The Chevy Suburban turns 75. I did not know that!

Thanks to this piece at Slate, I got to read an interesting essay at Wired, on the 75th birthday of ... the Chevy Suburban.  I tell you, everyday is a revelation that I don't know *&^%--I had no idea that this was that old, and I would have guessed that it pretty much debuted in the SUV years of the 1990s.

Wired educates me that:

First debuting in 1935 amid the Great Depression and Dust Bowl exodus, the vehicle then known as the Suburban Carryall holds the distinction of being the longest-continuously-produced vehicle model in the United States. As much as we think SUVs are for the most part a blight upon the landscape, we’ve got to tip our collective hat to the Suburban for its longevity.

 Check out the photographs of the various avatars of the Suburban.

Politics better than sitcoms :-)

From Reason:

Recently-elected Rep. Eric Massa (D-N.Y.) recently conducted an odd stunt to promote some electric car technology apparently being developed in his district. He wanted to drive an electric car from his district to his swearing-in at the Capitol in D.C. Problem is, the distance between those two points is out of the car's range. So here’s what he did:

Massa drove one fuel cell car while a hybrid SUV towing an additional SUV followed along. Once he got half way, he switched to new fuel cell car. The empty fuel cell was then towed back by the first SUV. As he continued on his journey, the second SUV followed. Once Massa arrived in DC, the second SUV then towed the second fuel cell car back to NY.

So Massa wasted several times the amount of energy he needed for 300-mile trip . . . in order to make a point about the importance of conservation and alternative energy. Sadly, Rep. Massa's capacity for theater and obliviousness to reason likely means he's on his way to a very successful career in politics.

(Big) Brother, can you spare me a dime?

A month ago, I blogged about the big three automakers pushing for subsidies from the feds. Well, they have it, and Rick Newman explains the 25 billion dollar gift check from us, the taxpayers. It gets worse; Newman writes that "There's more aid coming. This year's $25 billion is just a down payment. The automakers now plan to ask the government for another $25 billion in loans next year. It's just spare change, after all."
(via Megan McArdle)

I was right on the (gas) money :-)

All of a sudden, I remembered that when we lived in California there was a strange spring/summer when we had electricity shortage (we found out later on how much Enron was a part of it!) There was also a sudden jump in gas prices. A reporter from the local paper, the Bakersfield Californian, talked to me about this, and re-reading that news item, I am mighty impressed about what I had to say. Read it for yourself:

Gas pricemarks pushing $2-a-gallon ; local drivers 'don't mind,' expert says
Filed: 09/14/2000
By CHIP POWER Californian staff writer e-mail: ppower@bakersfield.com

Statewide gasoline prices are kissing the $2-a-gallon level, with Bakersfield motorists near the head of the line.
Local prices now are $1.97 a gallon for self-serve regular, according to a AAA Motor Club survey, nearly 12 percent higher than a month ago. The statewide average in California, which has the highest gas costs among the continental states, was $1.86. San Francisco prices are at $2.05
Fuel industry analysts have dismissed the effects of the increase in crude oil production promised by the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries as being too little, too late to affect U.S. retail petroleum prices this winter.
Some analysts are speculating about possible energy shortages if the United States encounters a colder than normal winter. The accuracy of these predictions is difficult to verify.
As long as the U.S. economy hums along with little threat of inflation or a recession, most confident motorists are shrugging off the current high prices with little changes in their driving or purchasing behavior, said Sriram Krishnamurthy, a Cal State Bakersfield economist specializing in environmental resources.
"People don't mind spending a few extra bucks here and there if they feel like the economy is humming along," said Krishnamurthy.
However, there does come a point when people may cut back their driving and avoid the popular, gas-guzzling sport utility vehicles, he said.
When that adjustment comes is hard to say, but Krishnamurthy said it would likely be well past $2 a gallon and would also need to be accompanied by a big change in the larger economic picture, such as higher interest rates, shrinking job growth or run-amok inflation.
"If you had those sort of changes, vehicles such as the Jeep Cherokee would sell at a discount instead of a premium," the economist added. But that hasn't happened yet.

I was right: it took a few things to come together for people to run away from SUVs.
And, yes, Krishnamurthy was my last name before I legally changed it.