Not only that, the batteries in the Prius also tend to go "boom" when exposed to fire, such as in an auto accident. There have also been reports of dangerous electrical arcing after accidents. I wouldn't get near of these Nipponese death traps.

Remember this: gasoline is far cheaper now, in real dollars, than it was in 1975: crude oil would have to hit $100 a barrel to equal 1975 prices in real dollars. Also, not all SUV's get horrible mileage. My AZTEK gets 26 mpg going 80 mph on level sections of the Oklahoma Turnpike. Good enough for me.

SUV Good! I am willing to trade 15mpg for the ability to drive thru snow up to the bumpers and water up to the headlights.

Plus bitchin' Alpine stereo.

And Priuses bounce off the front bumper like pinballs.

I'm not sure if they still make it, but I'm happy with my 2001 Civic HX. It's a standard 2-door Civic with a Continually Variable Transmission (CVT). It will out accelerate the other Civics by a good margin, since you never have that acceleration drop off during shifting. And it gets 35-38 mph, in our experience.

Now if only they'd put the same tranny into something bigger...

There's probably a special dispensation for those who have to drive in snow.

Don't know of too many classic cars I'd like to own that were considered to be mileage conscious.

Today's SUV probably get better mileage than most of the old v-8's and even straight 6's.

Anything more come out of that story about the potential for a huge oil find in Utah?

Ms. Atilla: I think I want to marry you.

I can't match that last one. Marriage proposal - wow.

Forest vs trees guys. Simple market forces are going to make you decide what to drive in the next five years. It's called Peakoil or Hubbert theory, and world oil production will decline after ~2007 in spite of tech advances. What will we do? GE is already reacting - use that as a bellwether. Probably hybrids will get up above 100mpg, and diesel hybrids will show up that can burn a lot more kinds of stuff. If you keep your unarmored hummer, you'll be paying $8/gal. And you may even be able to afford it.

Play nice.

D