I drove thru Minnesota in '97in a bright red 67 Beetle, and I didn't see very
many old cars. One Vanagon.
What old cars I saw were rusted hulks that I don't think would pass WSP
inspection here. This may help to account why a recent 5-year study in
Minnesota shows low air pollution from automobiles there.  And  that
Minnesota isn't a state with 25 million registered vehicles .(California,
last time I read)

In the small town of Tracy, at a gas station, three boys the oldest about 13,
walked up to the station and exclaimed "what kind of car is this?"

 Thinking they were just playing a game kept right on pumping the $1.15 a
gallon premium. When they wondered where the engine was, I could now tell
they were serious-they had not seen a Beetle before!

I was surprised also-after all, a kid on the West coast who can't answer the
"what is a Volkswagen Beetle " question is flunked a grade.

Then I really had a chuckle when I went into the store to pay. The cashier
said "Herman is going to be upset about this ." Who's Herman, I asked?
Oh, he's the local VW nut" she replied.
Wow, I thought, where am I -the twilight zone?

The fact that cars don't last in Minnesota has a lot to do with this study.
If newer fuel injected cars are on the road, you have less pollution.

On the West Coast with warmer climates and no-salt roads, a lot of carbureted
cars are still on the road. But the majority are fuel-injected. I remember
Southern Cal in the 70's-it smelled like everyone was burning oil-the smog
hurt your lungs and stung your eyes.

When I drive in counties other than those in Washington State that have smog
testing, vehicles that would never pass emissions are happily puffing down
the road, some of them leaving long trails of blue smoke.  You know it when
you have to roll up the windows and close the vents.

I remember in my old air-cooled days of bliss, how I could merrily waste a
gallon out of every ten (at only 69 cents a gallon, who ever thought the
price would go over a dollar)?
SO, without these emission regulations, would we gladly all go back to
carburetion and wasting gas at current prices?

Robert Keezer

1982 Westfalia
Seattle

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