electric 7

[andrew7]

Here is an EV Stalker for you Greenies.

http://www.j-autoworks.com/lbc.html

Does anybody know him? There aren't many electrics 7 around.

[slngsht]

pretty cool, but in its current configuration, the 7 second 0-60 kinda kills the fun factor.

[Mondo]

technology of batteries keeps improving... it won't be long before you can go on a couple hundred mile drive and have a quicker car than we currently enjoy.

 

well I'm sure you can have it now.... just takes $$$

[scannon]

I drove a Tesla last summer. It had a range of 250 miles and was much quicker than this LBC. It didn't struggle to get off the line and had no transmission. Of course it cost a whole lot more.

 

If that electric motor in the LBC was a WarP9, I think they need a WARP20 or higher.

[jbanker]

I have never met John J but I know who he is. Very cleaver young man and a close friend of Dennis Brunton. John lives in Sarasoto, FL.

 

This is chassis number 7 that John built that started out as a 3.4L Stalker. I was not aware that he made the conversion to electric....However, I am not surprised. He is extremely talented and a very good fabricator. Does his own work on a very limited budget.

 

I have read about one other Se7en type Locost that was built as an EV. Can't remember where but it was about 2 years ago.

 

I'm pretty impressed with these DIY home builders..!!!

 

Jack

[11Budlite]

There was also a Birkin that was converted to electric power a while back. Not sure how it turned out because his site seems to be inactive. I think his name was Carl...

[powderbrake]

It's interesting that the corporations and the individuals who try to build electric vehicles are at the mercy of the battery technology. Gasoline is a wonderful way to store a lot of energy in a small, lightweight package.

 

The latest, LiPo is sort of a hand grenade in disguise. The problems with exploding cell phones, and the battery's ultra thin separators give them extreme susceptibility to rough handling. The model airplane guys use them, but they put them in a ceramic jar when charging, because if anything screws up, they burst into flame. The active surface area of a LiPo battery is huge compared to it's size, and when something bad happens, enormous currents are generated.

 

I believe we have a very long way to go before the battery powered car is practical. The replacement cost and disposal problems are not resolved, as well as the fact if everyone plugs in at night, our power grid can't handle it. Of course those are development problems which will eventually be solved, given enough time and money. It has to be a profit driven endeavour, not just the Political Correctness effort that it is currently. Companies loose money on electric cars unless they are priced in the Tesla range.

[Mondo]

I saw this at the LA Car Show.... if you can afford a Tesla but want to take another couple out with you...

 

 

http://karma.fiskerautomotive.com/

Edited January 14, 2010 by Mondo

[MHKflyer52]

The Karma looks a lot like a BMW Z6 but as a coupe......just plain sexy in my humble belief.

[yellowss7]

A good buddy of mine is building this. http://www.z-type.net/home.html

 

I keep telling him that a nice V12 is what really belongs there and what he is doing is just not right. A car should make noise!!!

 

Tom

Edited January 14, 2010 by yellowss7

[scannon]

I agree with Tom, even a replica of that great car does not deserve an electric motor.

 

About 10 to 15 years ago I walked into a Dutch Jaguar showroom, stopped dead in my tracks and exclaimed, apparently out loud, "OMG the XJ 13". The sales manager came over, obviously surprised that a mere American knew what the car was. He asked if I really knew the car and I replied that I knew what the car was but didn't know it had been rebuilt since the wreck so many years before.

 

They told me the car had been sold to a Japanese collector and was about to be shipped to Japan.

 

I asked if I could sit in it but they wouldn't let me. They did open it up and I was allowed to run my hands over the extraordinarily beautiful body work and peer into the interior and engine compartment.

[soareyes]

I believe we have a very long way to go before the battery powered car is practical.

 

Actually, practical electric cars are on the road now and many more will be available in the next couple years. I've been driving a 100% electric Mini Cooper for the last 7 months and it has proven to be safe, reliable, cheap to run, quiet, and best of all, fast! It has a 100 mile range per charge and many times I've driven it over 200 miles in one day with a fast charge at my destination. It costs me less than $3 to go 100 miles when I charge at home at night when the rates are low.

 

Li-ion batteries will continue to get cheaper, and are safe if handled and charged properly. How many of us worry about our cell phones or laptops exploding? I've used Li-Po batteries in my electric RC airplanes for years and never had or seen any explode. Yes, in the early days with primitive chargers there were problems, but today's chargers do a great job of controlling charge rates and balancing cells.

 

So as a commuter car or second family car, an electric can be a very practical choice.

[slomove]

I guess this will phase over on a supply/demand base. At the time the electric solutions are beginning to be feasible but still way too expensive while the petroleum fuel is still dirt cheap (kind of).

 

Over the next years/decades the batteries will come down in price while the world wide oil demand still goes up with supply drying out. At some point it will be just cheaper to drive electric.

 

The thing that bothers me while we are now at the oil mercy of the Middle East we will probably at the battery and electronics mercy of the Far East. This country just does not make things anymore and just buys all stuff abroad on credit. But even that problem will "go away" when the national credit card is maxed out.

Edited January 15, 2010 by slomove

[soareyes]

Possible electric from Caterham:

 

http://www.autoblog.com/2010/01/19/report-caterhams-all-new-ev-coming-in-six-months/

[11Budlite]

There was also a Birkin that was converted to electric power a while back. Not sure how it turned out because his site seems to be inactive. I think his name was Carl...

 

Finally found his site: http://www.electric7.com/

 

And the construction: http://www.electric7.com/construction.html

[BusaNostra]

Everyone has a personal opinion, mine is...

