Bearing in mind that MacGyver is environmentally aware of such things as global warming, what kind of vehicle do you think he would drive today?

Would he still be using his jeep, or olds mobiles? or would he have moved on to some sort of hybrid?

I was just looking up hybrid SUV's and found this rather interesting article which talks about Jeep wrangler being more environmentally friendly than hybrids due to the small impact they have in the overall life of the vehicle, compared to the huge amount of resources used to design,manufacture and eventually dispose of a hybrid.

So all that to say that MacGyver might actually still drive his jeep after all

I'm sure the phoenix Foundation would be very much involved in environmental research in todays world, so maybe MacGyver would consult with some of the scientists about vehicle emissions first... or maybe he wouldn't worry...

What do you think?

The Jeep of course. The pick-up truck and the Nomad are probably stalled in a garage somewhere or it depends in what he feels like driving.

LOL...believe it or not, I was just thinking about this the other day.

(Rocky's in my head!.... )

That's very interesting what you found about Jeeps, Rock. Makes me feel a little better about the Wrangler I've wanted since I was 5 years old...

My thought is that Mac would still be driving his Jeep, but he's probably rigged it up somehow for less emissions and better efficiency... Probably with a rubber band, one of those little springs from a clicky pen, some wire and a potato...

I also always wanted to have a jeep, but I think I'd choose a defender instead of wrangler.

I've got alot of catching up to do as I've just strated watch the series again and am slowly getting through season one-so, so far, I've only seen the Jeep Wrangler and Cher. I think Mac would drive something similar in today's world. Something simple that he could fix himself, nothing flashy, and sort of a bare bones kinda rig.

Given those few things and toss in the fact he would be concious of envoronmental issues I think he'd have moddfied the engine to run on biodiesel or maybe some kind of homemade hybrid to optimize power and reduce emmisions. Perhaps even a solar plug in electric system. Maybe The Foundation would have a whole fleet of cars designed just like this.

I'm also dreaming because I'd like to do something similar to an old Jeep Scrambler (half Jeep-half truck)...oneday. Just hope my lack of automotive repair skills, coupled with my tedency to bash each and every knuckle while trying to repair things, won't be a hinderence.

Kev

Considering that, as the series progressed, the age of MacGyver's vehicles seemed to regress...

... by now I imagine that he'd be driving a horse-n-buggy!

Srsly, I think Mac would stick to older model vehicles... things he could fix himself. I know that he's concerned for the evironment, but I think that he would concentrate on larger impact solutions... like discovering a fuel alternative for ALL vehicles, for example.

JMHO

I definitely think MacGyver would still be driving his jeep. And his truck and Nomad every now and then just to keep them running. After all- they were gifts from Harry and he's not gonna part with those quickly. And of course, his motorcycle every now and then for fun.

I may be the only person here who actually drives a hybrid, so I'll weigh in on that question. Rock's article does point out that it depends on how much weight you give to the research and development costs, as well as how you evaluate the impact of manufacturing, relative to the hit the environment takes through the vehicle's use of resources throughout its service life. The Jeep was designed a long time ago, and there have been a lot of them built.

The hybrids took a heckuvalot of R&D resources to develop, and they're still relatively new to the planet, especially compared with the internal combustion engine itself! So every hybrid currently on the road is carrying a disproportionate share of a very recent front-end load. But that will decrease as more hybrids are developed from the existing technology; and each generation of hybrids has the potential to be more efficient than the previous one. Some actually are.

Unfortunately, a lot of hybrids, at least here in the US, aren't being designed for efficiency; they're being designed for power, and the hybrid technology is just being used as a sop to cheaply-bought consciences. Instead of designing cars that get 50, 60, or 70+ mpg, the US manufacturers are building hybrid SUVs that get 30 or 35 mpg, and patting themselves on the back because it's better than getting 15. One of these days they'll build a hybrid Hummer, just to show how clueless they are.

Oops, ranting again.

At any rate, I don't think Mac would own a hybrid, although I think he'd be fascinated by the technology and would approve of them. Much as I love my Prius, it's no good at all on rough terrain; it has a very low undercarriage (part of the aerodynamic design). I can't even drive up an ordinary Forest Service road without being really, really careful of rocks. In addition, there are so many electronic components to the hybrid drive that it has to be serviced by a specially trained technician with special equipment and a pet computer . . . on the other hand, it requires very little maintenance, far less than any other car I've ever had.

I'm with perfectlykevin: I don’t see Mac owning a vehicle that he can’t fix himself. I can definitely see the Phoenix Foundation using hybrids in their fleet, and contributing to their further development.

