cars

Danny’s Contentment: Following the experience of an electric car owner in London

Now this is what I'm talking about.

Take one innovative Brit, one video recorder, one blog, one electric car and ... voi la, you have one cool video blog.

Danny Fleet is chronicling his purchase of, and driving experience with, his REVA on his video blog, Danny's Contentment. Watch clips of the delivery, a HOWTO on watering (!) the REVA, Danny's first time in the driver's seat, his first ticket ... you get the picture.

Any Gristmillers have a video blog of their own that they would like to share?

(Via TH)

VW goes lithium

I must admit, I enjoy watching Volkswagen TV commercials. They're hip ("Independence Day"), funny ("Airport"), sometimes innovative ("Squares") and sometimes weird ("Sardines"). But I've often wondered when VW will seriously enter the hybrid market.

According to Wired's Autopia blog, maybe soon:

Volkswagen is exploring using lithium ion batteries in future hybrid vehicles. The German automaker is working with Hybrid Technologies to develop a concept vehicle in North Carolina. Hybrid Technologies is currently working on hybrid Smart Cars for Europe with lithium batteries instead of the nickel-metal hydride batteries used in today's hybrids.

In September VW said it would begin building hybrid Touran cars in China with Shanghai Automotive. Speaking of China, GM recently agreed to work with SAIC Motor Company on producing low-cost hybrids for the world's third largest auto market.

Volkswagen has been late to the game, but I'm still holding out hope for a hybrid Golf TDI that will get around 70 mpg.

Me, I'm simply looking forward to the first VW hybrid commercial.

Umbra on diesel vs. standard gasoline cars

Dear Umbra, I’ve always heard bad things about diesel fuel. However, I know someone who has a diesel VW that gets 50 miles to the gallon. I’m wondering if you could do a cost-benefit analysis for me. I know I can’t afford a hybrid anytime soon, and was wondering if it would be better to […]

Ford says trips to the WC are slowing production of SUVs

This is kind of a personal question, but throw away your privacy for the good of the company: Exactly how many minutes did you spend in the loo during work yesterday?

CNN reports that the management at Ford Motor Co.'s Michigan Truck plant has released a memo declaring that too many of the factory's workers are spending more than the 48 minutes allotted per shift in the lavatory. Direct quote from the memo:

In today's competitive environment, it is important that Michigan Truck plant immediately address this concern to avoid the risks associated with safety, quality, delivery, cost and morale.

Delightful mental picture: Suit-clad Ford up-and-ups standing on alert at the door of the powder room, thumb poised on the stopwatch.

What? You wonder what this has to do with the environment? Oh yes. According to the article, workers' prolific excretion is slowing production of the Ford Expedition and Lincoln Navigator SUVs. Well, I think I speak for all enviros when I say, "Do not stop urinating, friends! Fight for your right to crap freely and often!"

Since greens get blamed for everything these days, I'll keep an eye on the news for reports of environmentalists concocting intricate plans to widely distribute laxatives to Ford workers.

And yes, it is impressive that I wrote this entire post without using the word "bathroom." Thank you.

Electric cars are looking good, but not quite there in terms of quality

I dropped in on the local electric car dealership the other day to kick some tires and see what's new. I especially liked the look of one model. It has four doors and a hatchback and is about the size and shape of the old VW Bug. When I checked under the hood I found six 12-volt, lead-acid batteries. It also did not have a transmission.

Ford’s green guru discusses cars, climate, and time-warp activism

Last month, Ford Motor Co. CEO Bill Ford laid out a new vision to turn his company into a leader in technological innovation and, just perhaps, an environmental performance champion as well. His announcement, including the promise to produce 250,000 hybrids annually by 2010, comes during a time of trouble for the industry, and we […]

French SUV-haters deflate gas-guzzling tires

Most every cyclist who's rolled alongside cars for any amount of time knows the feeling, the one that makes you pump your fist at that driver who nearly ran you over, or that one whose tailpipe is emptying its contents into your face, or the one who's emissions are melting that glacier you liked so much (anger rising, rising). It's this sort of frustration that makes regular bicycle commuters and eco-conscious citizens of all stripes regularly curse outright at aggressive, too-large-vehicle drivers: "you just wait. You'll get yours."

Now some activists in France are dishing out those just desserts to a growing number of SUV drivers in wealthy neighborhoods in the form of empty, but undamaged, tires. The Deflators (or Les Degonfles), a group of French SUV-dislikers tired of the massive vehicles clogging Paris' streets, have been quietly deflating SUV tires in the dark of night. Repeatedly.

And without damaging the vehicles, it's essentially just setting free the air within, they argue, but with amusing side effects.

It's not all late-night pranks, though. Their masked leader has braved a televised debate with the president of the French SUV-owners' association and is apparently working on some sort of a movement anthem, set to appear as both a children's song and a dance mix (oh, those savvy French).

Though The Deflators, who also often post fliers and smear mud on the targeted vehicles, have been in touch with sympathizers and potential deflators on this side of the Atlantic, it seems the mischievous Parisians have much less cultural inertia to overcome than their American counterparts in their quest to spread the message that SUVs sucketh throughout the land, what with openly SUV-hostile city officials and a national SUV-owner tax. Also, SUVs in France, according to the Los Angeles Times, make up only about five percent of the market, whereas Americans would be up to their eyeballs in potential deflationary targets, with SUVs comprising about one-quarter of its market.

Of course, that doesn't mean SUV deflations are a bad idea in America, just a lot of work ...

Umbra on used cars

Dear Umbra, With rising — OK, skyrocketing — gas prices, I would like to invest in a car that gets good mileage and is reliable. However, I can’t afford a new Toyota Prius. Do you have any suggestions for environmentally friendly used cars that those of us on a budget might be able to invest […]

Despite falling sales figures, it’s not bloody likely

... asked the title of an Agence France-Presse story in TerraDaily on Sunday.

Uh, not bloody likely.

The story cited falling SUV sales figures for August, combined with the even higher-than-usual gas-price spikes wrought by the hurricane's effect on refining capacity, and concluded, via an economist or two, "Potentially, Katrina could signal the death knell of the SUV in as much as consumers are going to find themselves once burned, twice shy to buy such vehicles."  

But that's assuming a lot, not the least of which is that consumers make their vehicle-buying -- and especially SUV-buying -- decisions based purely on economics. Ignoring the fact that many Americans go into debt or spend beyond their means to drive the vehicle they believe best defines them as a person, or the vehicle they may one day need versus what would work for them most of the time, the theory sounds more feasible.

What I'd like to see, of course, is the widespread divorce of people from their vehicles, period ... something just as likely as the demise of the SUV. Also ignoring cultural factors, this wise shift could be based solely on economics as well. With rising, largely Lance Armstrong-fueled, bicycle sales in the U.S., coupled with ever-rising gas prices, and growing frustration with insurance companies of all kinds, I forecast a two-wheeled American transportation wise-up, quick-like.