Recent Comments:
VIDEO: Meet the 2009 Cadillac Escalade hybrid {Autoblog Green}
Jul 15th 2008 9:21AM My guess is that building / engineering a hybrid powertrain into an SUV is just a whole lot easier than trying to cram it into a compact such as the civic. More space to work with and a sturdy underframe to support the added battery weight, are just two of the advantages. They just took the route of least resistance - put the hybrid powertrain into the easiest model to do so, and then worry about smaller hybrids that have to be built from the ground up (i.e. pruis) later on.
Charging a Tesla roadster from household outlet could take 30 hours! {Autoblog Green}
Jul 7th 2008 10:52AM The bigger worry here is the cost....
53kwh at 10c/kwh is more than $5 for a charge. If you're paying the utility company's mark-up for wind power, plus taxes, it's closer to $7/charge. Certainly not a lot if you're dropping $100k on a car, but also not just pocket change if you have a 100 mile/day round-trip commute (as many in LA do).
Tesla's WhiteStar will be called the Model S - more info soon {Autoblog Green}
Jul 1st 2008 10:21AM $60k! According the endgadget and Digg, this is "affordable", or "still quite steep" for most people.
A more fitting description would be "1/4 to 1/2 the value of your house!" Seriously, who the hell has $60k to drop on unproven technology? This is no better than their roadster, albeit a bit more practical since it can seat more than 2.
When are the big auto makers going to get it? We (the public) want electric cars, which go 250 miles on a charge, seat 4 adults, cruise on the highway at 80mph, and cost under $20k. Even the volt is ridiculously overpriced at $40k. Whoever gets under that magic $20k barrier first is gonna make a LOT of cash. Until then, these are just toys for rich kids.
The fastest and cheapest route to this is to simply take a proven design (chevy cavalier, ford escort/taurus/mondeo, dodge neon, stratus, toyota corolla, honda civic) and shove an electric motor in it. No crash testing needed, no expensive retooling of the plant, just take out the ICE and put in an electric instead. Throw in some batteries and you're on the road in under a year. Why the auto-makers are so reticent to do this, is beyond me?
VIDEO: The opposite of hypermiling - BMW M3 vs Toyota Prius {Autoblog Green}
Jul 1st 2008 10:11AM I've long suspected the poor mileage of the prius (relative to high mileage cars of the 1980s) is all the extra weight and complicated gubbins they carry around. Once you get above a certain speed and the electric motor stops, then all that stuff becomes a hindrance.
Granted for stop-start driving in big cities, hybrids make sense, but for a highway commuter, if you stripped out the batteries and electric motor from a prius, and just had it as a very lightweight gas-only car, it would be a lot more efficient.
$4 gas drives Segway sales to new high {Autoblog Green}
Jun 17th 2008 10:44AM They just started using them to patrol the parking lots here, instead of driving around in a ford ranger. It's a nice gesture, but it'll be interesting to see how many of the parking attendants sign up for the segway come wintertime. I seriously doubt they handle well on an inch layer of ice.
Is it time to return to the double nickel? {Autoblog Green}
Jun 11th 2008 12:35PM @ torfred
Sorry but that's garbage - using less gas will not bring down the price. For every 1 gallon of gas we save in the US, there are a couple billion Chinese and Indian new car drivers just waiting to use it. US gasoline consumption HAS GONE DOWN over the past 6 months. What has happened to the price? Hmmm.... maybe its because we live on a planet with OTHER COUNTRIES, and are not the only gas consumers in town. If we don't burn it, someone else will, and they'll pay whatever price it takes because their currency is getting stronger every day while ours gets weaker.
Sucks to be at the bottom of the feeding chain, but that's where the US is headed when it comes to gasoline.
Is it time to return to the double nickel? {Autoblog Green}
Jun 6th 2008 12:26PM The numbers (i.e. $4/gal gas) are simply not enough to convince people to slow down yet...
On a 250 mile road trip, slowing from 70 to 55 might gain you 3mpg. Getting 28mpg vs. 25mpg means you burn 8.9 gallons instead of 10 gallons. So at current gas prices you save $4 and arrive there 1 hour later. For a family of four, the $4 is well worth it not to have moaning kids in the back for an extra hour. Hell, you could even spend that much on a coffee these days.
On a 25 mile commute to work, slowing 70mph down to 55mph gets you there 10 minutes later and you save 43 cents. Again, for most people who run late to work, it's worthwhile. If you earn more than $2.60 an hour (most people), and you're on a time clock, it would actually cost you MORE to arrive late and take the 10 min' cut in pay.
In order to get people to burn less gas, we need to deal with the reasons why they drive - poor walkability of neighborhoods, rampant suburban sprawl, lack of telecommuting options. You're never going to sell people on the idea of driving slower just because it's good for the planet, especially if it hurts them economically to do so (see above example). If people really gave a hoot then we'd all be driving hybrids - we're not - ergo not everyone cares as much as you.
Ask Engadget: What's the best entry-level DSLR? {Engadget}
May 30th 2008 9:27AM WOW, amazing post. This is the reason why I like this website, because occasionally people actually say sensible stuff that is incredibly useful. Thanks!
Personally, I can't be dealing with lugging a DSLR around, so went with a (pretty bad) compromise, a Panasonic lumix MDC-LX2, which is the same camera as a leica D-lux3. It's a point and shoot, but can burn RAW image files, and has manual focus option, and you can get a lens adapter for it to allow fitting of filters, fish-eye lens etc. Plus when you want real simple it will just fit in your pocket. It's nowhere near as fancy as a DSLR, but a bit more sophisticated than your average P&S box.
The government wants to know: Why Are You or Aren't You Biking to Work? {Autoblog Green}
May 15th 2008 2:22PM @ peddlin' - Ha ha ha, best laugh I've had all day!
Personally I ride a bike as often as possible, except when it is cold/raining/snowing, which here in upstate NY is about 250 days a year. Some things that would change such habits...
1) Better, more secure bike parking (lockers)
2) Tax incentives
3) Bike lanes (any at all, there are currently NONE in my city)
4) $9 gasoline
5) A grocery store that wasn't located off a suburban interstate exit but in the city.
6) Longer hours for local businesses (who the hell has time to leave work at 5:30, cycle home, then jump in the car and go run errands before everything closes? Who has time to leave work at 4:30 to run those same errands by bike? Not me).
Triac to arrive this July, reservations being accepted, and other juicy details {Autoblog Green}
May 14th 2008 9:36AM For someone who expects to go to market in July, you'd think that maybe putting a PRICE on the website, and having dealership links that aren't dead-ends might help their cause. For now, I'll consign this to the zap/vaporware bin.
