Thoughts on how to eliminate oil dependecy in the automobiles market place.
I got talking on Trackpedia about dependency on oil/gas in todays cars and after thinking about it I see why all the alternative fuel cars and engines will never survive. The supply chain to feed them just cannot be built in any reasonable way. Now a free markets principles is that the market always goes to the lowest cost items, but what if the lowest cost item (in this case oil) is being propped up by forces that are broader than just the resource in need. They are held up by the inability to replace the supply chain.<br />
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I do agree with you that a free market economy is a good thing but I still do not buy into the belief that just because something is cheap means you rest on your laurels and don't innovate new ways of doing things to become more efficient or cheaper yet. Innovation in all other forms of business is welcome especially when it comes to under cutting the current low cost competitor (example software, manufacturing, air lines) to provide the end consumer with a better product. The person that under cuts then becomes the market leader while the previous market leaders scramble to catch back up. This is very easy to do in a non-monopolistic market place where there are a variety of competitors in the same goods space that compete and do not cooperate.<br />
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The big problem I see with replacing gas as the primary fuel source is you need a delivery vehicle for that cheaper product and I just don't see it being possible with a replacement for gasoline that has such a complex distribution system to keep the cars running. You can't sell a octopiler powered car in a market that doesn't have a station to fill it with otopiler. Basically in the automobile marketplace there is no money to be made by car manufacturers by making alternative fuel cars because bottom line is they just cant sell them in most markets without inconveniencing the buyer.<br />
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So how do you fix the situation and allow for a real free open market instead of one constrained by infrastructure. You have to innovate around it by providing funding to resources that are working on innovative ideas to completely circumvent the distribution problem with any type of mass quantities of hard fuel. If I was GM, Ford, Toyota I would be investing like mad to come up with alternative ways to power cars that don't require distribution mechanisms to support them for fuel. Thats a paradigm shift not just an advancement and thats when you business can really rake in the profits.<br />
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Anyway I am far from an expert for the most part so there are obviously some problems in the above but I think its a solid frame work for how to innovate. Typically you just can improve the marketplace you have to do something drastic and turn it on its end, make it obsolete in fact. This is what the internet has done to news papers, the car did to horse transportation, and I will do to DSR racing. (that last parts a joke)<br />
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Anyway I will be back to more interesting car and live related topics soon. Just have a lot of time sitting in my hotel room!