Recent Comments:
Auto Week recommends the four cylinder engine {Autoblog Green}
Jun 19th 2008 12:23PM EPA numbers for highway are lower than what most people consider highway. You would probably get over 40mpg highway with the Mini Cooper. Besided small cars main benefit is city driving, on the highway, aerodynamic play a bigger part than weight.
Lutz pegs first generation Chevy Volt price tag at $40,000 {Autoblog Green}
Jun 19th 2008 12:13PM EV1 purchaser aren't representative of the general car buying public, any more than a $80K bidders for Rav4 EVs indicate any kind of market for $80k EVs.
Also it is not the EV part that likely represents the major issues, it is adding an ICE to the mix, which ups the complexity. People might discover that they don't like a small displacement engine reving at a fairly high constant revs when it kicks in (likely because that is the most efficient way to do it). Or on a longer road trip you may discover that once you deplete the battery, climbing long grades leaves the car crawling as the generator alone doesn't supply enough power to enable accelerating on a grade.
Then we have the big expensive battery. I wonder about the warranty on this massively priced item.
This is serial hybrid 1.0 built with a lot of components that will be off the shelf and bended to this purpose(but not optimized), integrated with first generation software. All of it rushed to market.
You would have to be quite naive to think it won't have quite a lot of issues.
In charge sustaining mode, will likely have worse fuel economy than Toyotas much cheaper new 3rd generation Prius that will be out at the same time.
It will be a question of how many people will pay anything and put up with anything for the privilege of plugging in.
A McCain presidency would mean electric cars powered by nuclear plants, clean coal {Autoblog Green}
Jun 19th 2008 11:22AM We need long term viability study on Nuclear, that at least does some projections on fuel availability/cost to the end of nuclear plant lifespan as the fuel is also a natural resource that is entering higher demand.
Ultimately we need to do it all. Nuclear/Solar/Hydro/wind and even some tightly scrubbed coal plants as a last resort.
That and we need to concentrate more on efficiency.
The french have done nuclear right, we really need to look at what they are doing right and emulate it.
Lutz pegs first generation Chevy Volt price tag at $40,000 {Autoblog Green}
Jun 19th 2008 9:33AM "I think there will be enough early adopters willing to pay the premium price to move the Volts off the lots."
There will, of course, be some. But at $40k this won't be a mass market vehicle.
Personally I likely wouldn't touch a GM 1.0 race to market with new technology project and I certainly wouldn't pay a premium to join this beta test.
Converted Plug-In Prius destroyed by fire! {Autoblog Green}
Jun 18th 2008 12:07PM "Now it turns out Toyota's chargers can set the Prius on fire like a laptop... This is rich..."
No, blaming Toyota for an after market hatchet job is what is rich.
Honda to revive the Insight name for new hybrid? {Autoblog Green}
Jun 17th 2008 3:52PM Yeah. I am with MarcT as well. Apartment dwellers generally won't be able to run plug ins.
I might get a house someday, then I "might" be interested in a plug in, but for now, I just want more efficient gas/oil burner.
IMO those clamoring for plug ins are a vocal minority, much like the "run your car a fryer grease" crowd.
Most of us just want big mpg numbers with the same convenience we have today.
The plug in market is useful niche, but it is a niche.
I just hope Honda can match the Insights MPG. I missed out on them first time around and they are very rare on the used market.
GM struggling to recruit engineers for advanced projects {Autoblog Green}
Jun 17th 2008 2:01PM I agree with armmat. I have a CS degree, 12 years experience in Telecom. I see exactly the same thing. They expect technical staff to work 14hr a day for meager rewards while the MBAs haul down big bucks and schmooze at expensive lunches.
Couple this with a massive outsourcing drive of technical work and I would also choose a different path if I had a glimpse of this future. I don't recommend technical fields for anyone these days.
Companies are outsourcing and making remaining jobs in these fields hell. No wonder less people are getting into it.
The ongoing move of outsourcing all the technical know how is obviously going to bite them in the long run (possibly already is).
This mess is clearly of their own making, when they can't find candidates to be overworked, underpaid and live under the constant threat of being outsourced.
I also would love to get out of this, but is hard when you are 40 and want to do something completely different.
Honda to revive the Insight name for new hybrid? {Autoblog Green}
Jun 17th 2008 9:11AM Who cares if the motor spins.
Results are what counts. The insight had IMA and got better mpg than anything on the road, averaging about 10-15mpg more than a Prius.
Should we be thinking about standardized everything for plug-in vehicles? {Autoblog Green}
Jun 16th 2008 4:10PM Way too early to think about standardizing batteries as we are still bleeding edge on the chemistry. If you replace a cell you need the exact same chemistry and cell size. You are n't going to mix A123 with altair nanosafe.
They could get together to work on a standard industrial grade smart charger, that would negotiate charge rates/voltages between car and station before charging begins as it is definitely no one size fits all, but you should be able to have the car and charger agree on the parameters before charging begins.
Sigh. Hybrid lies continue to spread {Autoblog Green}
Jun 16th 2008 2:42PM "Perhaps the Yaris? "
Perhaps a Cadillac Escalade? Gee look the Prius starts out miles ahead and gets further ahead as time goes forward.
Or perhaps it makes no sense at all to compare cars in completely different size class(yaris). The Matrix is already smaller than the Prius. So it is already a downsized comparison, there is no point to compare to an even smaller Yaris compact car unless you just want to make it completely unfair (normal for hybrid haters).
When doing a comparison it is quite normal to compare cars of the same class. As is the Matrix is the closest smaller car, the Camry the closest larger car. Compare to either and it does very well, even if TCO is your only criteria. Then factors kick in that are more intangible.
Filling up infrequently for cheap is something that makes a lot of people happy even if it isn't the most economical choice( as in a pure EV).
I get the same feeling because I moved walking distance to work. It is a priceless feeling being minimally impacted by the Oil Industry. I now laugh when Gas prices go up. That is truly priceless.
