Posted on 08/07/2010 12:27:03 PM PDT by Hojczyk
Who knew that electric cars could be fun to drive and practical at the same time?
Those were my impressions last week after test-driving the all-electric Nissan Leaf and the plug-in Chevrolet Volt, two new cars that will reach showroom floors later this year. The Leaf was zippy, spacious and fun. The Volt felt like a standard family car updated for the 21st century with high-tech features you can control through a smartphone.
I liked them both but for different reasons, and would consider buying either of them if I were in the market for a car.
(Excerpt) Read more at mercurynews.com ...
We rented a hybrid Camry and had the air running the whole time while in Vegas. It performed wonderfully and got 35+mpg.
We probably couldn’t afford the Camry if we bought it. And the ROI is not there yet. But it was a great car.
I bet the eco-nuts will start coming up with eco names for their children such as Volt and Leaf.
When whores type, they become presstitutes.
That day is very close. All it will take is for one of the super capacitor systems to reach mass production.
How much do they cost to charge? If it were, say, $1 to $1.50 per day, it would be less expensive than my Pontiac Montana is to drive to and from work. If you chop the sticker price in half, that might be OK, although there are still many, many unanswered questions.
Of course the guvmint could solve a lot by passing a law that forces us all to replace every car we own with a Volt starting in 2013. Then they could require us to buy a new Volt every year until we die or pay massive fines or go to jail. They could use the fines to pay for Volts for people who don't want to work so don't have the money.
The law can say we have the right to keep our own car if we want to, but it won't eliminate the requirement to buy that Volt.
This gets more reasonable every time I read it. Of course we won't know every requirement until after we pass the law.
Heh. I know the guy on the right. He was a journalism teacher at the local community college where I went, and even took his class which I later dropped (mainly because I’m not exactly the journalist type). Former journalist of the Merc, left and sued the Merc for reasons he did not specify in class for legal reasons.
Needless to say, it’s not hard to know where he stands on the political spectrum.
I’m an old over-the-hill codger, driving my 4th Ford Explorer. It has 174K miles on it. Looking forward to the 2011 Explorer with turbo-charged 4 cyl. and a 6 spd. auto. Everything I want and fuel economy, too. Probably 30+ mpg out on the big road. My S-in-L’s Edge with a V-6 gets in the high twenties cruising, so the new Explorer set-up will be even better.
Sorry for double posting. But before I confuse people, let’s just say whatever reason he left the Merc wasn’t due to not sharing their politics.
Oh, and he did relay a story to us when he had a conservative student in the class who gave her opinion. Let’s just say it seems he likes to ‘prove people wrong’ with help from the other classmates. The girl at least tried and brought stacks of articles showing her point of view. That being said, he’s a nice guy all around when it is not concerning politics. I myself kept my views private when I was there.
A typical electric vehicle will only travel 4 miles per kilowatt-hour. Plus, the battery is never discharged more than half way. (The Volt only has a 16 Kwh battery pack.) That means you’d need to have a massive battery to travel any significant distance. But a bigger battery would add weight to the vehicle and make it less efficient.
You DID buy one Tom, even though you aren't in the market for one. And for every one they sell, you'll buy a little of that one too. You have no choice. And you won't even get to drive them either.
... In Northern Minnesota.
Can’t beat that.
Did that picture come from PeopleofWalmart.com?
It runs on coal.
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