Theoretically. Toyota may get a plug-in Prius out before GM gets the Volt out.

Now that would be a tragedy.

Japan is not your friend.

Japan is not your friend.

Quite true.

Then you'd be complaining about the government getting involved.

I would, of course. So would toyota fans & executives, likely. But it'd level the field...

Ford's hybrid tech was done completely in-house. They just copied Toyota's system and made a couple of modifications, it was just close enough that Ford and Toyota made an agreement so Toyota wouldn't sue.

I'm not friends with any country. I did have a beer with Luxembourg one time.

Your attempt at humor in an effort to deflect is not working in this case.

>>"...the point i was emphasizing was to lament the once great and biggest carmaker in the world STILL having nothing to compete in one of the most relevant and significant segments in the world..."<<

Understood, but realize that this 'most relevent segment', as defined by unique-bodied hybrid vehicles, is basically populated by ONE car, and outside of that car, those manufacturers that even offer hybrids are all tied for second.

Perhaps if the U.S. Government had paid for 100% of the Volt's R&D, it'd have been out for the better part of a decade, too.

you're right. should i cut GM slack for not reaching pole position first? it isn't necessarily defined as unique-bodied hybrids, moreso i would view it as hybrid alternatives in the mainstream family car market. that would exclude crossovers since the biggest segments of the mainstream market are sedans. by those retrictions there are plenty of alternatives already offered though none with the impact and volume of prius. you're asking me to relax my standards, but knowing what GM is capable of in terms of engineering it baffles me the expenditures and wasted resources. GMT 900 hybrids? come on. their great pieces of engineering. how many are they going to build? what's the restriction of the price level in order to get into one? what limits is GM themselves imposing on production capacity?

GM needs a better PR unit. everyone is all hopped up on hybrid pills, so why didn't GM go ask for money a year ago to help them compensate for toyota's own government intervention in building the prius.

This thread is nothing more than bickering and name calling between 2 different viewpoints. What more can be said by either side?

I'm not friends with any country. I did have a beer with Luxembourg one time.

I heard that you slept with Romania.

I'm not friends with any country. I did have a beer with Luxembourg one time.

I like Japanese beers, sushi, teryaki, etc. I've liked Japanese consumer electronics for decades--heck, my last 3 TVs have been Japanese (Sony, Toshiba, Sony), had a Toshiba laptop (ruined by Vista inside), and my home theatre gear is mostly Japanese (Sony, Yamaha). But I prefer Apple for my MP3 player and newest laptop.

Not a big fan of Japanese cars in general--too many FWD models, but I definitely understand their success and appeal in the US.

GM needs a better PR unit.

With this snippet, I wholeheartedly agree.

This thread is nothing more than bickering and name calling between 2 different viewpoints. What more can be said by either side?

you're disgusting. see now I've resorted to name calling and bickering.

I heard that you slept with Romania.

When you're desperate, you're desperate.

you're disgusting. see now I've resorted to name calling and bickering.

Your face is like the face of a person whose face is not attractive.

We are surrounded by chaos. Madness is everywhere.

When you're desperate, you're desperate.

Touche

We are surrounded by chaos. Madness is everywhere.

Great, another world government conspiracy thread.

Great, another world government conspiracy thread.

Great, another world government conspiracy thread.

well how did you become king then?"

"The lady of the lake, her arms clad in shimmering Semite, held aloft Excalibur, signifying that I Arthur should be king."

"Listen. Strange ladies lying in pools distributing swords is no basis for government...."

"shut up!"

"...Supreme executive power comes from a mandate from the masses, not from some farcical aquatic ceremony...."

"SHUT UP!"

"...Suppose I said I was emperor just cause some watery tart lobed a scimitar at me, why they'd lock me away."

(random Monty Pythonery)

We are surrounded by chaos. Madness is everywhere.

Your face is like the face of a person whose face is not attractive.

totally disagree

I was singing Always Look on the Bright Side of Life to my co-workers earlier.

(More random Monty Pythonery)

I could eat sushi more often than Rosie O'Donnell. Liking ethnic food is not what we're talking about here, though. We are talking about a Japanese auto industry that is helped every step of the way by their government, even to the point of restricting imports from other countries. While we, as Americans, do nothing but tear down our home grown industries. We need to change, before it is too late, if it isn't already.

Spontaneous meltdown of all seriousness.

Awesome.

EDIT: Well, almost.

Your face is like the face of a person whose face is not attractive.

Fart

I could eat sushi more often than Rosie O'Donnell. Liking ethnic food is not what we're talking about here, though. We are talking about a Japanese auto industry that is helped every step of the way by their government, even to the point of restricting imports from other countries. While we, as Americans, do nothing but tear down our home grown industries. We need to change, before it is too late, if it isn't already.

we're alreadying propping them up and on the brink of announcing more money to them. should we teach them to ride thier bikes while we're at it? i love sushi too. tell them [GM] to make product as good as the best sushi and americans will start paying attention again.

