The picture would of course look very different if manufacturers had chosen to make smaller inexpensive electric sedans.
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The picture would of course look very different if manufacturers had chosen to make smaller inexpensive electric sedans.
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Well it’s something… But it could be so much better.
The article only addresses emissions from the vehicles. It doesn’t address things like weight, which is a big factor on wear on the road (which makes it necessary to fix the road more often) and wear on the tires (which is pollution as well). Both of these are significant enough that they shouldn’t be neglected when you’re thinking about a vehicle’s effect on the environment.
It is a shame that companies as a whole are pushing these huge cars. I have pretty bad visibility in the bigger cars. When I need to purchase a vehicle, it is definitely a challenge to get something small. I’ve had to walk away from a salesman because he kept trying to push me into something bigger. Inventory is sparse for sedans and plentiful for SUVs and trucks. It’s non-existent for station wagons and nearly so for subcompact cars.
It seems like smaller cars would fit more people’s needs and would be safer for everyone around them… But as it stands I am terrified of walking near the road with these commonly driven behemoths.
I have the same problem with big cars. At the moment I have an ageing Toyota hybrid saloon, which is as big as I want to go. Years ago I knew a couple of people who had Toyota Rav4s - they were chunky little 4WDs, with a high wheel base but a small footprint. Perfect for the places I drive! Toyota still makes a Rav4, but now it’s a bulging, bloated monster. I’d love to have the original Rav4, but electric.
You can see the progression here: https://mag.toyota.co.uk/history-of-the-toyota-rav4/
That is such a shame. I would have loved a smaller RAV4 if I needed to drive up in the mountains. (My little Corolla struggled the few times I visited.)