First post, I'm going to have to get used to this "To view links or images in signatures your post count must be 10 or greater. You currently have 0 posts." though until I can find worthy things to post on as I refuse to post***** myself.
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Originally Posted by bennelson
At the banquet Saturday night, Chelsea Sexton called Green Drive Expo the "Ground Zero for the True Believers".
I was thrilled that there were three Teslas there. Madison, WI is within (Tesla) driving distance of Chicago. All the Teslas had Illinois license plates.
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I like that title, it's like a cult, "One of us, one of us, one of us"
Quote:
Originally Posted by MetroMPG
Love the video title, Ben: "Non-crushed EV1 driving around". 
I think climbing around the EV1 would have been the highlight of the event for me. |
It was one of the coolest things to do there, IMHO. Maybe it will be there next year, that would be cool.
Quote:
Originally Posted by vpoppv
Is Wisconsin like the hub of green living?? Seriously, there seems to be an inordinate amount of Geo Metros there, and the expo that had 3 Teslas and an EV1!! If we had an expo in Oklahoma, it would be lined with pickups and maybe a Prius might show up. I still have yet to see an EV1 in person....
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It didn't seem that way just 10 miles outside of Madison as I pulled off the road at an exit and waited awhile at a stop light as I watched 20 SUVs and pickup trucks go by for every car. Inside of Madison, the ratio was better though.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Daox
It was very cool to meet Robert Smalls, and an insight central owner (hopefully will make his way over here) MN Driver.
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I'll have to take this as an invite and a first post advance welcome to the site.
I'm happy to be here.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Nevyn
Can I say I hate you all? |
Absolutely!
...and for my opinion on what I saw.
My opinion on the Electric Focus that I saw: I'm not too enthusiastic about it, I prefer the smallest, lightest, and most aerodynamic car that fits my needs for utility. If I ever own electric I'd prefer to go all out with efficiency to allow for least use of the battery(and perhaps a smaller and therefore less expensive battery for a given range).
My opinion of the test drive of the Fusion Hybrid: Powerful bugger, even in its full-electric reverse it was incredibly smooth and quick to get going even with the slight uphill I was reversing into. Not quite the most efficient design as it was inclined to background charge to hang at 50% from the 40% it dropped to rather quickly accelerating twice. The regen seems to be tied to a pressure transducer and when I was pulling full indicated regen current, it was also digging a little into the friction brakes too and I was getting less reduction in speed than my Insight provides and the SOC gauge wasn't climbing too quick either. It seems to be a good car for the person who wants a performance hybrid and isn't paying too much attention to fuel economy. Not a car I would buy but seemed pretty nice.
I'm going to hold off my opinion on the Team Foursight X-Prize modified Insight since its electric motor was in their other car at the time but it was crazy to see an empty engine bay from the bottom with a Smart diesel in the back with a relocated rearward separator(or "Tom Mix" bar, or whatever you want to call it).
My opinion on the Prius plug-in test drive: The guy didn't let me exceed 7mph and told me no new information about the Prius than I already knew even after asking questions that he couldn't answer. I didn't experience a fast acceleration and the guy, at first, refused to let me turn off the air conditioning so I could listen to the car operate without the engine. The test drive and information provided was nothing different than if I were to test drive a Prius. Will I ever own a Plug-in Prius? 99% sure I will never own one.
My opinion of the Tesla Roadsters: Cool car, if I wanted a sports car and had gobs of money, I'd be all over it, the Model S looks promising for those who can afford it, but I might eventually get a used 'Bluestar', which is their planned 3rd generation which is supposed to be the model that errs on the side of affordability. Who knows, maybe I'll find a killer deal on a Model S 10-20 years down the road after its released.
My opinion on the EV1: *drools on keyboard*
I originally sat in the EV1 back in the day when my family was on a vacation, it was back when the car was being leased out still and the display was actually GMs display and I thought it was really cool then. I'm not sure if it was the 1st Gen(lead-acid) or 2nd Gen(NiMh) car or what exact year it was, I'm pretty sure it was the 1st Gen though. So this was like a reunion to sit in the car again and have a good stare at it.
The literature from the 1st Generation EV1 says the following "How much is it? The M.S.R.P. of the vehicle is $33,995. The monthly lease payment ranges from $399 to $549, depending on the government incentives available in the region. The lease is for 3 years, 36,000 miles and includes the cost of the charger" I'm going to hang the included poster on my wall!
Too bad they never sold one or I would gladly pay $33,995 today for the 1997 version even if it came with lead-acid batteries when it arrived(assuming they were new). I'd swap them out with lithium as soon as they crapped out though. If there ever is an Impact/EV1 replica kitcar or a kitcar available that is suitable as an EV and decently crash worthy, lightweight, and aerodynamic, I'd consider building it. 183MPH Impact/EV1-style Boat tail included, please.
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