Posted on 05/21/2007 4:16:57 PM PDT by 2ndDivisionVet
Uh.........
Why not just have a car with a gas engine and avoid ALL the conversion ineffficiencies??
(Pull a tanker trailer behind you for non-stop stuff...)
Ok I am driving gas/diesel car and run out of fuel, take can to nearest station get couple gallons.
What am I gonna due when I run out of battery power , go get 5 gallons of electricity from the local power station /LOL
We’re talking about a vehicle that has a 200-mile range between overnight charges. A 100,000-mile warranty would be 500 days, a year and a half, it you drove it to its theoretical limit every single day,
Drive a conventional car 100K miles in 500 days, and I bet you’d have some significant repair and maintenance bills, too. Just the oil changes and tires would hit 5-digit dollar figures.
We sure HOPE so, anyway!
Actually, we use what we do today because it is the CHEAPEST way to go. (And still have our OWN vehicle.)
Over there at the 2 o'clock position!
Is that a group of apes with legbones in their paws???
You really think so? At 100 bills a pop? My guess is, not so much. Best of the British, cobber.
“If nuclear energy were supplying most or all of our electricity, I could see their point, but it’s not. Coal is where we get the lion’s share of our electric and it’s more polluting than gasoline and diesel.”
Sssshhhhhhh. . . . . It’s all about appearances, not substance.
Looks like a useless piece of crap to me. Two passengers, no room for luggage or groceries.
I have a few ratty old vehicles at my home, and ANY of them can go over 1200 miles in a day and they all have over 100k miles on them.
“Still, it is disconcerting that they are pitching the car to rich enviro-wacko liberals:”
Come on! Who else would be so stupid as to buy one at such a high price in the mistaken belief that you are actually accomplishing something good for the environment?
I’m a little over 6 feet tall so it probably wouldn’t be comfortable for me, but I think it is pretty comfortable for the average driver—the reviews I’ve seen haven’t given it negatives for that.
As to safety, I think it is probably safer than most vehicles on the road. The platform is based on a Lotus Elise.
All that said, IT IS NOT A PRACTICAL CAR. Neither is a Boxter or a Ferrari—the whole idea behind this first car is to create a car that competes in the sports car market. Anybody looking for a commuter car or to haul the groceries needs to look somewhere else. Everyone who complains about practicality needs to realize that this car isn’t trying to be practical. This is nothing but an indulgence item for those with lots of discretionary income.
That, in a nutshell, is the problem with rechargeable electric cars. Range. Internal combustion cars can basically run until the wheels fall off -- a four-seat car with four drivers in shifts, you can drive 24/7 indefinitely.
1200 miles in a day is a bit of a stretch -- that's a 50mph average for 24 straight hours, factoring in all stops. Sounds like a reality show. But 800-900 miles per day is not unreasonable.
Electric cars are in-town cars. Period. You wouldn't want to take one on vacation. They're not set up for a road trip. Unless there is a way you could pull off the highway and swap a fading battery pack for a fresh one, like you can a propane tank.
An interesting number I didn’t see is the value of a tank of electricity.
Although I applaud the technology and the fact it sticks it to the sandroaches its just a “status” car, like those stupid HUMMERS with conestoga wheels that couldn’t travel a foot in soft sand.
Personally I will not be impressed until they can make cross country big rigs that are able to NOT have to rely on a diesel engine that get at best 7 miles to the gallon. I operate a fleet of concrete mixers and our business is lagging right now because we have to add a fuel charge to our deliveries, more people are preferring to “do it yourself”.
I like it.
Coal is where we get the lion’s share of our electric and it’s more polluting than gasoline and diesel.
I don’t care about how the electricity is made..........
breaking free of the ME oil will be the most effective way to end terrorism.
That's because the people who hooked it up to the wetter circuit only did so once ;-)
Then again, a lot of things started out that way. Until someone like Ford came along and put the automobile within reach of the average consumer, those were novelties as well. Infrastructure development (gas stations) followed the consumer demand based on expanded use of automobiles by private citizens.
Yes, for quite awhile I think fossil fuel (if it is truly "fossil" fuel) will be as long as there is plenty of oil in the ground. Even if we run out of oil, (which we won't soon), synthetic fuels from coal or methane hydrates will probably be the most economical solution.
But it doesn't matter what you or I believe is in the future. We should have confidence that the market will provide the solution to any problems. Any "help" from the politicians in the form of mandates, subsidies or tax credits for haywire "alternative" fuel schemes will only make any things worse.
I said THEY could; not me! ;^)
(Although, 40 some years ago, before Interstates: 4 guys, going on leave, from Denver to Pennsylvania straight thru...)
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