pass a strong, clean 2007 Energy Bill.

Fuel efficiency has been one of the more contentious items on the legislative agenda this year, with the House and the Senate deeply divided over the Corporate Average Fuel Economy (CAFE) Standard, a proposal that calls for auto manufacturers to increase fuel efficiency to 35 mpg for cars, SUVs, and light trucks.

[ED by PG:] Engineer-Poet graces us with a new "Short Takes" segment--a few interesting takes all thrown together, whether it's educating us on differential equations, cracking on the MSM for being innumerate or dropping snarky limericks on us--there's nothing quite like the E.P.-ster, and it's under the fold.

I am driving I70 from Boulder on my way to Pittsburgh in my 1988 blue VW Jetta.

Dave's Car (not really, but close!)

So with oil a shade under $70/barrel and gasoline at about $2.80/gallon on the interstate in the Midwest, I thought I'd report on what's going on out here. I hope you'll add your comments to this brief road trip report. I'm sure many of you have plenty of experiences to report.