What kind of car do you drive?

[vivaldirules]

For sulfur and particulates emissions, diesel and diesel engines did not meet sufficiently stringent environmental requirements here so several states (eight?) ban the sales of passenger cars with them. That may be changing now that ultra-low sulfur diesel (10 ppm sulfur max) is available and cleaner burning diesel engines are becoming available. U.S. refiners have optimized their conversion units to turn crude into the proper volumes of gasoline, diesel, jet fuel, etc. for U.S. consumers. If the relative proportions of those fuels need to change because there are more diesel cars, refiners will adapt accordingly.

[sherkanner]

Originally Posted by wodin

It was a great loss for us Americans when Citroen decide they didn't want to play the US emission controls and safety standards games (read trade embargo without the negative connotations of that name), and stopped exporting them to us.

I recall having seen a couple of Citroens while at University (early sixties) and was impressed by them. I have to admit, they were VERY ugly though!

Sorry, they were (and are still) not ugly, especially the old ones. That is the citroen touch. The problem is taht they were way too much in advance for their time. Having hydraulic suspension, hydraulic gear box, break discs, front light turning with the wheels, injection, assited turning wheel (sorry, don't know the english term for that), and so on.

When one crosses the path of an old DS, one has no other choices but to look at it, it is not so much out of date, even now. Just a little bit too round by nowaday standards. But still, it includes itself quite well it todays trafic.

As every citroen fan, I am always waiting for citroen to provide us with such a revolutionary car as was the DS in it's time.

[yvanleterrible]

Originally Posted by vivaldirules

For sulfur and particulates emissions, diesel and diesel engines did not meet sufficiently stringent environmental requirements here so several states (eight?) ban the sales of passenger cars with them. That may be changing now that ultra-low sulfur diesel (10 ppm sulfur max) is available and cleaner burning diesel engines are becoming available. U.S. refiners have optimized their conversion units to turn crude into the proper volumes of gasoline, diesel, jet fuel, etc. for U.S. consumers. If the relative proportions of those fuels need to change because there are more diesel cars, refiners will adapt accordingly.

Good news.

[HarryT]

Originally Posted by sherkanner

assited turning wheel (sorry, don't know the english term for that), and so on.

I think "power steering" is the term you're looking for.

[mtnmedic]

2002 Hyundai Accent GL. Still gets 30-32mpg.

[jenieliser]

I drive a silver 99 Volvo s70...My dad gave it to me when I got married. I was from a small town, moving to the city-apparently the Volvo is one of the safest cars. And apparently my dad expected me to be a bad driver. I don't think I'm the typical Volvo driver, but I like it a lot.

[Sweetpea]

Originally Posted by sherkanner

Sorry, they were (and are still) not ugly, especially the old ones. That is the citroen touch. The problem is taht they were way too much in advance for their time. Having hydraulic suspension, hydraulic gear box, break discs, front light turning with the wheels, injection, assited turning wheel (sorry, don't know the english term for that), and so on.

When one crosses the path of an old DS, one has no other choices but to look at it, it is not so much out of date, even now. Just a little bit too round by nowaday standards. But still, it includes itself quite well it todays trafic.

As every citroen fan, I am always waiting for citroen to provide us with such a revolutionary car as was the DS in it's time.

It's ugly, always has been!

I doubt you'll find people in the middle: either they find it ugly, or they love it

[zelda_pinwheel]

Originally Posted by Sweetpea

It's ugly, always has been!

I doubt you'll find people in the middle: either they find it ugly, or they love it

the ds ugly ????? heresy !!!! it's the most beautiful car ever made !!!

[wodin]

Originally Posted by sherkanner

Sorry, they were (and are still) not ugly, especially the old ones. That is the citroen touch. The problem is taht they were way too much in advance for their time. Having hydraulic suspension, hydraulic gear box, break discs, front light turning with the wheels, injection, assited turning wheel (sorry, don't know the english term for that), and so on.

When one crosses the path of an old DS, one has no other choices but to look at it, it is not so much out of date, even now. Just a little bit too round by nowaday standards. But still, it includes itself quite well it todays trafic.

As every citroen fan, I am always waiting for citroen to provide us with such a revolutionary car as was the DS in it's time.

Yes, all of those things are what impressed me about them. Since beauty is in the eyes of the beholder, I still think they’re ugly. But to each his/her own!

[Shaggy]

My daily driver is a 2002 Ford Focus station wagon. Nothing really special, decent mileage though.

My "fun" car is a 1967 Camaro.

[pshrynk]

Originally Posted by Shaggy

My daily driver is a 2002 Ford Focus station wagon. Nothing really special, decent mileage though.

My "fun" car is a 1967 Camaro.

Attachment 32288

Ooooooh! Sparkly!

[PhishStyx]

Originally Posted by Shaggy

My daily driver is a 2002 Ford Focus station wagon. Nothing really special, decent mileage though.

My "fun" car is a 1967 Camaro.

Attachment 32288

Shiny!

[demoric]

I drive a '88 Jeep Cherokee, and a '00 Harley Sportster 1200 Custom.
The misses drives an '04 Ford Focus (first owners).

[Steven Lyle Jordan]

Originally Posted by HarryT

Good heavens - I knew that diesel cars were very rare in the US, but I didn't know that they were actually illegal!

Doesn't really make much sense, since they have so much better fuel consumption than petrol engines.

True... but older diesels emit a particulate soot that is even more hazardous to the human body than petrol (excuse me) gas fumes and carbon monoxide. The soot is fine enough to filter through the lungs and directly into the bloodstream. This is why many health organizations have opposed extensive rollouts of diesel use in the U.S.

Now that newer designs are emitting much less soot and particulates, they are seeing more interest in the U.S. But of course, now that diesel is more expensive than gas (excuse me) petrol in most of the U.S., they might not be very popular for long.

Edit: Should have read on a bit farther... Vivaldi covered it pretty well, too!

[Steven Lyle Jordan]

Originally Posted by HansTWN

with so many environmentally responsible people replying to this thread, where are the Hummer and Ferrari people? Hiding their heads in shame? We have a 2007 BMW X5 and a 1997 BMW 735. Our Toyota Zace van just got stolen.

These days it's hard to boast about gas-guzzlers, though in the U.S., people are still buying them. I still hear people expressing a desire for SUVs on a regular basis. They still want that BIG vehicle, no matter what it costs to gas it up, because they still believe they are all safer than small cars, and they want all that space. Remember, in America, luxury = big.