Date Posted:00:26:58 04/20/04 Tue Author: mt. healthy mountaineer Subject: Re: Help me! In reply to:
mvd
's message, "Re: Help me!" on 23:19:12 04/19/04 Mon
If they bought the patents they would only be good for seven years - and then, as that article points out, it would be in the best interest of the car companies to replicate the technology and make a fortune off of it for themselves.
I seriously doubt that a small company (such as KIA) or a struggling company (such as Daimler-Chrysler or Cummins) would sit on a technolgy that would give them absolute and dominant market share. Whatever the oil companies could pay them to not produce the technology would be insignificant compared to the profits to be made off of 100 MPG mini-van or a 80 MPG SUV.
I've heard stories of Pennzoil or Texaco (esp. Texaco - I think its the Texas in the name, it encourages you to think of JR Ewing) killing people, etc. These stories always come out when there's a spike in the price of gas (such as 4 years ago and in the 70s). Usually you also hear about the guy that put magnets on his fuel line and somehow that helps the MPG your car gets. (then Texaco squelches his plans to go public - either by buying him out or by threatening him)
If you find something, let us know, but I do believe you chasing a chimera.
It would make sense, however, for the oil companies to encourage the government to lower the CAFE standards (the average MPG for all of the cars that a car company produces) - but that is different than what you are talking about.
