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  1. #1
    HURRICANEBOB Guest

    GAS, TRUCKS, AND BOATS AND SUCH

    Have you noticed the relationship? Gas prices are steady on the rise while truck sales and prices keep tumbling. The Excursion from Ford is now a dinosaur. The truck manufacturers are all scurrying for better mile per gallon ratings. Chevy says its working on "displacment on demand" for its full sized V-8 trucks. Working on it? Well I'll be darned if Cadillac hasn't had that for the longest time already. They called their version the North Star. But Caddy and Chevy are both part of GM, so why do they tell us they are "working on it"? Simple, They have heard the market loud and clear, and the technology that's ben available for the longest time,with sales slumping and profits down, they now are willing to provide us. Actually, I think they got the word with gas so high. Consumers made it clear, either we get better mileage, or we don't buy, even at all time low prices.

    Now lets just take that same logic and push it to boats. Lets say we all slowed the pace of boat buying. Maybe ya now buy a new ever 3 years. Maybe ya just decide to make that every 6 years, cause gas is high, and well all know boat motors get worse mileage then even the biggest gas hogging truck on the road. Ya think maybe the boat builders would suddenly start coming up with better technology? Better hull design aimed at efficiency, or even more emphasis on motor gas economy then Evenrude's E-tech, and the Honda 4's already muster? What about "displacement on demand" boat motor engines? What about hybrid boat motors? WOT, ya get 6 tubes burning mix. Half throttle, the motor drops out 3 jugs and runs on just 3, Cut it to no wake speed, and the gasser stops, and the electric motor kicks in. Hey, don't we call those trolling motors?

    So just maybe, for us all to reap the techno benefits, we need to slow the boat and motor buys, force the builders to take notice, and just maybe while the technology was "being worked on" the prices would drop. Ya know, right now, ya can buy a Chevy, 2006 1/2 ton WT, full size pickup, for less than a small bass boat. Wasn't that way about 12 months ago. Just maybe its time for the boating industry to take a little more of the high gas price hit, translated to less sales, so they might have the incentive to go the way of the car builders. And ya know, we'd all have such a great rationale for doing it. "Well its like this Mister Boat Dealer, you haven't offered me much of any discount on this here $32,000 boat, motor, and trailer, and with gas so high, and my old truck not have the new "on demand-gas saving technology", I just can't afford to buy me that new boat. Besides, the motor##### so much gas I couldn't afford to run the boat with gas prices so high, and since you all made the hull so darn heavy, I can't afford the gas for the truck to even attempt pulling such a heavy load". So Mister Dealer, I know its not your fault, but until that there boat builder and motor builder make this thing lighter, make it get better mileage, and cut about $5000 back to me as a rebate, well I guess my old one will just have to do". How could they argue.......well, I mean with a clear conscience anyway.

    Folks, no one make you pay high prices for cars, boats, or even gas. We, the buyer, make the decisions on what we buy, and how much. Consume a lot of gas, and we all pay more. Buy trucks, and we all pay more. And thats exactly what has gotten us all to the point where a bass boat can cost more than a new mobile home! Didn't used to be like that, and we can have it that way again!

  2. #2
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    RE: GAS, TRUCKS, AND BOATS AND SUCH

    i like your thinking bob ive been saying this same thing for yrs. it works basstrucker

  3. #3
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    RE: GAS, TRUCKS, AND BOATS AND SUCH

    I couldn't agree more. When you can finace a boat for longer than a house that is getting crazy.

  4. #4
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    RE: GAS, TRUCKS, AND BOATS AND SUCH

    Great post Bob.

    Another thing that I've been harping on for years is the fossil fuel industry. They have such a large lobby that the US, under both democrat and republican leadership, has no real energy policy. If we, the U.S. were to turn private industry lose on the problem of alternative fuels, and offer sufficient incentive to come up with a way to power our vehicles just as well, I can almost guarantee you that we would have both automobiles and boats that run on something other than gasoline. We are fortunate to live in a country that has the freedoms we do, but we are almost as equally unfortunate that our politicians always come out of office as multi-millionairs. Wonder why? Lobbiests maybe?

    Another thing I found very humerous. Last evening I saw a car commercial for a buick automobile. They were advertising that the car gets a whopping 29 miles per gallon on the highway, estimated of course. How many of you here are old enough to remember the gas crunch in the mid 70's when gas got as high as 79¢ a gallon? Well back then the cars got better gas milage than that. How much you want to bet the fossil fuel industry is also lining the automaker's pockets to keep fuel guzzeling motors in the market?

    And yes, I do have a fuel guzzeling pickup truck that pulls my fuel guzzeling boat. But at least I do have an opti-max that uses far less fuel than what my Evenrude Intruder did.

    Great topic for a thread.

    Danny

  5. #5
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    RE: GAS, TRUCKS, AND BOATS AND SUCH

    My brother is a chemistry major at WKU. He says that science has already found alternative ways of producing fuel. One example is a way that gasoline can be produced from methane, and how methane can be produced from common waste material. I'm not a scientist, but that's the jest of it. Anyone wanna guess who bought this idea from the scientist who conceived it? I bet the oil companies have a guarded, locked room full of ideas like these they've bought the rights to.
    I totally agree though that the consumer drives the market. But the fuel industry knows that we have to buy, will buy, no matter what. Of course, I too drive a fuel guzzling truck and pull a fuel guzzling boat. Both of which I would not give up easily. Maybe if I, and people like me, were willing to sacrifice and stop buying or buy smaller then the message would get to the market. In my defense (and those like me) I dreamed a long time of having the things I have now and I worked hard to get them. I'm 38 and just now can afford these nice things. Isn't that part of the American dream? And by the way, even at my age, I can remember the 70's when there were many cars that got better gas mileage than the best mileage non-hybrids of today. If we could do that then, imagine what the automotive companies COULD do now. If we made them.

