TreeHugger asks: Why Do Speedometers Go To 160MPH?

A great way to get all the testosterone soaked hard core engineers who hate whining environmentalists wound up is to say something nice about Jimmy Carter, but here is another eminently sensible thing he did: He capped the maximum speed on speedometers in cars at 85 MPH.

Tom Vanderbilt thinks it affects the way we drive. "even knowing that these numbers bear little relationship to reality, we’re affected by the visual display. No matter how fast we drive, the needle is always less than halfway up the dial, indicating there’s still plenty of room for acceleration. That remaining space may even goad us into testing the limits by going faster."

In these times of limited resources and soaring fuel prices (current temporary dip excepted)  Having the gauges go this high is promoting irresponsibility.  I’m not advocating that the automakers do anything in particular as the first one to drop their numbers would be at a disadvantage.  Having numbers this large is just too tempting for some folks and I must say that the ~120 on my first car did get me thinking racy thoughts on more than a few occasions, although common sense did take over before I did something stupid.

There are three 2009 Honda Civic Hybrids available at Midlands Honda!

On the far left we have the Polished Metal, in the Center is the Spectrum White, and on the right is Atomic Blue.  There is also a pre-owned 2007.  All four of these hybrids are standard equipment.

Photo Galleries:

Spectrum White Pearl

I can make a gallery on the Atomic Blue, Polished Metal or Pre-Owned Taffeta White if you want.

Image from Google Maps 

SE members, meet/clinic Friday Nov 28th, Columbia SC

There will be a meet at the Midlands Honda Dealership located in Columbia, SC just off I-77, exit 22 to Killian Rd on the morning of the 28th of November, that is the day after Thanksgiving.

Wayne Gerdes is the founder of www.cleanmpg.com and coined the term "hypermiling" will be stopping in Columbia, SC with two of his team mates, Justin and Jennie, while breaking the cross country MPG  record in a 2009 Honda HCHII.

There will be a www.cleanmpg.com multistate meet, presentation and then a clinic on Hypermiling  in a Honda HCHII provided by Kacey Green.

You don't have to be a member of www.cleanmpg.com to join us and learn about safe and efficient driving skills but you will want to when you leave. It's free. {More after the jump}

Wayne Gerdes requested pictures of the battery compartment of the Honda Civic Hybrid, so here they are.  These pictures come from a car of a customer of mine who had XM radio installed.  The vehicle is a 2008 Honda Civic Hybrid CVT base trim.

This shows the shielding on the outside of the battery compartment for the Civic Hybrid.

I still haven't turned on the computer that is holding my pictures of the actual battery pack, I'll do that eventually and post the pictures here.  (More pictures after the jump)