Quote:
Originally Posted by Frank Lee
Isn't it odd that Doug Malewicki has had his Cali Commuter since 1980 and it's just been sitting in storage?  |
Ya I find it hard to believe a vehicle the has 2 world records for fuel economy has been just sitting in storage. But if we are looking at practical real world driving in many ways it does not surprise me. I don't want to sound as though I am completely dissing the design but if I am a potential buyer or builder there are some things that jump out immediately in my mind. As a designer myself I am always open to critique as I believe there is always ways to improve a vehicle design. Unbiased input is what helps you understand and make the appropriate changes for the better.
So to me when I look at the vehicle I see it being designed for only one purpose and that was to break records and not really for real world use in sunny mild climates. You can hype it up in the plans and say what you want but the car design speaks something completely different. The vehicle is what you would find in the urban category of the Shell Eco Marathons not on our roads. To make a successful highly fuel efficient vehicle it has to be safe and practical. You can not stray to far from the norm or it simply will not be accepted. So can a highly fuel efficient vehicle be designed and built that does not have to go to such extremes to achieve its MPG goals? You bet it just takes a lot of time, patience, perseverance, and a solid game plan executed properly!
So lets look at this design in detail:
#1. Its a single seater tiny single seater at that. There is nothing wrong technically with this since the vast majority of driving situations in single passenger. However I feel like the same fuel economy and better can be had with 2 or more seats so why not be able to share the highly fuel efficient ride with your friend or significant other!
#2. The vehicle has an open cockpit design. Again this is fine if you live in sunny southern California where the designer resides. Now if you are like me and live in the Pacific Northwest this type of car becomes very undesireable the first time it pours down rain on you and believe me it rains often up here you will park it forever lol :-) What about the midwest or northeast where whether extremes are normal? Good luck driving it in a snow blizzard! Shoot even the southeast Florida for example has some major down pours which would be no fun while cruising on the freeway.
#3. The steering mechanism for me personally I just would not feel comfortable with joysticks but that is just my opinion.
#4. It is really not that all dynamic if you look at the new electric version being designed it is much better and tries to address many of the original aero flaws!
#5. To small of weight don't get me wrong while low weight is very important not enough can be just as bad or worse in my opinion. I have found that even at a light weight of 1,200lbs triple digit fuel economy can be attained. This thing weighs under 300lbs! I would not want to get hit or end up in a wind storm with this vehicle pure and simple!
#6. Gotta use a helmet! I am just to lazy to put on a helmet every time I need to go some where but that is just me. Shoot I might as well get a 2 wheel motorcycle and at least be able to take my wife for a ride on the back! No can do with this reverse trike you are solo all the time...
#7. It looks like a rocket ship out of jimmy neutron! Fine for NASA Pilots but for the majority of people and me personally I think we would require something that looks a bit more mainstream and modern.
So after looking at it more in depth, ya I can see why it was garaged and also why it is being updated. I am looking forward to his new updated electric version though. I also thought his 3 seated passenger design that never got built could have done pretty well and been much more practical.
GH..