底特律恐龍：6大瀕臨滅絕的美國(guó)車(chē)
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適者生存?? ??? 一個(gè)世紀(jì)以來(lái),，美國(guó)汽車(chē)市場(chǎng)好比一個(gè)與世隔絕的恐龍島,，其他國(guó)家的汽車(chē)和美國(guó)車(chē)一比都成了侏儒。美國(guó)道路寬闊,，油價(jià)便宜,，人口富足，促成了汽車(chē)業(yè)的繁榮,，其中不少車(chē)型為美國(guó)所獨(dú)有,。 ??? 在上世紀(jì)五六十年代,，由于環(huán)境特珠，加上重洋阻隔,，導(dǎo)致美國(guó)人造出了很多8汽缸的大塊頭轎車(chē)，它們通身點(diǎn)綴著大量電鍍裝飾,。到了八九十年代,，美國(guó)人又造出了皮卡，以及由皮卡演生出的大梁式車(chē)身的多功能運(yùn)動(dòng)車(chē)（即俗稱(chēng)的SUV）,。而隨著其他各大洲汽車(chē)廠商紛紛開(kāi)始研發(fā)前輪驅(qū)動(dòng),、搭載了多氣門(mén)發(fā)動(dòng)機(jī)甚至是油電混合動(dòng)力系統(tǒng)的汽車(chē)，美國(guó)汽車(chē)廠商漸漸喪失了競(jìng)爭(zhēng)優(yōu)勢(shì),。 ??? 放眼未來(lái),，汽車(chē)的設(shè)計(jì)風(fēng)格必然要由規(guī)模更龐大、增長(zhǎng)更快的中國(guó)市場(chǎng)來(lái)決定,。而隨著燃油經(jīng)濟(jì)性標(biāo)準(zhǔn)日趨嚴(yán)格,，汽車(chē)的尺寸、重量和發(fā)動(dòng)機(jī)的大小也必將受到限制,。這意味著某些美國(guó)消費(fèi)者鐘情的車(chē)型或?qū)㈦y以適應(yīng)新的世界秩序,，因此終究難逃滅絕的宿命。以下謹(jǐn)列出幾款行將就木的車(chē)型,。 |
Survival of the fittest ????For a century, the North American auto market was an island of dinosaurs surrounded by an ocean of pygmies. Open roads, cheap gasoline, and an affluent population led to the rise of automotive species seen nowhere else in the world. ????In the 1950s and 1960s, the combination of special circumstances and geographical isolation produced chrome-bedecked, V-8 powered, behemoth passenger cars. In the 1980s and 1990s, they gave birth to pickup trucks and their offspring, body-on-frame sport utility vehicles. Detroit lost its engineering edge as manufacturers on other continents pioneered front-wheel-drive, multi-valve engines, and hybrid gas-electric powertrains. ????In the future, the larger, faster-growing market of China, will drive design preferences, while stricter fuel-economy standards will dictate size, weight, and engine size. That could mean extinction for some models that are beloved by American car buyers but aren't adaptable to the new world order. Herewith, some candidates for the scrap heap. |
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機(jī)械霸王龍 ????全尺寸SUV一度是美國(guó)汽車(chē)廠商的圈錢(qián)利器,，不過(guò)這種在皮卡底盤(pán)上打造的全尺寸SUV在操控性和燃油經(jīng)濟(jì)上都不具有優(yōu)勢(shì)。隨著更加靈活的跨界車(chē)的問(wèn)世,，全尺寸SUV幾乎已經(jīng)被擠到絕種的邊緣,。全尺寸SUV的油電混合動(dòng)力版也由于價(jià)格過(guò)于昂貴，在市場(chǎng)上無(wú)人問(wèn)津,。雪佛蘭太浩（Chevy Tahoe）和通用Yukon這兩款SUV在一兩年里就都要升級(jí)換代了,，不過(guò)估計(jì)他們?cè)谕ㄓ卯a(chǎn)品線里的壽命不會(huì)太久了。 |
Truckasaurus Rex ????They were big moneymakers in their day, but full-size SUVs on pickup truck chassis can't compete on maneuverability or fuel economy. More flexible crossovers have rendered truck-based SUVs mostly obsolete, and expensive hybrid-powered versions have flopped in the marketplace. Both the Chevy Tahoe and GMC Yukon are due for an update in a couple of years, but don't expect to see them remain in GM's lineup for long. |
