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Wednesday, 20 April 2011

Smart electric car isn't

Personally, I prefer the Hammerhead Eagle i-Thrust
27 BHP, zero to 37.5 in 6.5 xeconds, zero to 60...eventually, range 63 miles (according to the EPA, which must involve coasting downhill a lot), takes all night to charge, and costs $28,752 after the $7.500 tax credit.

I know where you can get another paperweight a lot cheaper.
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4 comments:

  1. SergejWednesday, 20 April 2011 at 10:06:00 GMT-7

    Setting aside the experience of colliding with a bicycle and coming off second-best---and having a large, extremely toxic battery fly through the passenger compartment to boot. But this thing looks like it might fare as well against a fat tourist on a Segway. A fat tourist wearing a matte black bicycle helmet above his Hawaiian shirt and Bermuda shorts. One of a string of similarly accoutered, similarly fat tourists, all in the charge of a Segway tour guide like ducklings following a mother duck. Now that's just sad.

    ReplyDelete
  2. AnonymousWednesday, 20 April 2011 at 11:22:00 GMT-7

    So I can get TO work but NOT home again...
    Oh Joy... :(

    I will be sticking to the old MG or Landy.

    ReplyDelete
  3. eonWednesday, 20 April 2011 at 13:05:00 GMT-7

    And thus we learn all over again why electric cars (Baker Electric, Detroit Electric, etc.) failed so miserably almost exactly a century ago.

    There is a finite upper limit to battery amperage and motor torque vs. final-drive torque and all-up weight. It was pretty much achieved in the pre-WW 1 period with DC cells and motors, and there isn't much room for improvement. Unless of course you want to either (1) use an electric battery/drive system that is in the power and weight class of a WW 2 German Type XXI "Electroboat" (in this area, bigger actually is, to a great extent, better) or (2) use high-density batteries that are also noted for their instability; with stimulating results in a crash bearing a remarkable resemblance to those occurring when you get rear-ended while driving a 1973 Ford Pinto.

    All we need now is for some "eco-conscious" in-duh-vidual to decide that what we really need is a steam car.

    Stanley Steamer, anyone?


    cheers

    eon

    ReplyDelete
  4. jayessellFriday, 22 April 2011 at 04:34:00 GMT-7

    I don't know.....

    Put a retractable peg between the front wheels with electrical contacts on either side of the peg and you have a 1:1 scale slot car.

    Make one lane of the freeway 'slot cars only' and charge a monthly fee based on the current consumed.
    (Something like 'easy pass' is now.)

    Retract the peg for street use. Now the 100 mile round trip battery has plenty of charge left!

    ReplyDelete

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