LOL! I read the post and links before I got to the picture! I really didn't expect that! Boy, those Mini-E guys are real noobs. I'd figure only enthusiasts would pony up that kind of cash for an electric, but I was wrong. You're right though, I guess it really is best if a Joe Public with no idea about electrics gets them to iron out all the kinks. They really do push them to the limits without having a clue about battery basics: car sat outside, uncharged, before a freeway speed long trip. I like the comments "I slowed all the way down to 60"!!! I would kill to GET to 60, much less cruise there
And as a comparison, back in the early 90's when I bought my new Festiva, I had a very similar experience with mileage when California switched to Ethanol gas: that usual $5 that I put in was not going nearly as far as what it was during the "non-ethanol" months to the point where I was seriously wondering what was wrong with the car. Took me a while to figure that one out....