I could eat sushi more often than Rosie O'Donnell. Liking ethnic food is not what we're talking about here, though. We are talking about a Japanese auto industry that is helped every step of the way by their government, even to the point of restricting imports from other countries. While we, as Americans, do nothing but tear down our home grown industries. We need to change, before it is too late, if it isn't already.

I'm with you Ocn, but the comic relief was working for me just now.

Or perhaps I'm just tired and should be sleeping.

Spontaneous meltdown of all seriousness.

Awesome.

EDIT: Well, almost.

yeah, when a thread has gone on and on round and round and jumped the shark, it's time to divert with some randomness and humour..... calling it a night, I think

Agreed, Moltar.

I've had more fun on C&G tonight than I have in ages.

Good stuff, guys!

Comic relief is WIN

Wait I'm not done. This thread:

this'll get me a warning. there's some minimal connection to the humor already present in this thread. and of course a visceral connection.....................trust me i found this on a random search just now, not a hobbyism or anything....

Edited March 27, 200916 yr by turbo200

LOL no hotlinking...you FAIL

FWIW, there's absolutely no proof that development of the Prius was 100% funded by the Japanese government. When pressed on his comment, Jim Press clarified that the Japanese government supported battery R&D in general, citing it as an example of cooperation between government and industry - much like the billions already spent on fuel efficiency R&D by the US government (or the $7500 federal Volt tax credit).

This being the internet of course, rumors pass as fact - much like the CNW Marketing "report" that claimed a Hummer did less environmental harm than a Prius.

LOL no hotlinking...you FAIL

LOOK AGAIN !

Pssh, that's not offensive.

i just spent like ten minutes staring at that drawing. it's really....quite...beautifully.....drawn. and you best bow down on your knees in trembling at the offensiveness of my display, dodgeboy.

Yes the drawing...is very well drawn...indeed.

http://www.adultswim.com/video/?episodeID=...b10f01c692d0f1d

Loincloth OMG

this'll get me a warning. there's some minimal connection to the humor already present in this thread. and of course a visceral connection.....................trust me i found this on a random search just now, not a hobbyism or anything....

After seeing that, I forgot the point of this thread....

The Prius has a mega-warranty on all the really expensive stuff, so the really deep pockets wont be a factor for a long time.

They're here, they're going to be here for a long, long time, get used to it. Quit being so sore that GM missed the boat.

Yea I guess the warranty wouldn't matter too much anyway. Most people will buy a new car every 2-5 years anyway I guess. Now if someone had planned on keeping it then they might have to fork out some money later on, but I can't imagine many people keeping this car FOREVER. They are just throw away cars. As for GM missing the boat I really don't care. They always miss it anyway when it comes to making a car like this. What GM does good at (Sports Cars & Trucks) is what I buy so I don't give a rats ass about 70 MPG lol! Plus I only go 4 miles to work and back so I don't need much gas anyway.

Sports cars and trucks dont pay the bills. If you need proof of that, just look at the last decade.

We'll probably keep the Prius 4 more years, just depends on circumstances.

You don't know what you're missing! :AH-HA_wink:

Yeah I do, but if I were driving the little Blue Bugger in the garage every morning, I'd never get to work.

After seeing that, I forgot the point of this thread....

That Blondes have more fun???

that is a very...nice...mesmerizing...wet...picture.

Sports cars and trucks dont pay the bills. If you need proof of that, just look at the last decade.

We'll probably keep the Prius 4 more years, just depends on circumstances.

Not completely true. If it were not for the money GM made on trucks, they would probably have gone bankrupt a long time ago. GM wanted to sell trucks, because of profit, but needed to sell cars because of CAFE.

And Porsche is doing pretty good with just sports cars and a truck. Don't they control VW now?

I get your point though, because GM is not Porsche. There's not really much GM can do at this point to pay the bills though. They need to get people to buy their cars at higher prices. I think that's the only thing that can save any of the big 3.

That's the problem tough, for years all of the money has gone to trucks and SUVs and the cars were half assed products at best. Because of this imbalance, when the market shifted away from big trucks to smaller cars and crossovers, GM was left with good trucks and crappy cars compared to much of the competition. Chrysler and Ford are guilty of this too. However Ford at least is showing a real move to balancing out its portfolios.

"Driven: The 70-MPG 2010 Toyota Prius"

It's not a 70-MPG car; it's a 50-MPG car. I like how the journalist drives on a short 33 mile loop and returns 69.5 mpg based on the MPG meter, then thinks he can spread lies like that. Oh wait, I forgot, the Prius is the original media darling.