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Topic: some new conceptual cars - and Volts

I have been reading about some new cars just coming these days, so I just wanted to post something about them. I think their sales will be good (maybe 1-1.5 million such cars by 2012???)

When I came to the US, the number of cupholders was more important than the mileage according to some polls. Well, now with Tesla Motors, Zero Motorcycles, Chevy Volts, etc. this is changing.

So, this group of guys - solartaxi.com - managed to travel across several continents. Including a USA coast-to-coast trip. Awesome, is not it? And they did it with a self-made car! This will explain why it looks so clumsy, haha. Actually I thought about doing a trip with an electric vehicle but I guess I would not be the first one.

Tesla Motors is doing awesome... the first car they produced has a limited range. But a sedan model is coming in the 40k price range - and a recharge range of about 200 miles. And I bet that they will make a 500-mile range car within 3 years.

Anyways, here are my three big ones: Toyota Prius Plug-In Hybrid (to come late 2009), Saturn Vue Plug-in (middle 2009?) and the Chevy Volt. Here is a link to a Volt page: http://money.cnn.com/money/galleries/2008/autos/0809/gallery.gm_volt_reveal/

Man, I am already saving for a Volt, it looks amazing. Even though the Superflexter (another derivative of the same concept) might be just a little bit more my style smile

I am all-in on electrics.

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Re: some new conceptual cars - and Volts

Hybrid cars are ugly and dont have performance tongue
If i had the money i would buy me a nice supercar big_smile

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3 Reply by (edited by 18-Sep-2008 04:42:07)

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Re: some new conceptual cars - and Volts

I were bein' just thinkin' th' same thin' th' other day.  I were bein' waitin' at a stop light an' two hybrids were on either side o' me an' I couldnt help but sayin' t' meself how ugly they were, Ya swabbie!   I know that they make hybrid tahoe, escalade, civic, an' others but typically they just look stupid.  why do they do that, Ya lily livered swabbie! th' body o' th' boat has nothin' t' do with th' way that it functions, why cant they make it look cooler?

but the volts concept is pretty cool.

oops sorry about the pirate talk.

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4 Reply by Lucifuge (edited by Lucifuge 18-Sep-2008 05:59:42)

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Re: some new conceptual cars - and Volts

"After chargin' fer several hours, th' Volt will be able t' run fer up t' about 40 miles without usin' gasoline."

that's..  that's their grand hybrid car?

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Re: some new conceptual cars - and Volts

I'm gonna get me a hybrid next year smile

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Re: some new conceptual cars - and Volts

nooooo nolioooo mad

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Re: some new conceptual cars - and Volts

what kind o' attack an' speed bonus will it have?

I just bought th' Mazda Camaar.

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Re: some new conceptual cars - and Volts

Hybrids are slow? the first ones were, but a car like the Tesla Roadstar had to have a damping acceleration control, since the torque could send you flying smile 0-60 miles (0-100 kmh) in 3 seconds; I think they scaled it to 4 seconds not to break the bones from acceleration smile

It has to do with the torque curve associated with any given engine. With the gasoline engines, we don't usually get the 300-horse power it's claimed to have, since we drive at slow speeds for the power of the engine. Electric engines don't really have that big of a difference. So, you are really using a lot bigger percentage of the total power.

And I think the Honda Civic and Toyota Camry, both of which have hybrid options in the US market, look quite good. Where are you guys from, why would you like them? I really wish I could get a Ford Cobra with electric drivetrain.

I am all-in on electrics.

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Re: some new conceptual cars - and Volts

Im from australia, we arent getting all those hybrid cars yet,
But i think we do have the Prius, Civic and another i think :S

But i like the sound a real car makes, a nice V8 big_smile

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Re: some new conceptual cars - and Volts

yeah, a nice italian sound big_smile nothing tops a ferrari or maserati or lambo

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Re: some new conceptual cars - and Volts

hear this one

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qnFu7EVWu94&feature=related

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Re: some new conceptual cars - and Volts

i heared it!!! big_smile

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Re: some new conceptual cars - and Volts

has anyone driven a hybrid tahoe or escalade? I had a denali and that thing had alot of pick-up so the tahoe should be close to that.

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Re: some new conceptual cars - and Volts

You know the volts gonna be crap cause it's american and will have leaf-springs off of a merchant wagon that was built during the time Nero was burning rome.

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Re: some new conceptual cars - and Volts

It pisses me off that American cars are such crap. I want to be able to get a car made by Americans but American cars arent even made in America anymore if you want a real American built car you would have to buy a Toyota... whats up with that. P.S. I used to be the lot manager for an auto auction and in the year that I did that I got to drive just about every car out there and by far the best cars available to the regular person is a Mercedes. I got to take a S550 home for a few months and that thing was AWESOME! why doesnt Mercedes make a hybrid?

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Re: some new conceptual cars - and Volts

A mercedes is one of the most over-priced cars out there, but they are good. If your looking for a sedan the best is probably a ford mondeo(it's not american it's german) and it looks great a small car , toyota yaris, honda jazz or fiat panda/500 if your looking for style.

