On 2007-12-22, RAM³ wrote:

[ ... ]

I had a 1962 MG Midget - fancy version of the Mk. II A-H Sprite - that gave
me 33 MPG City, 55 MPG Highway.

If this could be done 45 years ago then why can't it be done today?

Quite simple -- the additional weight mandated by the safety
requirements.

I remember when there was one small UK car -- I think that it
was the MGB for a certain year or two -- where the requirements caused
it to need three windshield wiper blades. The requirement was that a
certain number of square inches of windshield *must* be cleaned by the
wipers -- and the whole windshield did not have that many square inches.
So -- the solution was a third windshield wiper whose coverage
overlapped the other two -- but the sum of the wiped areas of the three
was sufficient to get it past the requirements. :-)

With things as idiotic as this -- how can people make cars light
and small enough to be energy efficient?

Enjoy,
DoN.

--
Email: | Voice (all times): (703) 938-4564
(too) near Washington D.C. | http://www.d-and-d.com/dnichols/DoN.html
--- Black Holes are where God is dividing by zero ---