Death Traps Vs. Gas Guzzlers Split Automakers

Tiny rides now trendy, even for big car people

(NEWSER) - Mercedes’ Smart cars are selling brilliantly—the US waiting list is 30,000 long—and the tiny two-seater's performance at the gas pump isn't the whole story. Yes, they’re the most fuel-efficient non-hybrids around, but only barely—some Hondas and Toyotas almost match their 33mpg. There's also the cute factor, the Washington Post reports. “The Jeep was stylish,” says one SUV convert, “but I never got the attention before that I get with this.” More»

Smart car? Maybe not so smart

(NEWSER) - Some of us lovingly referred to our first car variously as "the jalopy," "the tin can on wheels," or "the death trap." And some of us were right. Here, as per Autoshippers, are the most dangerous cars of all time:

• 1967-1971 Ford Pinto: Had a nasty habit of exploding even on low-speed impacts.
• 1915-1925 Briggs & Stratton Flyer: No doors, windshield, impact protection. Super cheap, and often fatal, transportation.
• 1960-1963 Chevrolet Corvair: Engine in the back let toxic fumes in the car and the steering wheel was known to fatally impale drivers. Other than that, great car.

(NEWSER) - Despite predictions of its demise, the SUV is alive and well at the New York auto show this year, Dan Carney writes for MSNBC. Sure, more fuel-efficient models of classic 4x4s make up the majority of the cars on display, but reports that the gas guzzler is passé, emanating from “literary critics, Broadway choreographers, and other practitioners of the bedrock industries that built this country” are greatly exaggerated. According to one website that tracks such things, half of Americans shopping for new cars are looking at crossovers and SUVs. More»

But big trucks are becoming scarce as automakers retool for fuel efficient models

(NEWSER) - Gas prices are down and the sales of SUVs and pickup trucks are accelerating, albeit only into second gear, reports the Wall Street Journal. As gas edges closer to $2, buyers are picking up bargains on the big gas guzzlers dealers couldn’t give away couple of months ago. And desperate manufacturers still are offering huge discounts on leftover 2008s. More»

Coming soon to a compactor near you

(NEWSER) - The possibility that one of Detroit's Big Three automakers is headed for the scrap heap left US News and World Report wondering which cars Americans could live without. Here are some top candidates:

• Jeep Commander: This boxy model gets 16 mpg and it shows: sales are down 55%.
• Dodge Durango: Even the hybrid version of this SUV hasn't stopped sales from falling an astonishing 54%.