 

A car or sports car that that does not smell, does not break my eardrum

will not reach my garage.... today and in the future.....I hope.

 

I'm no tree hugger

I don't know the purpose of green car. Do we save money & energy? When a gazillion drivers plugin to the outlet?

Could be a brown out issue. Will you trade it for cold water shower? Will the ladies trade it in with no hair dryer?

I don't think so.

 

Some environmentally motivated car buyers are concerned about trading one problem for another. They worry that a hybrid utopia might turn into a toxic nightmare when the nickel metal hydride batteries in today's hybrids end up in landfills. After all, aren't all car batteries —conventional lead acid and hybrid batteries alike—filled with the same nasty corrosive carcinogenic ooze?

Edited January 25, 2010 by BusaNostra

[MHKflyer52]

Everyone has a personal opinion, mine is...

 

A car or sports car that that does not smell, does not break my eardrum

will not reach my garage.... today and in the future.....I hope.

 

I'm no tree hugger

I don't know the purpose of green car. Do we save money & energy? When a gazillion drivers plugin to the outlet?

Could be a brown out issue. Will you trade it for cold water shower? Will the ladies trade it in with no hair dryer?

I don't think so.

 

Some environmentally motivated car buyers are concerned about trading one problem for another. They worry that a hybrid utopia might turn into a toxic nightmare when the nickel metal hydride batteries in today's hybrids end up in landfills. After all, aren't all car batteries —conventional lead acid and hybrid batteries alike—filled with the same nasty corrosive carcinogenic ooze?

 

I have to agree with the above statement especially this;

"Some environmentally motivated car buyers are concerned about trading one problem for another. They worry that a hybrid utopia might turn into a toxic nightmare when the nickel metal hydride batteries in today's hybrids end up in landfills. After all, aren't all car batteries —conventional lead acid and hybrid batteries alike—filled with the same nasty corrosive carcinogenic ooze?"

Here in California the state has stopped giving the stickers to the hybrid cars that let them use the HOV lanes with just one person mainly due to the fact that the hybrid cars batteries are a nightmare when they are involved in a accident and are not that environmentally friendly.

Yes the hybrid autos are neat and seem to be efficient for the technology that is at hand now, but without more development and better sources of energy storage they will be an environmental issue for sometime and cost more in the long run for everyone concerned.

My bet and money is on the development of the Hydrogen Powered Car such as the BMW Hydrogen 7 Hybrid that can run on either hydrogen fuel or gasoline if necessary (about 125 miles on Hydrogen [17.5 gal liquid Hydrogen tank] and 300 miles on gasoline). Biggest problem for hydrogen fuel is the refilling stations as they are very few and far between and the lack of knowledge of handling and storage from what I can see.

Just my belief and opinion.

[Mondo]

I guess we'll have drinking problems (water) but will see and breath better... I might have a drinking problem now;)

 

Wasn't the Hindenburg filled with Hydrogen?

[soareyes]

After all, aren't all car batteries —conventional lead acid and hybrid batteries alike—filled with the same nasty corrosive carcinogenic ooze?

 

No!

 

The future of electric car batteries is lithium, not lead acid or nickel metal hydride. The Chevy Volt, the Nissan Leaf, Tesla, Fiskar, my Mini E and the upcoming BMW Active E all use lithium ion batteries. These batteries are non-toxic, containing no lead, mercury, cadmium, or other toxic heavy metals. In fact, they can be legally tossed into a landfill which fortunately won't happen because they are recyclable.

 

I don't know the purpose of green car. Do we save money & energy?

 

A green car pollutes less and uses less energy per mile so yes, it can save money and energy. However, battery cost is high so cost of ownership won't be cheaper right now but that will come down in time.

 

I'm fortunate that my electric company (Southern California Edison) generates more than half its electricity from clean natural gas and nearly 20% from solar and wind. Only 15% is generated from burning coal. But even if you get your electricity from a power company using 100% coal, studies have shown that driving an electric car is still cleaner than a gas powered car. People don't think about how much energy is used to transport and refine crude oil into gasoline.

 

My car charger is on a separate meter and is programed to turn on at night when demand and rates are low. Edison only charges 4.5 cents a kilowatt/hr for EV charging at night, which is pretty cheap. I've talked to several Edison engineers and they don't think there will be any problem gradually upgrading grid service as needed as electric cars become more common. They have been planning the "smart grid" for years.

 

We are more dependent on foreign oil now than back in the 70's during the first OPEC 'oil crisis' even though our gasoline powered cars and trucks are much more efficient than they were back then. So how in the world can we quit sending our dollars to countries that don't really like us that much unless we pursue alternatives like electric cars? I don't believe internal combustion vehicles are destined to go away in the next 50 years, but I do see electrics and maybe hydrogen cars becoming an attractive alternative to a lot of people in the near future. I'll always have my Birkin though! (BTW, I get 35 mpg on the freeway driving it, but that's no fun )

Edited January 26, 2010 by soareyes

[slomove]

In 1903, the president of the Michigan Savings Bank advised Henry Ford’s lawyer not to invest in Ford Motor Company, saying, “The horse is here to stay but the automobile is only a novelty, a fad.” I found that quote somewhere on the 'net but I was not there to hear it back then. But it sounds credible, anyway.

 

I mean, why try something new that is expensive, unproven and requires some sense of pioneer spirit (not to mention that it is noisy, slow, and smells worse than a horse). Obviously it took another 20 or 30 years for automobiles to really become practical, economical and replace horses and buggies.

 

I suppose in similar time frame people will look at today's discussion and laugh about it. And there will still be people who like the old fashioned cars as a hobby and are willing to pay for it (like today for horses).

Edited January 26, 2010 by slomove