Fuel Standards for Work Trucks?

Guys,

Barack Hussein Obama has decreed that work trucks of all sizes will have their first ever mileage standards imposed on them.  Work trucks can be anything from pickups to big rigs to anything in between.  I don't see how this is a workable standard, and here's why.

Trucks of all sizes, even the smallest ones, offer far more options for customizing than typical passenger vehicles do.  There are multiple transmission choices; there are multiple engine choices; and there are multiple cab configuration choices, which change the size of the vehicle.  I have a few problems and questions with this proposal.

One, unlike car companies, most truck companies allow the buyer to choose multiple engines from different manufacturers.  For example, if you were to buy a Freightliner, Peterbilt, Kenworth, or other heavy truck, you may choose a proprietary engine (if available), or you may choose a Detroit, Cummins, or Caterpillar engine.  That is to say that when one buys a heavy truck, one will choose the make, size, and horsepower of the engine to power the truck.  This depends on how the vehicle will be used, where, under what circumstances, etc.  For example, if a truck won't be traversing the mountains on a regular basis, the owner of the truck can outfit it with a smaller, more fuel efficient engine.  The same applies to transmissions, axles, differentials, and so on.  To get an idea of how much choice a customer has, here's the spec sheet to the Peterbilt 587.

As you can see, outfitting a work truck is far different than outfitting a passenger car.  Passenger cars are usually offered with two to four trim levels, which determines what optional equipment, engines, and transmissions will be offered with the vehicle.  For example, when buying a Toyota Corolla, there are three trim levels: base, LE, and S.  The trim level determines what engine and transmission you get.  While Ford offers more choice with their models, the options pale when compared to those faced by truck operators and manufacturers.  That is to say that work trucks do not offer the degree of standardization that is found in passenger cars.

All these choices will affect fuel economy.  Different transmissions and axles will affect the gear ratios.  Without getting complicated, the gear ratio determines how many engine revolutions are required for each wheel revolution.  The gear ratio determines the acceleration, speed, and fuel economy of any vehicle.  Since trucks have so many CHOICES with components that affect the overall gear ratio, does it not stand to reason that setting a fuel mileage standard is well nigh impossible?

I have a few more questions to ask.  Isn't the way the truck is used going to determine fuel mileage?  If a truck is used to haul light but bulky things like cardboard boxes, will it not get better fuel mileage than a truck hauling heavy, steel beams?  If a truck is often used in the mountains, will it not get worse mileage than a truck used on flat terrain?  If a truck is set up for traversing the Rocky Mountains, will it not have different engines, transmissions, axles, and differentials than one that isn't used in the mountains; even if that truck is used on flat ground, it'll get worse fuel economy than one set up for flat ground.  Ergo, how can one set any fuel economy standard for work trucks?

I have some more questions to ask.  Don't you think that truck owners and operators would want the most fuel efficient truck they can buy?  Since fuel represents a huge operating cost (a big rig, at today's fuel prices, costs MORE THAN $1,000 to refuel!), does it not stand to reason that truck owners and operators would want the most economical vehicle they could get?  Furthermore, does it not stand to reason that truck manufacturers would WANT to offer fuel efficient products?  Wouldn't the manufacturer of the most fuel efficient work trucks have a huge competitive advantage in the market place?  WTF is the gov't doing meddling in something they know nothing about?!

The proposed fuel economy standards for work trucks are unworkable.  Given the amount of choice truck owners and operators have when fitting out their vehicles; given the customizing choices a truck buyer has; given the variation in between two trucks of the same model; no two trucks will get the same mileage.  Ergo, a fuel standard cannot be set, let alone enforced, for work trucks.

This is yet another case of know-nothing, idiot government bureaucrats trying to regulate something that cannot be regulated!  Those proposing this (our notorious 'president' among them) have no clue; they know nothing about the real world; nor do they know anything about the real world in which most of us live.  I wish someone would bomb Washington, D.C. (aka the District of Criminals)!  Government officials don't know their asses from a hole in the ground!

I'm out of here.  Have a good day now.  Until next time...

MarkyMark