Hey Trevor - welcome.
Thanks for the ForkenSwift kudos - and congrats on reading the whole thing. (I think people who do that should get a ribbon or something...) I actually just stepped in the door from running an errand in the car, and soon it'll be plugged in for the evening for its off-peak feeding. We've had a bit warmer than normal temps the past 2 days, and the old batteries are
loving it. (So am I - I can actually feel it accelerate in 2nd gear!
)
I also started out looking for a VX before I went down the Metro path. Same issue - lack of availability; and the few I did find were half way biodegraded. But those cars in good tune can be efficiency monsters on the open road (at moderate speeds).
I expect Ben or TomO (resident VX guru) will jump in with advice & answers.
Darin