Quote:
Originally Posted by redpoint5
I'm going on a road trip to Sacramento Thursday in a Pacifica plug-in. Looking forward to seeing how it does.
Exactly my thoughts on a vehicle Hersbird. It's a tool, and jobs require different tools.
Not all people treat others stuff poorly. Perhaps in the future there will be a rating system to vett those people who are likely to treat things well. Many online service providers have rating systems like this, such as Ebay's buyer and seller rating, or Uber's driver and passenger rating, or Airbnb's host and guest rating. Compiling this info would be useful for determining if someone is trustworthy, kind of like a FICO score for a person's propensity to be a decent human being. People with low decency scores could still rent as long as they put a down a hefty deposit. Those with "platinum" decency ratings might not even be required to place a deposit.
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Have you seen
Black Mirror? There's an episode that explores something like this.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Daox
I like the idea of using the correct tool for the job. The vast majority of my driving is with only me in the car. So, I suppose that my dream car would only be a single or two seater. Something similar the VW XL1 comes to mind. Tiny frontal area would be ideal, and low weight. However, I would not want a diesel power plant. Lets start with say 30 miles of EV range. This would suite me for probably 90% of my commuting. A ~800cc gas engine with all the latest goodies like direct injection, high compression ratio, atkinson cycle would be a great pair to it. I'd also like it to handle reasonably well. It doesn't have to stick to the road like glue, but enough to handle the turns with some speed. The interior does not need a million gadgets to suck electrical power. A heat pump for EV mode would be nice.
I think mine sounds a lot like Ecky's.
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I guess my ideal car would start with something like the XL1. Nice streamlined shape (and clean styling--none of the edgy Prius-type styling with body lines that go nowhere for no reason and creases all over the face), but sized up to a few inches wider and taller for more space inside, plus a little more tapered extension on the rear. Ditch the rear-mounted engine, and make all that cargo space+a rear window. Front drive, mild-hybrid drivetrain and battery from a 1st gen Insight with manual transmission. Manual windows and door locks, manual steering, simple and as light as possible. That should give me something that gets upward of 100mpg on the freeway and has enough room to sleep in and carry bikes in.