What do you guys think of these cars?

There's a woman at my office that drives one of them here in Seattle. They look small but she's a rather large woman (think Midwest hips) and seems to fit into it fine. With that said, my life is worth more than a cheap drive to work. Unless these things prove that a Hummer can't simply run over them without noticing I won't be driving one.
 
If everyone drove something that small, they'd be safe. Yeah, a Hummer is safe for you, but how safe is a Hummer to the other guy?

That being said, for people to start driving any electric car, they need to seat two, look more like the kind of car most people drive, and probably need to have a range of 100+ miles. And still cost $20,000, maybe less. We're still a ways off. But good to see progress.
 
I live near Anderson and Burnet - someone in the area drives a yellow one because I see it pretty regularly. Definitely grabs your attention.
 
no thank you. those cars are very impractical for most people. You can't carry a family in one. There is no storage room. They have a very limited range. And I would guess safety might be an issue, but maybe not.

They say sub $30k.... so for just about half that you can get a Honda Fit, which gets great gas milage, can carry 4 people AND has cargo space. You can also take a Fit on a long vacation.
If you want a hybrid, (although people know I have voiced my concerns about the greater environmental impact of hybrids), you could try the new Ford Fusion Hybrid. Estimates for it's gas milage are 39 highway and 37 city. Car and driver says it is a 'game changer' as it beat even the new Camry Hybrid. The Link

Car and driver got 34 mpg out of it, and they are doing testing.
So for about the same amount of money I can get a comfy midsize sedan, and great gas milage, and the ability to travel whatever distance I want.
I pass on your tiny mobile.
 
Not on roads... looks very dangerous. Maybe the golf course, campus or around my ranch (if I had one).
 
I would with another concept or design of a car that does not look like a Pixar movie. I could get by without a car and have thought about doing so. I rent a car for road trips to begin with. Repairs and upkeep on those cars is almost nothing when compared to a gas guzzler.

I like other designs better and would want there to be some storage space or a pull behind trailer type trunk.like a motorcycle has. A second seat for another person or dog would be nice too.

I would pay 20k to not have to ever need gas again. I would need maybe a 50 mile radius between full charges. If it had a solar recharge or assistance system it would be even sweeter.

Say you want to go to Zilker and play some volleyball. Toddle down and you still have about 45 or so miles on your charge. It sits in the sun and gains 3 miles in charge over an hour or so.

When I buy a trailer for my bike I really think I may sell my car. It would be nice to save a few hundred bucks in insurance. I live convenient enough to everything that I am pretty sure I can get away with it.

There is always renting if needed.
 
Didn't Goofy drive one of those?


Personally, I think battery or ultra-capacitor powered cars are the wave of the future. However, that is not the future.

When is the ZENN coming out? What are its specs?
 
agree....just get a bike or scooter for short trips.
smile.gif
 
TexasGolf,
Bingo... I mean if you are talking about short trips, how much gas does a scooter burn, or even the Fit, or a good hybrid? Seriously? What are the real savings, other than you 'feeling' good about having a fully electric car?
Did you consider the 'cost' of producing the car? Surely those energy costs would argue against havign a second car!
Just have ONE CAR!!! novel idea I know, but by just having one, you are going to save more energy in the development nad production of that car, plus your cost of buying one!
 
This info could be wrong but aren't there much fewer things that can go wrong with an electric car compared to a gas user? Less maintenance and longer life? If you have that electric car and dont put gas into and have less maintenance I would think it pays for itself over time.

Then again I refuse to have a payment for a car that won't last all that long given the crap that is made in modern day. I compare it to cars of the past.
 
They are cool. We should all have one for in town commuting.
Huge vehicles are not safer than small ones. Read the accident stats yourself. They have more one car accidents because they are less manuverable and also turn over more in accidents. They are only more safe relatively in a head on with a smaller vehicle, which is not common.
 
I'm sure there are dozens of better ways to calculate the numbers, but this is at least a starting place.
Say you drive 14,000 miles a year and you can replace half of those with the electric car. At the IRS rate of $0.585/mile, you would pay $8190 to drive your existing car, or save $4095/year if the electric car was free to operate.

If you paid $25,000 for the electric car on a 5% note for 5 years, your net cost would be $28306.85, meaning it would take roughly seven years to pay for itself assuming no costs beyond initial purchase and no increase in annual cost of operation.

Obviously those are two bad assumptions, but I'd much rather take that car payment and save it toward my next car than spend it on something I can only use half the time.
 
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