'letric cars"


Just keep it clean please....

Golden Jubilee
Golden Jubilee

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Post Sun May 01, 2016 3:03 pm

'letric cars"

At the risk of being labled a greenie tree hugger type, I am considering getting one.
1st I am not a greenie and feel no moral compunction about driving my '42 K-7 with all its gas guzzlein, oil leaking charm.
I should explain that my newest vehicle is a '94 Explorer with 200K on the clock. It is the 1st car I ever bought new. I chose it for its body on frame build. It has serve me well and continues to. The problem is the body has rotted to the point that road-splash from the wheels is now entering the cabin. The reasoning behind getting a body on frame is you can continue to use it long after a monocoque body is unsafe to drive. The class III receiver hitch has rusted thru!, not the metal ends, but the double wall box tubeing!
Our household driving habits have changed also. My wife puts most of the passenger car miles on, she hates to drive and will not drive on expressways.
No, what really made me consider one is 99%+ of the useage is under 25 miles. In short, 12 miles to town and back. I have a '84 Saab turbo 900 for trips, and the aforementioned K-7 for heavy loads. It seams stupid to run the Explorer to town and back. If we had Natural Gas, I would consider a NG powered car. I just like the fact that I don't have to make a trip to fuel it up, and she will not either.
Used electric's are coming off lease and selling cheaper than gasoline vehicle, and have fewer miles on them.
I'm not too concerned about the batterys loosing range, as long as they can make 25 mile a day or so. It would give the wife something simple, she wouldn't have to fuel or have maintained while I'm on the road, and she has the Saab as a back -up vehicle.
I know this is the antitheses of our beloved old IHC's but does anyone have any experience with them? I really don't want to bother with a hybrid like the Prius, I don't need or want something that can go over 80 miles, I have a very nice Saab turbo for that.
My Wife can't give a hoot about cars, and doesn't need or want anything fancy. The last car she bought was an '84 AMC (Renault) Encore because she worked where she could get one at employee cost. It was the base model, 1.4 (wet liner) push-rod engine with 5 spd (56 hp!). We had that until the rear wheel wells (and therefore upper shock mounts) dissolved. She doesn't want an auto, but unless we stick to early 90's vehicles, auto is all there is.
Not really interested in buying new, they seam to loose their value quicker than conventional vehicles, I'll let someone else take the hit, and buy used.
So I'm thowing this out to see if anyone has any hands on experience with them.

Golden Jubilee
Golden Jubilee

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Post Sun May 01, 2016 3:47 pm

Re: 'letric cars"

My shop only has experience with Prius and another GMC PU hybrid. The GMC was pretty awful.

Golden Jubilee
Golden Jubilee

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Post Sun May 01, 2016 5:43 pm

Re: 'letric cars"

Almost all of the taxi companies in this area have the Prius. One driver told my wife the Prius is lasting a million kilometers plus. He went on to say that his fuel bill has gone from over a thousand dollars with the big Crown Victorias to a few hundred bucks each month.
My wife's next car will be a Hybrid, maybe one of the BMW models.
I would rather have tools I do not need than to need tools I do not have
Thinking risks being controversial and possibly being offensive

Golden Jubilee
Golden Jubilee

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Post Wed May 04, 2016 10:24 am

Re: 'letric cars"

I have thought about an electric or a hybrid too for daily use. The one that intrigues me is the Chevy Volt; I prefer the series hybrid over the parallel or the combination hybrids.
46 K3
52 L110
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Golden Jubilee
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Post Wed May 04, 2016 12:09 pm

Re: 'letric cars"

We owned a 2006Toyota Highlander hybrid up until a couple months ago. My wife mostly drove it for her day to day activities. It got decent gas mileage for an SUV but did not get great mileage. New generation hybrids may be doing better now. Not sure. Our opinion is that it probably would have gotten better gas mileage in a more urban environment than where we live between Tampa and Orlando. It's gas mileage over the time we owned it was about 26.5 mpg. We were getting to the point the hybrid batteries would need replacement and we decided to buy a new vehicle than put a couple grand into a ten year old vehicle. The salesman for our new car ( a close personal friend) said hybrids are not holding their value as used vehicles. With all his influence, we only got 4K trade-in. The car was 126k miles, garage kept, all maint. done and was in very good condition. It was an enjoyable vehicle, but we have decide no more hybrids for us.
L110 owner since 1974, finally rebuilt 2014.