'Beth

You make some good points, Beth... And in the US we are soooooo SUV happy that I think if they give us an extra 5 miles a gallon we . You are right, they really market the miles per gallon, especially on SUVs, not really putting much weight on any environmental benefits...The MPG is always the biggest print in the ad, even over the maker's logo! I guess with gas being so expensive that's a primary concern when buying a car any more. LOL...heck I remember a recent ad from Jeep saying that its SUVs rated among the best fuel economy...and I was .

Anyway, yeah, I agree...Mac wouldn't drive anything he couldn't juryrig...and I can see Phoenix definitely utilizing the hyrids...lol, probably SUVs!

They already have

I saw Arnie test driving it last year on the news

Heres a news article about it

You can see more pictures of the hummer and the unveiling here

One of my cars is a Hybrid too, but I still don't find that it is better than my Saturn. I think Macgyver would still have his jeep as an all purpose easy to repair vehichle, and perhaps have a Hybrid also

Do you think he would have kept his interest in the phoenix environmentally friendly plastic engine with lower emissions that they played with in collision course? Maybe, if it proved to be as good as he hoped, he wpould get one for his jeep.

Environmentally friendly plastics

As long as the car is well maintained, there's no reason that he'd not still drive a 20 year old + car, truck, etc. So yeah... I think he'd still have a/the Jeep. Maybe updated with the latest emmissions requirements (which are tough in CA, if I recall correctly...)

I agree that Mac would drive the Jeep. Internal combustion engines can be tweaked to improve mileage above the factory standard. As far as car makers building engines that can get 50+ miles per gallon--they already have. They just don't market them to consumers, most significantly because it is not profitable for oil companies if we drive cars that get high mileage to a gallon of gas.

Many years ago, my uncle bought a car that he was able to get 65 miles per gallon on. This was when cars were made of steel and weighed a ton. The dealer accidently sold him an experimental model. The dealer tried very hard to get the car back and of course my uncle told him where he could park. My uncle kept that car until he died, then his son drove it until he finally wrecked it. Too bad. If the car hadn't been wrecked, it would probably still be on the road today. I just wish I could remember who manufactured it.

American car makers will never manufacture vehicles that can get higher mileage as long as oil companies control the political process.............but that's a rant for another day.

I agree with Grrl.

My motorcycle gets 70-80 MPG, so I'd like to think he'd ride his motor as much as possible, as I currently do.

I'd say he'd probably stick with the Jeep. It's simple, which is what I think makes it suit him so much. There aren't the fancies and luxuries that most of today's vehicles have, and I think that might be why his cars got older as the show progressed. Much easier for him to fix on his own, too.

Hey, Aristotle, welcome aboard! Glad to see you posting.

'Beth

Hey Aristotle, welcome aboard man! I'd go with the Jeep!

I'd imagine the way he knew his way around a junk yard, he'd be able to maintain and still be driving the Jeep.

Or Pete would have it up to here with him driving around in a junker and arange for the Phoenix Foundation to buy him a new one.

Actually I've just been pondering this some more. and it just occurred to me, that MacGyver was always big on environment, we even have, at least 3, episodes which work around this, negotiator, Collision Course, and Spoilers. Yet in spite of his concerns for the environment, he never stopped driving his old vehicles.

So I guess I'm leaning towards thinking that he would still drive his jeep.

I think he would drive his Jeep until it kicked the bucket. After that, I think that he would at least get a small sedan (Toyota Corolla, Honda Civic, etc.) that got good mileage, and likely would get a hybrid as soon as he could get his hands on one. I also could see the Phoenix Foundation having a fleet of hybrids for official use. My alma mater, Luther College, has gone that way... most of their official cars are hybrids, and the golf carts that the maintenance dept. uses have been modified to run on biodiesel, made out of grease from the kitchen!

A Geo Sidekick

Here's something to consider. MacGyver is an environmentalist and the Phoenix Foundation is a research and development organization.

Phoenix would design and develop a line of vehicles that run on environmentally sustainable, alternative fuels. The cars are fuel efficient, high mileage, low pollution, and easy maintenance. There would be a 4 wheel drive model, something Jeep like, for the more adventurous drivers.

The front man for the road tests, Mac of course.

So, he would drive a new, completely revolutionary vehicle, paving the way (if you'll pardon the pun) for environmentally sound, responsible transportation.

Or the Phoenix Foundation would research a different approach to the smog/acid rain pollution derived from the vehicle usage. i.e., they might simply try to make a sort of air ionizer on a more global level. You have to admit, that might actually be an easier approach, especially when you consider the air and sea aspects of travel.

For some reason I can see mac driving an old 1980's saab 900.

I realize this article is pretty old, but I had to put my two cents in (being kind of a car nut). I think Mac would still be driving the jeep, a newer model possibly (5-10 years old) if the old one died (he did do a lot of driving in it), but he'd probably have converted it to diesel and be running it off of old vegetable oil, or maybe he turned it into an electric like a friend of my 10th grade science teacher did.