Unless you have been living in a cave lately, you will notice that fuel costs have shot through the roof! Quiet frankly, some of us are really getting tired of it while others are just sucking it up and not driving around as much. It seems gas prices go higher each minute, which for some of us we can't help but look at what car manufactures are putting out that will get better mileage in order to cope with $4 per gallon fuel costs.

It's sad that some of these vehicles resemble giant matchbox toys and when I see these toys rolling around, I stop and wonder, how in hell are you supposed to modify that??? You know what I'm talking about you've seen them the "Smart Car" and the new 3-wheel vans.

Well, sorry. I just can't see myself rolling in a ride that sounds like the damn Jetson's car. I want my ride to growl when I slam on the acceleration pedal! I want those subs in the rear to be booming till the glass shatters, I want to hear those loud exhaust systems, and I want to see the most insane paint jobs! Can anyone see a "hybrid or smart car" with a set of 22-inch rims or a loud exhaust system? I can't really see that being a pimpin' ride at all. I just don't see these little so-called answers to the energy crisis as a lasting thing. Here today gone tomorrow is what I say. They might be ok for those of us that see autos as a means of transportation, but for the custom auto crowd it is a no go.

On top of their unattractive appearance, these energy saving cars come with a mighty hefty price tag. Hybrids start around $25-30K and that is a lot of cheddar for a ride that is going to be gutted and rebuilt into a hot rod! It would take years to recover those costs, so why even bother unless you are a walking bank?

Ok, maybe I can give them a chance say if they built a diesel hybrid F-350 dually! Can you imagine the price tag on that thing? I guess it would be kind of cool to be able to get 100 miles per gallon in that big rig, but man I just don't see that type of stuff happening in the short-term. For now I will keep on rollin' with my good old fashioned gasoline powered ride, but boy it sure is a "pain in the gas" every time I fill up and with no relief in sight.

Until the next issue... keep on cruisin'!