Mallard Posted June 6, 2008 Report Share Posted June 6, 2008 I thought they weren't allowed to be reactivated and put back on the roads. Unless this was 4 years ago. They donated a bunch of cars to universties, but they stripped the motor and controller out of them. I believe they were allowed to do whatever they wanted with them, including rebuilding it with new components. I think the EV1 was around 8 seconds 0-60. The Volt will not be marketed as a sports car. Think Mini. Take a look at the Saab 9-X BioHybrid if you want an idea of what the body will be similar to (according to rumors). AJ - Yeah I know the classes they make you guys take. But from a mechanics prespective the Volt SHOULD be a much simpler car to work on than the Hybrid trucks. It should also be much easier to diagnose a problem on the Volt. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
starkmaster03 Posted June 6, 2008 Report Share Posted June 6, 2008 Anybody catch the news the other night, There's a 3 wheel vehicle called the Aptera that is about to go on the market in 2-3 months that gets 300 Miles to the Gallon, 10 Gallon Tank, You can drive from New York to LA on one 10 Gal Tank of Gas. Price: $26,900 and $29,900. http://www.engadget.com/2007/10/10/apteras-300-mpg-car-available-for-pre-order/ http://www.aptera.com/ I read up alot on this a few months ago and they were going to limit the production to Cali residences first as a test market because they have to train people how to work on them and they don't have anything set up for replacement parts yet. It's titled as a motorcycle but it is fairly large when you see it in pictures with other cars. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AJ Posted June 6, 2008 Report Share Posted June 6, 2008 AJ - Yeah I know the classes they make you guys take. But from a mechanics prespective the Volt SHOULD be a much simpler car to work on than the Hybrid trucks. It should also be much easier to diagnose a problem on the Volt. can't get much easier than hooking up the Tech2 and it telling you what to replace like the tahoe's are doing lol. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Oo0martelle0oO Posted June 6, 2008 Report Share Posted June 6, 2008 neither are not worth it to me IMO If I was gonna spend the money on and eletric car I would want some thing that can travel more than 150 mile per charge and be fun to drive. Tesla Roadster Yes it cost $100,000 Yes it can travel est 220 miles per charge Yes 0-60 in 3.9 http://www.teslamotors.com/ I heard about a year ago they were trying to develop a eletric / solar hybrid but there is nothing on the site about it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Berto Posted June 6, 2008 Report Share Posted June 6, 2008 $138 per 12000 miles electric , versus gas using a 30 mpg average is $1600 per 12k miles using a $ per gallon figure, double check my numbers please my ears smoke when I do math. How much are the batteries going to cost to replace when they crap out? How often will the batteries need to be replaced? In my opinion all these electric and hybrid solutions are Junk, and are just a bandaid to a problem that needs Hydrogen Fuel cells. Separate water into hydrogen and oxygen and all your exhaust is, is heat and water. Its a beautiful thing. stop spending R&D $ on this waste of time. ***yes I know hydrogen cars would require batteries still but at least we would get away from fossil fuels*** Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Oo0martelle0oO Posted June 7, 2008 Report Share Posted June 7, 2008 The only other problem with hydrogen fuel cell cars is the fact the car produces water as a by product but to process natural gas or methane to reform hydrogen is not exactly "Green" and outputs the same gas as what cars would. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Berto Posted June 7, 2008 Report Share Posted June 7, 2008 The only other problem with hydrogen fuel cell cars is the fact the car produces water as a by product but to process natural gas or methane to reform hydrogen is not exactly "Green" and outputs the same gas as what cars would. Not if you use Electrolysis. You can use solar or wind power to separate water into Hydrogen and Oxygen. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Conesmasher Posted June 7, 2008 Report Share Posted June 7, 2008 Not if you use Electrolysis. You can use solar or wind power to separate water into Hydrogen and Oxygen. So now we have to charge with electricty something to make the fuel? Why not just use solar power to charge my Volt. Don't get me wrong, I like the idea of fuel cell's, just don't think that the public is ready to make this move to hydrogen and the big infrastructure change. I think that solar panel developments are going to revolutionize the way we obtain power. I have also read that will all of this battery tech going into cars it is going to begin to change our electrical system and begin moving down the path of a "2-way" system, where we can charge-back to the power company and have them pay us/give us a discount on our bill for energy that we produce. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Berto Posted June 7, 2008 Report Share Posted June 7, 2008 . Don't get me wrong, I like the idea of fuel cell's, just don't think that the public is ready to make this move to hydrogen and the big infrastructure change. What is it going to take? Completely running out of fuel and then we have to rush to make the infrastructure? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest 614Streets Posted June 7, 2008 Report Share Posted June 7, 2008 They are so late for infrastructure , if hydrogen was going to be the new fuel they should have began with the marine industry 10 years ago since its refueling infrastructure is much smaller but would have been a great way to start organized distribution. But.. Bottom line is electricity will slaughter all other viable fuels once its out and perfected. There is r/d still to be done with electricity , tons of r/d as electricity is the greatest single handed discovery of all time and it will only get better. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Conesmasher Posted June 7, 2008 Report Share Posted June 7, 2008 What is it going to take? Completely running out of fuel and then we have to rush to make the infrastructure? It's not going to take running out of fuel, but it would take EXPENSIVE fuel or electricity or even natural gas costs in order for Hydrogen to be viable. Why? Because these other infrastructure are already set up. And in order to get an appropriate "Return on Investment", the venture has to be profitable. Don't get me wrong it's not immpossible. I just don't know if it is profitable enough. What I think is slightly funny is that no one is looking past this "oil crisis" right now. Oil companies are drilling like madmen right now, they are going gangbusters trying to find oil. Why? Because it's profitable. And eventually, the combining of newly discovered oil resources, with reduced consumption, has the chance to increase supply and reduce demand, which could send prices spiraling. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mallard Posted June 7, 2008 Report Share Posted June 7, 2008 Not if you use Electrolysis. You can use solar or wind power to separate water into Hydrogen and Oxygen. The problem is is takes a lot of energy to perform electrolysis. Yes, you could use solar or wind power to create the H2 from water, but you would get much more value out of putting the electricty straight into your car. There's an interesting presentation on Martin Eberhard's blog (http://www.teslafounders.com) comparing the different technologies. (The bolg is titled "Focus Green" if you want to look for it on his web site.) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Conesmasher Posted June 7, 2008 Report Share Posted June 7, 2008 The problem is is takes a lot of energy to perform electrolysis. Yes, you could use solar or wind power to create the H2 from water, but you would get much more value out of putting the electricty straight into your car. There's an interesting presentation on Martin Eberhard's blog (http://www.teslafounders.com) comparing the different technologies. (The bolg is titled "Focus Green" if you want to look for it on his web site.) This is a VERY good vid. I love their explanation of how much 'energy' it takes to move the car. Thanks for the heads-up!!! It's really funny how burning diesel to produce electricity, will produce higher effciency, then burning diesel to power a beetle. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cordell Posted June 8, 2008 Report Share Posted June 8, 2008 This is awesome. We need lots more cars like this so the demand for gas goes down, and the price for gas will stop going up. Sounds too good to be true. I will however get one and plug it in at work, so my electric bill doesn't go up. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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