Is Buying A Smart Car Smart - Or Simply A Knee Jerk Reaction to a Diminishing Problem?
No one has been immune this summer to the high price of gas and diesel. Every segment of the US economy has been affected in some way shape or form due to the rapid increase in the price of fuel. People across our nation were forced to stop and evaluate their way of life, mainly cheap fuel, and decide on a course of action to evoke change.
My sister in Florida is a good example of action. Currently driving a Honda Element, she along with her husband carpool to work and combine necessary stops as part of the trip home from work to avoid having to take additional trips. Even though the Element they drive is a fairly efficient vehicle, the high price of fuel compelled them to buy scooters. Since purchasing the scooters, the Element spends a lot more time in the driveway as 3-4 days per week they now commute via scooters.
Of course they are not alone, a recent article on the local news station reported a massive increase in scooter and motorcycle registrations as people look for more efficient ways to get to and from the places they need to be. Apparently $4.00 a gallon gasoline was enough of a stimulus to compel people to change the way they live.
But something interesting is happening, the price of gas is starting to fall again. During one overnight period a week ago, the price went from $3.99 a gallon to $3.79 (for the cheap stuff) and last night I paid $3.69. It seems as though the price is falling in larger chunks than what it rose in, and therein lies the several questions.
First off, in making the drastic change from car to scooter, was this a knee jerk reaction to a short term dilemma, or is it really a long term solution to a problem we only got a small taste of? In the case of my sister, the 2 scooters cost a little over $4,000 plus tax and interest (I assume she is making payments as opposed to having paid cash) on the scooters, at what point does break even occur justifying the additional expense of the scooters.
Secondly at what price does gas need to be at to again feel confidence in buying big SUV's and other high consumption vehicles? After Hurricane Katrina we saw the price of gas soar to over $3.00 a gallon and large vehicle sales slowed down, but as the price dropped sales increased almost immediately.
Let's be honest here, we as Americans like our big cars. We as a majority really don't want to be driving Smart Cars and Toyota Yaris like vehicles. We like our big SUV's and pickup trucks and as such as fuel continues to drop again, I think people will start to buy again.
Or am I wrong? Did this spike in fuel truly spark a change in attitude, or will gas priced at $3.39 a gallon suddenly seem cheap and the move back to large cars and trucks resume?
What changes did you make in your driving habits this past summer, and are those changes permanent or will you resort to your old ways as fuel drops, or at least backs off the highs we saw this summer. I would be surprised to see a lot of drastic changes amongst the readers here, based on the amount of excitement news of a new super car or big engined sedan creates, I know we aren't all driving little economy cars.
But some of you may have made drastic changes, like buying a scooter or parking the car to take advantage of public transportation? And if gas drops below $3.00 again, will you simply go back to your old ways?
My hat is off to you if you truly did make drastic changes in lifestyle to deal with the summers high gas prices. I for one really didn't do anything differently except complain a little to the other drivers at the gas station when it came time to fill up again. I suspect we will go back to our old ways as gas prices drop, but perhaps this past summer was exactly the wake up call we as a nation needed.
So enlighten us as to what things you have done to change, or lifestyle changes you have made which would be viewed by others as drastic. We may actually learn a little something here today.
Copyright 2026 AutoSpies.com, LLC