tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11417252.post5780786201913652531..comments2023-10-09T10:26:48.912-04:00Comments on a bloke's blog: The ducati 1098, weight: america's love affair with it, and the price of gas.nuttyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04457952914031827240noreply@blogger.comBlogger3125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11417252.post-4002063776310602922008-04-23T22:17:00.000-04:002008-04-23T22:17:00.000-04:00the 1098 is beautiful. simply the best looking str...the 1098 is beautiful. simply the best looking street bike @. elegant and simple enough for the everyday gangsta to embrace this gem of a rocket into monumental salesAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11417252.post-29339801602028272932007-02-09T21:00:00.000-05:002007-02-09T21:00:00.000-05:00hello kurt,thanks mate.i guess the point i was try...hello kurt,<BR/><BR/>thanks mate.<BR/><BR/>i guess the point i was trying to make was in the very different approach that time, space, money, etc. they are all abused if left unmanaged. <BR/><BR/>when the first oil crisis hit, why wasn't that a wake-up call? nobody took it seriously enough. the second one did have an effect. for the first time in america, we actually saw small cars coming out of detroit.<BR/><BR/>what happened after that? nothing! cheap gas prices returned. people just don't want to change. <BR/><BR/>the issue isn't 'are the trucks any good'. but one day, people will switch to cars, it's only a matter of time. as you say yourself "we just don't need one yet..." well, one day you're going to need one, and detroit is only just waking up to the fact that they aren't the ones that might be the companies selling the vehicles you will be "needing" by then.<BR/><BR/>why is detroit so backward?. because it's never had to compete. weight requires energy to move it. a lot of weight requires a lot of energy. that's my point.<BR/><BR/>detroit has never had to compete on these terms with the japanese or with european carmakers, who have for years, been building small, fuel-efficient interesting cars.<BR/><BR/>the future's a funny thing, except some of it isn't so funny for a lot of people (inc. car workers). detroit is bleeding like a stuck pig, and it really only has itself to blame. <BR/><BR/>how come toyota are doing so well over here...? i'll tell you: in 1995, they showed the prius at a motor show, and detroit laughed, and concentrated on building highly profitable bigger gas-guzzling trucks and suv's. look who is laughing now. it's not like ford and gm and the others didn't know what might happen...<BR/><BR/>the ducati 1098 is something else, altogether. beautiful, very light, and very fast! - all from a country that has high gas prices, small cars (few cars sold there are over 2 liters in engine size), and they have no size xxl in their clothes...<BR/><BR/>vehicle design is also a by-product of culture as much as it is of available technology...nuttyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04457952914031827240noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11417252.post-28426293666951310172007-02-09T19:52:00.000-05:002007-02-09T19:52:00.000-05:00Very well put!Speaking as a life long American in ...Very well put!<BR/><BR/>Speaking as a life long American in the heartland (Omaha, Nebraska...and NO I am not a farmer!). The worst part of all the BIGGER IS BETTER crap, is that everyone is now driving SUV's and thinks they are more safe. The issue isn't gas prices, power to weight ratio's or even innovations. The new trucks actually are good. I know because I grew up riding in them(old one's) on my Grandfathers farm. I also am guilty of driving a larger vehicle and so is my wife. But I keep trying to talk her into getting a car for a next vehicle. We just don't need one yet. And I don't drive my pickup much at all, I drive my work truck (that is even worse) all the time, but that isn't my choice.<BR/><BR/>By the way, I looked at the new 1098 today. WOW!! Ducati is back!<BR/><BR/>Cheers Bloke,<BR/>Kurt (the Yank LOL!)Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13039050393904505393noreply@blogger.com