They also laughed when we paid $10 a bulb for CFL lighting. Those early bulbs each lasted 10 years and saved us I don’t know how many dollars in electricity. Modern CFLs are designed to fail more often and cost so much more in overall pricing. Many of our latest bulbs are even more efficient LEDs.
In a similar manner we were doing cold water washing long before it became vogue and risked the ire of our neighbours for daring to use a clothes tree when we had a dryer.
Back to the car. Once upon a time we spent a large part of our summer camping out at events hosted by the Society For Creative Anachronism. In those days much talk had turned to buying minivans or SUVs to haul ever increasing amounts of gear. After much debate I went with a relatively efficient Dodge Neon and a trailer. It was a great compromise compared to the costs our minivan choosing friends found themselves putting out.
After our involvement in the SCA slowed to a crawl the day arrived when the nice firemen turned our 4 door sedan into a 3 door convertible that we traded in for a Toyota Echo. Then a ditch monster caught the Echo in an ice web that trapped three other cars and we replaced it with the Toyota Yaris I drive now.
With the 300k mark with its promise of escalating maintenance costs fast approaching I am now looking at a Toyota Prius. Probably the C model. By my estimates, if I’d owned one for the life of our Yaris I would have saved well over 10 grand on gas.
While electic vehicles are now making a strong show in the market our personal needs remain such that they are not yet a viable alternative. Though the savings in fuel would more than make up for the higher purchase price.
But you must have power to climb steep hills, or to avoid that accident, or to enjoy the drive. I’ve heard it all from the people who inspired the title for this post so many years ago.
I have never seen the need to accelerate up hills such as those that command three out of the four routes out of the Lower Mainland into the rest of the Province of BC. All my vehicles did just fine making their way up the slow lane at a comfortable speed. In the 35 years I have been driving I can count on zero hands the number of times power would have gotten me out of an accident. It has never happened. As for enjoyment, I have loved to drive from the moment I got my driver’s licence. I have made long road trips in a gas guzzling SUV, in a 70s v8 powered land-boat, and all the economy cars mentioned above. In my mind too much power would only encourage me to drive faster and miss more of the scenery I’m looking for.
By some standard the above means I’m broken, and I’m fine with that.
Edwin Downward 