The Top 40

When I started driving in 1970 nobody had ever even heard the words *gas mileage* because at 29 cents per gallon nobody cared.

Remember when you could tell a ford from a chevy, even what year and model, from 2 blocks away?

Now everything looks the same.

My mothers chevy station wagon had a windshield with more square footage than all the glass in a normal car today. And all 5 of us kids could sit across the giant back seat at the same time, eating ice cream cones the whole way, and even a couple dogs in there too. Fold that seat down and the whole neighborhood of kids could pile in, maybe 12 or so of us. And with that 396 4 barreled engine we got to little league on time every time. If that giant chevy sputtered my dad could sit on the fender and pull and gap them plugs, set the points and dwell, and blow that fuel filter out on that enormous carter 4 bbl. (don't drop that wing nut in there boy or I'll kick your ass!)

My wife got a new chevy equinox last year and though I've looked several times I still have not seen the battery but I think I know it's general locale. I had to pop a giant plastic cover off the whole engine just to get to that point and have no idea why that plastic is even there. I asked a guy at the dealer and he just shrugged. As in "atlas shrugged" I guess.

There are no car mechanics any more, just parts changers and it seems all the parts start at about $150 and go up from there. Yep, a little black plastic thing about 3" long and nobody knows what it does costs $150 no matter how many of them they replace. No discounts for volume or quantity.

When my wife fills that equinox up with fuel it costs more than it cost my parents for fuel for the next 6 months, in 2 vehicles. Or groceries for the 7 member family for a week or 3.

That equinox cost more than all 7 vehicles together that I have purchased in my life.
That brand new equinox cost 4 times as much as my brand new chevy s10 did in 1991 (that I still drive today).

I will most likely never buy a new vehicle in the US.
The cost doesn't even come close to the benefit.

I drove a Renault 4CV that was about the size of a lawnmower and used next to no gas at all in the middle 60s of last century. As a mere girl, I was able to do everything needed to keep it running. The gas jet had a tendency to plug up, I had to pull over to the side of the road and blow it out. Guys laughed at me, but it was wheels and it was cheap. Actually there were a bunch of nuts who liked to race these things and they were always trying to buy it off me.