"Whoever said the pen is mightier than the sword obviously never encountered
automatic weapons."-General Douglas MacArthur
"Cluster bombing from B-52s are very, very, accurate. The bombs are guaranteed
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Re: some new conceptual cars - and Volts

paul - companies are diversified. I believe the main engineer behind the Volt is a German guy. He worked on the Opel Flex, which was introduced in Frankfurt 2007. http://www.theautochannel.com/news/2007/09/11/061586.html

I do know GM has a big stake in Opel and they do share technologies. 

Secondly - well, the companies are so interconnected that the saying 'to buy american' does not really work anymore. Does that hurt someone's pride? Well, I believe beer is more important smile And Sam Adams has been coming along with several good beers these days, Oktoberfest is one of my favorite.

And Mercedes and Hybrids - their engineers did not trust lithium batteries - diesel has been used for a long time and it still beats the cost effectiveness of batteries, which is just about to change. Plus, these batteries are not that good - I'd bet on ultracapacitors and hydrogen. But to get to the point: mercedes does want to introduce models with a plug-in option (here is one recent article on S400 Blue Hybrid: http://www.telegraph.co.uk/finance/newsbysector/transport/3062187/Mercedes-Benz-introduces-new-lithium-ion-battery.html)

Oh, and here is one article on these ultracapacitors' deal:
http://tech.blorge.com/Structure:%20/2008/10/01/eestor-powered-bicycles-may-be-cheap-alternative-to-chevy-volt/

You might not have heard about them, but they present a much much much better option than lithium batteries. Mainly because of the metals necessery to build them, you don't actually have to travel half a world for a battery that is so widely used. Watch out for them.

And since I'm in a pasting-internet-links-mood, here is the big one for the sports fans in the States: Volt is making it to NASCAR:
http://www.cnn.com/2008/TECH/biztech/10/01/volt.car.nascar/?iref=mpstoryview

I honestly would have been happier if they started planning on a Paris-Dakar trip, but that one is coming as well.

I am all-in on electrics.

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Re: some new conceptual cars - and Volts

I think there were some legal and supply problems for the introduction of the Mercedes' hybrid and hybrid-electric cars, but they are also on the way to move away from internal combustion. rrrrrrrr rrrrrrrrr rrrrrrrrr.

I am all-in on electrics.

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Re: some new conceptual cars - and Volts

What about ZAP Electric Cars   http://www.zapworld.com/electric-vehicles/electric-cars/zap-alias

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Re: some new conceptual cars - and Volts

Yeah, ZAP are not doing all too well, especially since they did not produce the first cars they promised. But good concepts.

Oh, some more news: the 'baillout' included a $7500 tax cut for an electric car designed like the Chevy Volt. smile

I am all-in on electrics.

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Re: some new conceptual cars - and Volts

ups is starting to use zap trucks

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Re: some new conceptual cars - and Volts

"Hybrid cars are ugly and dont have performance tongue
If i had the money i would buy me a nice supercar"

Not true at all. Nowadays hybrids have more or less the same performance of a regular car..

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Re: some new conceptual cars - and Volts

Well, ZAP had actually promised more than just trucks. But yes, they have trucks that are about to be produced. Their maintance costs would be 1/5 of an usual truck, I believe.

I am all-in on electrics.

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24 Reply by bbbbbbbbbbbb (edited by bbbbbbbbbbbb 06-Oct-2008 23:54:36)

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Re: some new conceptual cars - and Volts

The motor would only have 3 moving parts ...The rotor and 2 bearings,  Electrical cars would not need a transmission, carburetor, muffler and many other parts as well .....


UPS to Use ZAP Electric Car and Truck Fleet for Deliveries

PETALUMA, CA -- (November 13, 2007) -- It will be a green holiday this season for United Parcel Service (UPS), who rolled out a small parcel delivery service this week in Northern California using 42 electric cars and trucks from ZAP (OTCBB: ZAAP).

Domino's Delivers with ZAP!
Submitted by zapworld on Mon, 05/07/2007 - 20:00.

World's Largest Pizza Delivery Company Begins Test of All-Electric Delivery Vehicle

LAS VEGAS, Nevada (May 8, 2007) - As part of the company's Worldwide Rally in Las Vegas this week, Domino's Pizza tested delivering its pizzas using ZAP (OTC BB: ZAAP) all-electric vehicles supplied to them by The Electric Vehicle Company. As the pizza delivery experts, the electric vehicle deliveries reinforce Domino's desire to bring cost-saving, environmentally friendly delivery options to its stores around the world.

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Re: some new conceptual cars - and Volts

Yes! at that was a whole year ago. They are building up, and they are one of the first on the market for electric-only vehichles.

There is a lot of interest in those cars now, so there a lot of companies are becoming their competitors now. Huh, I wonder if they'd get bought one day???

I am all-in on electrics.

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