timewa

I'm sorry, I don't want to be rude but this post does make me laugh. Sounds so typically American!

Please don't see these comments as an insult but just MHO:

A) What does snow have to do with needing a SUV (let alone 2!). I'd say you need a light car, possibly a 4x4, if you live in an area with lots of snow. Not a SUV.

You know in advance that a Range Rover Sport is a synonym for "how can I waste energy as fast and inefficient as possible". Of course everybody's free to choose what he/she wishes to drive, and I'm sure it's a fun car, but you shouldn't be suprised by ridiculous fuel consumption. Personally I'm glad that the "SUV hype" finally comes to an end.

C) $4 for a gallon... That's for free! If I were you I wouldn't even bother considering diesel with these low prices. Enjoy these ultra-low prices while you can, they will only rise and rise and rise. (Not very rlevant maybe, but I just filled my E60 up with diesel, and it was €100.- (>$150)).

D) 75MPG for the next gen Prius? I don't think so. Not unless they use a series-hybrid concept with a super efficient combustion engine AND latest gen li-ion batteries AND ultra lightweight body design. They won't, because it will make the car too expensive.

Consider a 520d or Fisker or a Tesla, not a 535d if consumption is important to you.
The 535d is not designed with consumption in mind, it's designed for people who love lots of torque.

Good luck.

Scandic24

Having a big SUV just because of snowy winters is just silly with todays gas prices... a regular car with 4WD (E60xi) is just as agile but much more energy efficient. You know, it's not just about acceleration under snowy/icey conditions, it's much more about being able to steer and to stop the car.

If the price of petrol was 4$ a gallon in Sweden I'd be in 7th heaven
Unfortunately, it is about twice that price (at current exchange rate - almost 14 SEK=$2.33 per Liter!!)

Zetta

Guys, check this out - and then tell me, that the Prius is not a car that salves one's conscience

http://pl.youtube.com/watch?v=N8XDscWleKw

E60BEEMER

about 38 average for me!

howvere on motorway then even 50mpg (sometimes onlyy

BTMaximus

I get about 22-24 mpg in mixed driving w/my 530. My parents have a Prius that I have been driving around while they are out of town to keep my BMW lease miles under the limit. The Prius accelerates like a dog, but I am impressed by the mileage. I drive it like I stole it and get around 49 mpg. Add in the fact that it takes regular gas, and my gas bills have been about half of what they usually are.

evperry

Since gas has been so cheap here for so long we have not been concerned at all at the cost of driving or woning a big SUV or high horsepower car. The $4 gas has given our country a bit of a wakeup call.

Gas will do down and it will do so quite a bit. Oil dropped $16 just this week alone. The USA is the highest consumer of oil in the world and since our overall demand is slowing that will also slow the demand in Asia (India and China). Our economy at this time just cant sustain 4-5 gas prices so we are adjusting by using less.

I never really needed an SUV especially in NYC where they clean the roads after a snowstorm almost immediately. Oce of my businesses is contracting so having 1 SUV is more than enough. The range rover was/is a huge waste, i knew that from the day i bought it. I turned in a 545 to get the range. At the time I was VERY happy to get rid of the BMW (my 3rd) because it was starting the BMW issues that all of my cars have had. The car would not turn off, the windows would not roll up, the radio would come on by itself and I hated Idrive. I hope they have worked out the problems with the E60 by now. I have always felt that BMW's are not built very well but are fun to drive.

so now im looking for something efficient for gas but i dont want to get a prius....im looking at a mini clubman and the 535i. i wanted the 535d but if they dont bring that then i might still get the 535i. i think they should bring the 535d and just make it a special order type of thing, i would be willing to wait and even pay a small up charge.

Dandle

TBH I think its a fairly blinkered view if you think that the US using a little less gas will drop world demand. The East is in a massive boom at the moment and supply just can't keep up with demand mainly in India and China, with the scale that those two contries are growing I would doubt that the price of a barrel with ever drop that much. I don't think anyone in the West really appreciates how big these two countries are and how their needs for raw materials, oil and food are going to grow. Just look at the boom in the mines in Australia, BHP have just recently put the price of both iron ore and copper up massively(something along the lines of 90% for iron ore and 70%for copper ore) and they are just selling to China who are paying those prices now, oil will be the same. The days of it going cheap have gone and America now has serious competition buying as much as they can get. Im sure OPEC know this and have bumped the price accordingly the dirty buggers.

evperry

while im certainly not an expert i do pay attention to all the experts. since our economy represents such a huge portion of China and India, if we (america) take a nose dive then they will also. there was an expert on CNBC a few weeks ago that claimed that a 5% reduction in Americas overall economy would be disastrous for china and india to the tune of 50% on their economies. their was a guy that disagreed. while i don't know who is right, i tend to agree that Oil is a bubble. to go from $90 a barrel to $145 in a matter of months is silly. they (india, chine) just haven't bought that many cars or built that many houses or started any new wars to justify a $55 increase in oil. its coming down.

im not sure if the general public can open a commodities trading account but if i could short oil i would do it at like 145 a barrel (if it goes back that high). i think about $30 of speculation is built into the 145 price so the real number is like 100-115 a barrel. you would go long but only one of us is right. my brother also disagrees with me but only time will tell. i plan to put my money where my mouth is. if i would have bought solar 2 years ago when i started researching i would be up quite a bit in the portfolio.

Dandle

I know what your saying but do you not think we being the whole of the western world are not in a downturn time now. None of our countries are booming yet China and India and the Eastern ones are, they are moving away somewhat from being dependant on Western money and that is what we are starting to see. The days of the West(America mainly admittedly) being the wealthiest countries are going you only have to look at the prices the east will pay for raw materials and where those materials are coming from we just cannot compete effectively at the moment. To give you just an idea of the amount of people in China I remember a quote from a documentry that "there are more people in China that speak english than the rest of the world put together", now think of how small the educated population is and you have an idea of how much cheap labour there is there. They are opening an immense amount of coal and oil powered powerstations each week just to keep up with the demand for electricity and that is China just waking up. India is in a very similar situation. Of course this is MO on the subject but most of it is already happening.

evperry

yes i don't disagree that China and India are emerging markets but that just what they are emerging. It will take some time in order for them to sustain on their own. I think that it is good the the world anyway. Its just that now i think Oil is a bubble just like real estate was and the internet was back in late nineties. My belief is that in 10 years Oil will be in even less demand. Between the EU and USA we will all drop off pretty extensively with our use of oil and go towards renewable energy.

if the USA wasnt so distracted and burdened with this stupid war we would have figured something out by now. in any event the $4 price is not so bad for our country since it will force our domestic auto makers to make big changes to their lineups. ford SUV sales dropped off 50%, they cant even give them away now. there are people who purchased SUV's within 12 months that are tying to sell and they are getting 30 cents on the dollar. also the USA will eventually mandate better MPG and stricter emissions which will be good for the environment.