DetN Auto Ed to Eco-Weenies: Leave Our V8s Alone!

Robert Farago
by Robert Farago

What pistonhead doesn't like a V8 engine? This author has long argued that freedom of choice argues against outlawing gas-sucking automobiles. But I don't venerate the V8 engine as a sacred object, a talisman for those who feel that anyone outside of Motown is an eco-weenie Hell bent on ruining a way of life. But I know a man who does. "You see, the cars that lose money are the rage of the day for automakers — hybrids, electric cars and fuel cell vehicles — and would take even longer to develop if it weren't for the advanced technologies designed for powerhouses such as the Corvette ZR1, the Shelby GT500 or the Challenger SRT8, to name a few," Manny Lopez argues. "But perhaps most importantly, the green that these vehicles generate is of the cash kind, and for three automakers struggling to simply keep their North American operations afloat, that's not something to dispose of lightly." Yeah, and screw those tree-huggers! "Sure the trend is to downsize and the Big Three are developing smaller engines that are faster and more fuel efficient. They should continue that quest. Now isn't the time to create a new V-8, but it's also not the time to bow to public pressure from activists who want nothing more than for the V-8 to wither away." Boil that dust speck! Boil that dust speck!

Robert Farago
Robert Farago

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  • Frantz Frantz on Aug 21, 2008

    Sometimes you people scare me. Its not that greener engines shouldn't be made.. we all are in favor of getting more for less, its the fact that often people want free market to go away just cause its not producing what they are in favor of. If v8s were around in 1776 im sure they'd be included in the second ammendment (=

  • ZoomZoom ZoomZoom on Aug 21, 2008

    There once was a time when I would not be caught dead behind the gas pedal of anything smaller than a V8. A Detroit V8. A General Motors V8. Then I bought a Miata. There was a short, two year flirtation with a Corvette, but my experiences with 4 cylinder and 6 cylinder cars have overridden that. I've changed over the years. I no longer "need" a V8 to be a happy driver. Instead, I'm happy with a car that has some minimal guts, but more so with a car that doesn't catch cold every other week. I don't think I'm the only one who has changed over time. The world is changing, but Detroit has not changed or adapted to the world.

  • Nudave Nudave on Aug 22, 2008

    I'm sure this is the same argument used by poppy growers in Afghanistan. "Screw the rest of the world, we need this industry to survive!"

  • Hokuto Hokuto on Aug 23, 2008

    V8's are fine. Just not pushrod ones.

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