Golden Jubilee
Golden Jubilee

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Post Wed May 04, 2016 12:45 pm

Re: 'letric cars"

This is my favorite Hybrid. The Chevy Volt looks really nice.
https://youtu.be/nSqzp3kdAm4
https://youtu.be/eaOfgevPphk
I would rather have tools I do not need than to need tools I do not have
Thinking risks being controversial and possibly being offensive

Golden Jubilee
Golden Jubilee

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Joined: Thu Nov 29, 2012 9:28 pm

Location: Lyman, IA

Post Wed May 04, 2016 1:49 pm

Re: 'letric cars"

Our usage requirements are fairly unique and fit an all electric about as well as anyone ever could. 12 miles to town an few days a week. No traffic and open roads. Conventional IC cars spend 1/2 the trip getting up to temp.
I looked hard at our usage and every once an a while we make two trips to town, for a total of 48 miles. I wouldn't try to go to Omaha or Des Moines (53 and 82 miles respectively) which we do about once month, mainly for some truck-part or other.
99% or better fall into the 48 miles or less category and that is hard on an internal combustion engine as they never really get hot enough to get rid of moisture.
The temptation is to have one car do all things. Living out in the country where taxi's and bus is not an option we always have more than one car, might as well have one for the 99% and another for the 1%.
If I was commuting to Omaha daily, I think I would consider a Volt or other hybrid, not sure I would try it in an all electric unless I could have a charging station at work also.
The problem with the combo hybrids is they sacrifice battery capacity to add the engine and gas tank, so you end up with less the 1/2 of either mode.
Brother has two Pruii and loves them but his trip requirement are different then mine.
As I said, not a "green thing" more a practical choice for the type of driving we do.

Golden Jubilee
Golden Jubilee

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Post Thu May 05, 2016 12:56 pm

Re: 'letric cars"

go whole hog and get a Tesla. they are rated the best electric from what I have read. no research done, some might have more info. the new 3 series is only about $40k (only!). just a year or more to get though.

we have had two hybrids. I am not convinced they are worth the extra cost. The cost of all electrics is not sustainable for what the factory spends to make one. Once all the government subsidies go away, the price with surely go up.

Golden Jubilee
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Post Thu May 05, 2016 1:41 pm

Re: 'letric cars"

https://www.cevforbc.ca/
This is the program that is offered here. I did not know that there was some sort of "incentive" program.
The province of Ontario did a year operation comparison of Hybrids and gasoline powered at $1.30/litre. The savings were significant. The BMW I3 was $198 for 10,000 kilometers versus a comparable sub compact at about $1,000. In Alberta the electric cost is $235. Saskatchewan is $253. Ontario is $366.
I have to think that building the components for a Hybrid must leave some foot-print on the environment. The plug-in-charge-it-up has to come from somewhere. If your power is from coal, well...., you get it. Hydro electric power may not be much better when damage to the land is factored in. In this province there is a great controversy over a new Site "C" hydro-electric dam that is under construction. http://www.stopsitec.org/
The argument against is mostly over the loss of arable land flooding to fill the dam. I get it. One of our politicians suggested that we can always get our produce from California. I think California is having a drought. The drought and our Canadian dollar worth $0.78 USD today, contribute to imported veggies few can afford.
Here on the Lower Mainland someone has installed Hybrid charging stations. The adjoining parking is reserved for those cars that can use the power source. I have to use the disabled parking and very often the marked spaces are being used by parkers without the identifying tags. The Hybrid parking spaces are often taken by non-Hybrid cars and trucks. Just this week, a local young man was stabbed 18 times and died from his injuries. He got himself involved in defending a minor traffic violation.
I like the Tesla. I may not live long enough to reach the head of the line-up to buy one.
I would rather have tools I do not need than to need tools I do not have
Thinking risks being controversial and possibly being offensive

Golden Jubilee
Golden Jubilee

Posts: 5170

Joined: Thu Nov 29, 2012 9:28 pm

Location: Lyman, IA

Post Thu May 05, 2016 7:30 pm

Re: 'letric cars"

I agree that hybrid's and electric are not clean. That isn't my goal, If you want clean, you can pay me to stay home, otherwise I have to earn my keep and I burn fossil fuel to do so. The LI-ion batterys are fairly expensive in terms of money and pollution to make. The Green nuts tend not to see that part of the equation. Just because nothing is coming out the back of your electric, doesn't mean fossil fuel wasn't burned to make it go.
My goal is something cheap to operate when making short trips a few days a week. No trips to the gas station. Electric's are ideal in that limited situation, and have severe drawbacks in most others.
Sorry Nikki, the Porsche is a little over budget for a grocery-getter. Looks like fun, however.
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