Automobiles

[Saab2000]

I don’t have an EV and my driving has dropped off 75% in the past 8 months, but now would be a decent time to own an EV given the arc of gasoline prices. The latest spike will probably spur some buyers to click “BUY” when they need to make the change to a new vehicle.

[robin3mj]

I know these things are probably vaporware, but damn this one is handsome.
Same color and style as the Datsun 210 we had when I was a wee lad.

[72gmc]

^^^ like. It looks like a Candylab toy car, which I also like.

[rec head]

Those cars look great and the prices aren't crazy.

Is the plan for a lot of these new EV startups to get a little success and then be bought by a bigger company? I'd love to see a bunch of small brands competing but that isn't the way of the world.

[Saab2000]

Those cars look great and the prices aren't crazy.

Is the plan for a lot of these new EV startups to get a little success and then be bought by a bigger company? I'd love to see a bunch of small brands competing but that isn't the way of the world.

Even the ones you’ve heard of like Lucid and Rivian will have a hard time surviving. Concepts are easy. Production and profitability at a large scale are not so easy.

[j44ke]

I think to get bought, they'd need some tech advantage. Something that cuts a corner off development for the bigger companies. Or has a patent that blocks development at the bigger companies. Some of these companies may be basing their future on unique tech, and then the car design probably acts as eye-candy to attract attention but will never truly go into production. However I could see a niche for design-centric companies that select from available tech to create unique or attractive designs along the lines of a coachworks or boutique builders. Something like that Lancia-esque model might attract the design-conscious nostalgic car buffs who don't want to drive a Tesla, but most people would see a car that was too expensive, too small and wasn't an SUV.

[GeneK]

I know these things are probably vaporware, but damn this one is handsome.
Same color and style as the Datsun 210 we had when I was a wee lad.

Interesting-looking car, kind of retro and modern.
Functionally looks like an automotive gravel bike.

[j44ke]

Does it look more like a Lancia



or an Alfa Romeo



?

[72gmc]

???

https://www.topgear.com/car-news/ele...alfa-giulia-gt

Screen Shot 2022-03-07 at 1.16.24 PM.jpg

[SeanEasley]

Anyone had experience yet with the RAV4 Prime plug-in hybrid? I'm giving that some serious thought, and it preceeded the recent price hikes/trouble abroad concerns. Only issue near me is that the demand is so great that toyota is not shipping any of them to the PA market and prioritizing for now, the nearby states with higher fleet mpg standards (NY, NJ, MD). So my only current option is to swallow the 10% dealer mark-up. Normally you'd have to be desperate for a car to pay that but considering the trade-in on our used RAV4 is about $5k more than it would have been a couple years ago, its kind of a wash.

I kind of don't love how they look and the drive of a small SUV is as vanilla as it gets, but sub-6 sec 0-60 and possibility of making my entire commute to work in EV-only mode is very enticing.

[Saab2000]

Anyone had experience yet with the RAV4 Prime plug-in hybrid? I'm giving that some serious thought, and it preceeded the recent price hikes/trouble abroad concerns. Only issue near me is that the demand is so great that toyota is not shipping any of them to the PA market and prioritizing for now, the nearby states with higher fleet mpg standards (NY, NJ, MD). So my only current option is to swallow the 10% dealer mark-up. Normally you'd have to be desperate for a car to pay that but considering the trade-in on our used RAV4 is about $5k more than it would have been a couple years ago, its kind of a wash.

I kind of don't love how they look and the drive of a small SUV is as vanilla as it gets, but sub-6 sec 0-60 and possibility of making my entire commute to work in EV-only mode is very enticing.

Nothing to comment on that specific vehicle at all, but I drove a plug-in hybrid last summer for a few weeks overseas and was pretty impressed by it. And I suspect the Toyota is better than the Peugeot derivative I drove. See if you can get a test drive and/or read online reviews. But it seems like a decent alternative at the moment to a full EV.

[j44ke]

Anyone had experience yet with the RAV4 Prime plug-in hybrid? I'm giving that some serious thought, and it preceeded the recent price hikes/trouble abroad concerns. Only issue near me is that the demand is so great that toyota is not shipping any of them to the PA market and prioritizing for now, the nearby states with higher fleet mpg standards (NY, NJ, MD). So my only current option is to swallow the 10% dealer mark-up. Normally you'd have to be desperate for a car to pay that but considering the trade-in on our used RAV4 is about $5k more than it would have been a couple years ago, its kind of a wash.

I kind of don't love how they look and the drive of a small SUV is as vanilla as it gets, but sub-6 sec 0-60 and possibility of making my entire commute to work in EV-only mode is very enticing.