  6. #6
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    RE: GAS, TRUCKS, AND BOATS AND SUCH

    Whats even more crazy is that some people fall for the option of long term financing. Not me, it's a choice i'm not willing to make. Great topic.

  7. #7
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    RE: GAS, TRUCKS, AND BOATS AND SUCH

    Interesting thread.....

    You'd be SURPRISED how much politics plays in the alternative fuel fight. Take for instance......the issue of ethanol, and the BEST method for producting it.

    You have politicians from the CORN growing states pushing corn as the "biomass" of choice for creating ethanol, but from what I've read, CORN is about the worse thing you can grow. The amt of water, fertilizer, post production, etc....outweighs the final benefit. Not only that, but only about 10% of the harvested product can be used to produce ethanol.

    The is a study from KY university.......YES......our STATE, about using Sawgrass. Sawgrass is perfect. It requires very limited cultivation, can be used to shore up wetlands, and help stem erosion, does not require TONS of fertilizer, and can be grown about anywhere. They even created a genetically altered version that can grow in the HARSH environments in some of our northern states. A few million acres of land could generate enough Renewable fuel for generations to come.

    Interesting.....

    Later,

    Geo



  8. #8
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    Re: GAS, TRUCKS, AND BOATS AND SUCH

    Hey about alternative fuels. We take some coins out of big oils pockets, and put them into corporate farmings pockets.Its a lose lose situation.When we use food grains for fuel, the cost of food goes up. Every one has their hand out for uncle sugar to help US, and we are us, and so we are screwing our selves. Its not only for burning in our vechicles. the petro chemical industry is also being squeezed by thease prices.How about a national speed limit of 60mph?. alternative quitting times for business to avoid traffic jams? These are only band aids on chest wounds. I didn't see much of a let down on recreational traffic last holiday, so the price is not hurting those who have the money. But when a guy with a low paying job, cant afford to get to work, and quits, maybe that will open some eyes. the trucks are still going 70+ miles per hour, and not very many of them are shutting down yet, but when fuel prices gouge into the profit, something else will need to suffer, like poor maintaence, and more dangerous under insured vechicles .Its a delima and the solutions are going to be very painfull.

  9. #9
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    Re: Compressed Air Engines.. 106 MPG

    Zero Pollution Motors is coming out with a car that will use compressed air to drive the piston engine in its car, it only uses gas when you get over 35 mph. IF they can figure out how to make an alternator that will charge the compressor, and heat the air over 35 mph they can then sell you a car that uses NO GAS at all. A little electric once in a while if your battery goes does and it would only need ONE battery.
    30 minutes on electric now to charge the compressor.
    I have read on their site that they can do the same thing with a boat motor..
    Think about it. No fuel cost fishing?? Driving?? Even airplanes maybe? OR think of what the price of gas will do if we stop using gas totally. Then the airline industry becomes the main user and makes money.
    First car is supposed to be delivered in 2010, and I have my name on the list.
    $17,000 for a car getting 100MPG. or better if you drive below 35 mph.

  10. #10
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    Re: GAS, TRUCKS, AND BOATS AND SUCH

    Back in the 70's my brother had designed a water wall for installation in a house.The wall was was passive solar energy collector and storage system.
    No moving parts. Now the house was built with good insulation also. He built some of the houses in Virginia and documented all the data and the houses are still there today.

    Now the place in VA where the houses are has the same sunlight (degree days) and temperature as Louisville, KY.
    1250 sq ft, 3 bedroom ranch cost $75 per year to heat. Think what that would do to the coal industry, utility industry, and oil and natural gas industry if a lot of folks used it. If suddenly 20 percent of the house used it I guess the impact on large industries could throw us in a severe recession or worse.

    Then ...Jimmy Carter lost the election and Reagan went the other direction My brother closed up shop the month after.
    Yes politics touches everything and I mean everything. No one has figured out a way to own the sunlight. Maybe one day the Government will tax sunlight..not an absurd proposition when you think about what is taxed..property being one. It's all about the money and I guess there is nothing wrong with that.

    There are ways to passively cool a house also.
    A solar hot water heater is definately a no brainer.

    All this not to be confused with solar cells.

    Wow. maybe this post dies not belong here

  11. #11
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    Re: GAS, TRUCKS, AND BOATS AND SUCH

    Why can't they at least put forced-fuel technology in our cars and trucks? Seems to help on diesels and the new boat motors.

  12. #12
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    Re: GAS, TRUCKS, AND BOATS AND SUCH

    I agree to Bob and all others this is a good post lot of discussion, ideas, shows that some are thinking and starting to act. Like most other issues it seems like sportspeople lead the way. We have the tecnogolgy. sorry for the spelling, we can rebuild we can be better than we was, better, stronger, faster, hold on flashbacks to to 70's and 6 million $ man. The politics of alternitive fuels has cost us. In mt area the corn is not all in the ground yet due to it has been to wet to plant, so is corn a good source of fuel, I do not think so. The saw grass idea is on of the most fesible and logical ideas to come aroun in a while. Also we can use more wind for elec and build more dams for hydro and convert existing ones. I also think that since Honda has come out with a new fuel cell car that they might look at fuel cells for boat motors as they already make a darn good motor now. I am proud of this board and people on it speaking out for the common man and woman. See we have the ideas we need to get them to someone who will do something about it. Good topic Bob.

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