The perfect size for American consumers?
And a gas tax too!
I got a good laugh this morning reading Take Polls With A Grain Of Salt by Jeremy Anwyl CEO of Edmunds.com regarding his recent testimony before Congress on new CAFE requirements. Essentially, Awyl observed that Congress is obsessed by polls, taking them almost as fact, despite the irrefutable evidence demonstrating that many polls, especially when in survey form, are often irrelevant or even counter-productive.
Such polling irrelevance, for example, has been documented many times on Hybridcarblog via consumer surveys on hybrid cars purchasing.
For many years now, numerous surveys have demonstrated that most Americans — as many as 80 percent or more — are interested in buying a hybrid car as their next vehicle purchase. Yet, year after year, less than 3 percent of consumers actually buy hybrids.
Why the gross disconnect between survey data and real world sales?
Obviously, there are numerous confounding variables, such as poorly written questions, limited hybrid selection, etc., etc. But, when push comes to shove, the number that seems to matter more than any other to consumers is price tag. Most consumers just don’t want to pay too much extra upfront for better fuel economy — all other things, such as amenities, cargo space, etc., being equal.
Ironically, however, I’ve heard numerous times in recent months that consumers, voters, etc. are big fans of new CAFE requirements — requirements that Chyrsler’s CEO Sergio Marchionne recently claimed would require an increase in hybrid technologies. But, if consumers, according to these polls, want more cars like the Toyota Prius, for instance, why have Prius sales appeared to have plateaued?
Nevertheless, I’m a semi-fan of new CAFE requirements, although I’m a bigger fan of a well conceived gas tax, for instance. Still, this recent CAFE testimony makes me even less impressed with Congress. In my opinion, survey says Congress is a self-serving bunch that isn’t really interested in the truth, but only in twisting the truth.
Today, America is in desperate need of an honest and transparent energy conversation, but it seems more and more obvious that such a conversation will not be driven by Congress. Unfortunately, honesty and transparency just don’t make for good politics.
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