Our friends just got one and they are pretty happy with it so far. For local use up here - Great Barrington MA / Hudson NY - they get to cover a lot of ground on EV. And they say it is comfortable and feels peppy. They were talking about learning the methods for maximizing EV use the other night at dinner, and I confess to having glazed over a bit, but sounds like there are adjustments that can improve or change operations. So it seems a bit more advanced than the Prius my dad had for years. Which makes sense as my father bought a second generation Prius I think. Anyway doesn't sound like a bad choice.

They now have a charge plug on a very long cable attached the side of their garage. For some reason they charge it outside? I forgot to ask why.

[one60]

They now have a charge plug on a very long cable attached the side of their garage. For some reason they charge it outside? I forgot to ask why.

Queue 'Chariots of Fire' theme song?

[j44ke]

Queue 'Chariots of Fire' theme song?

Uuuuhhhh - risk of fire during charging? Took twice as many head scratches to make the connection (hah) but yeah, maybe. Is that a thing with other plug-ins? That you have to charge them outside?

[Too Tall]

Uuuuhhhh - risk of fire during charging? Took twice as many head scratches to make the connection (hah) but yeah, maybe. Is that a thing with other plug-ins? That you have to charge them outside?

"Long cable" = high(er) resistance.

[one60]

There have been a few internet stories of EVs catching fire...for what that's worth...even a certain cargo ship mentioned here. There are even some some car garages that only allow EV parking on the open roof top. No clue if the risk is real.

[Saab2000]

Chevy Bolt had a couple fires. Not sure of the extent of the issue. Haven’t been aware of a Tesla fire in quite a while.

Speaking of electric, I saw a rare one today: Lucid Air spotted in western Chicagoland.

[SeanEasley]

Our friends just got one and they are pretty happy with it so far. For local use up here - Great Barrington MA / Hudson NY - they get to cover a lot of ground on EV. And they say it is comfortable and feels peppy. They were talking about learning the methods for maximizing EV use the other night at dinner, and I confess to having glazed over a bit, but sounds like there are adjustments that can improve or change operations. So it seems a bit more advanced than the Prius my dad had for years. Which makes sense as my father bought a second generation Prius I think. Anyway doesn't sound like a bad choice.

They now have a charge plug on a very long cable attached the side of their garage. For some reason they charge it outside? I forgot to ask why.

Yes, well the amount of places you could theoretically go in a RAV vs a prius, even an awd prius (I think I saw that badge on one somewhere) is siginficant alone. Full disclosure: In my case, I would hand the V60 down to the wife and use the new RAV for the fact that I recently picked up the Rakattach add-on for use with the 1-up. A true case of the tail wagging the dog.

[j44ke]

Yes, well the amount of places you could theoretically go in a RAV vs a prius, even an awd prius (I think I saw that badge on one somewhere) is siginficant alone. Full disclosure: In my case, I would hand the V60 down to the wife and use the new RAV for the fact that I recently picked up the Rakattach add-on for use with the 1-up. A true case of the tail wagging the dog.

Yeah, definitely not comparing the Prius to the RAV on ground clearance.

Other friends traded their XC60 on the XC40 Recharge. They spend the winters in Puerto Rico, so the XC40 is supposed to arrive before they return. Meanwhile they got like $38K for their XC60 from the dealer. Must be an incentive. For years they had an XC70, the last of the square Volvos, but they didn't like the XC60 in comparison. However, they drove a dealer sample XC40 and really liked the way it drove. I think it must have been the torque of the electric motor and the balance of the car with the battery weight. I'll be interested to see if they'll let me drive theirs after they pick it up.

I think the best thing about any of these cars is how quiet they are when run on batteries.

[SeanEasley]

Yea, going to test drive today. I have a feeling it will be hard to resist the urge to transition to an EV-capable car at this point. It's not just about the price of gas since I realize it will be years of driving it to recoup the difference in price but it just feels crappy getting 21-23 real-world mpg in a car I drive almost daily.

Related note: The V60 had yet ANOTHER trip to the dealer last week to figure out why a bunch of warning lights came on, and it had me stranded on the side of the road where the engine would start but not come out of park and the brake wouldn't release. FIrst theory proposed by the dealer was water intrusion to the electrical system from a blocked sunroof drain (never substantiated) and eventually they concluded that some main connector of a wiring harness just un-coupled. They asked if I had the windshield replaced at some point, which I hadn't, because I guess it's somewhere up there. Weird and somewhat disconcerting that the car basically stranded me because some wires spontaneously disconnected themselves. Yet another reason to hand it over to the wife (lol). Though in truth, she does mostly short trips near our house where I have an interstate work commute every day.

I'll follow-up with feedback from the test, but like you said Jorn, a hidden benefit of the low-slung battery packs should be a bit better handling/stability of the prime vs my current RAV4.