Sweet and Sexy

[octothorpe]

A *really* hot, fully electric *production* car coming out of England:

http://wired.com/news/wiredmag/0,71414-0.html?tw=wn_index_2

Comments

[jeffla.livejournal.com]

ME WANT! ME WANT! And they're going to start selling in So. Cal soon!

http://www.teslamotors.com/

[theoctothorpe.livejournal.com]

Only 80K and it's yours! (actually, that's a rather reasonable price for an exotic.)

[jeffla.livejournal.com]

Oops. $80K? Nevermind. :) But it sure is purty!

[furr-a-bruin.livejournal.com]

I want an electric car powered by aluminum/air fuel cells. ;)

[sinnabor.livejournal.com]

I was about to comment that it looked like an adapted Lotus Elise... and the story mentions that it was designed by someone from Lotus, and is being built by Lotus, after they poached a bunch of engineers from Lotus. Hmmm.

The Elise also gets strangely good mileage for a sportscar (24/29 -- well, the UK version is a lot better at 34/43), and goes silly fast on a Toyota inline four.

Of course, when I was fantasizing about the Elise, I kept choking on the roughly $40k price tag, so the Tesla is also unlikely to tempt me. It's a low-production-volume handbuilt toy, not a mass-market car, so not exactly world changing.

But I wouldn't say no to a test drive. :-)

[theoctothorpe.livejournal.com]

I actually considered getting the Elise instead of the TSX, but I decided I needed a 4 season car. The Elise gets its gas milage from the fact that it only weighs 1400lbs. It's a beautiful feat of British engineering. The engine that powers it is only 140HP (some have 170HP), but it does 0-60 in about 4 seconds, all because it weighs *nothing*.

[sinnabor.livejournal.com]

Yea, I think it weighs nearly half as much as a MINI Cooper. But the MINI is porky - the CRX used to weigh in under 2000 lbs.

I like the elegant solution that the Elise presents - get good performance by reducing weight, not just adding a big engine. But it's short on creature comforts and practicality as well.

Maybe someday if I get rich. Oh, but then I'd get a Tesla.

[turbillion.livejournal.com]

this sounds so amazing. do you think it is really true? do you remember the dale? i'm always wary of these 'wonder' cars...

[theoctothorpe.livejournal.com]

Well, this is far from a "wonder car" It'll cost $80K, and therefore relegated to niche status, similar to other exotics. From the article, the tech is solid, so there really isn't anything miraculous going on, just the application of existing off-the-shelf technology. It's basically an electric Lotus Elise.

[danthered.livejournal.com]

Wow, who saw that coming? Not I, and while I'm certainly no EV groupie, I spent a couple years on the UM Solar Car engineering and race team. Amazing. (Also amazing, but in a different way: The dumbcluck comments being posted here.)

You made a good choice getting the TSX instead of an Elise, BTW.

[theoctothorpe.livejournal.com]

Well, the TSX is just *far* more practical. It has a roof!

[danthered.livejournal.com]

...and headlamps that work worth a tinker's dam...

i saw a documentary

[laitechs.livejournal.com]

on the solar racing team in the mid 1990's. it's so cool, that you were a part of that. i'm not a EV hippie either, though i do believe in a green planet for a better future for future generations, and a better living condition for everyone.

i saw the schematics

[laitechs.livejournal.com]

when it was considered to be just a concept car.
i really would like to get one when they come out, though i be they're going to be overpriced for a while, as everywhere else in the world seems to be greener then the US. However, look what runs our country. corporate greed, and oil tycoons, who'll do anything to keep this country in their pockets. even say...lead us into an un-winnable war, as so they can control the oil market, in the guise of good intent. every day a terrorist is born. though i am thankful that in this country we don't have that dreaded counsil tax. which seems to be way too high.

Re: i saw the schematics

[theoctothorpe.livejournal.com]

Yeah, but for that tax, you actually get civil services like healthcare, housing, higher education, and a voting system where it isn't winner-take-all. The taxes I pay in the US are about the same (yes, slightly less), and yet I don't get any of those in any real capacity.

that's cool

[laitechs.livejournal.com]

i knew about the health care, but not all the other stuff. i guess my knowlege of parliment and the monarchy is a bit spotted. i keep forgetting how great england is. Though a very hard country to become a citizen of. i've always wanted to live there, ever sice i was a child.
though i do have a really big weakness to accents. Scottish, Irish, German, and exspecially the English Accents--make me all jelly like. hrm. i have an accent fetish..LOL.

Re: that's cool

[theoctothorpe.livejournal.com]

I donnow how "great" England is. It's got more than its share of problems. I'm currently living in the US, and have been for nearly 20 years, and there is a reason for it. Of course, the current state of the US is pretty dreadful, I always think "it'll get better".

i've been thinking that

[laitechs.livejournal.com]

since Reagan was in office. for a while this country was doing good, when Clinton was in office ( and i still think it's sad that he got impeached for a stupid extra marital blowjob, and bush gets away with murder, corruption, law breaking, and lies). i do know england has it's share of problems, i mean, though we do have a neo-nazi uprising, and the horribble KKK(ugh racist morons), you do have the largest amount of neo-nazis north of germany. and i also hear of this group called 'the lads in white' which has been explained to me, the UK's version of the KKK.
Part of me can never understand why people from the UK, and northern Europe want to live in this country. but then again i look at third world and war torn countries and get the attraction to this country.
I'm just hoping and waiting for the day this world works as one big fluid machine. and there is no more intolerance, injustices, racial, religious, and govermental wars. as well as, less corporate greed. exspecially in this country where corporations are pretty much the law.