I think he made his for $40,000, another man built the chassis and he did all the electrical stuff. But I read where you will spend on average $1800 a year on gas alone, not including oil changes and such. Plus, the electronic components will outlast the chassis. The batteries last about 4 to 5 years, and can cost from $1000 to $3000 to replace. I love this car. Not much room for kids, but still it'd be one car that I'd own forever.
when i bought the car i have now, i was seriously considering the honda accord hybrid. they cost ~$32k then (vs. the $23k i paid for a "regular" accord i have). considering i only budget $800/year for gas, that would take a LONG time (probably longer than hondas are made to last) to recoup the price difference.
i'm all over being green and hugging trees, but it has to work with my budget or i'll be living in a cardboard box under a bridge somewhere...
Agreed LB. Plus, there's still the battery recyling problem. Very toxic and not at all enviro-friendly.
I'm all for it, but I tend to think that the "hybrid" hype is just that. Not that it isn't a good thing, but I see the current crop of hybrids as being "dial-up". I'll wait for the "dsl" versions that will be around when I'm ready to buy my next car.
What no one had mentioned in that article is that there were 3 or 4 220 (Clothes Dryer power line) outlets on that car for recharging. And recharging takes 8 to 12 hours. That's a lot of juice.
sawsee-yea, charging the car and making toast could cause a major black-out in your neighborhood. might wanna think about take-out.
sawsee/jdh-cardboard boxes offer a little more privacy than living in the car unless i got the really dark tinted windows. with the cardboard box, i could use press and seal on the "windows." as it is translucent, it could let in light, but still offer up the privacy needed by all cardboard box dwellers. ;o)
Your dwelling is sounding nicer and nicer! You'll be the talk of the neighbourhood...press and seal windows, with a hot, new electric Spyder parked outside. Martha Stewart will probably get you to do a special segment on 'How to jazz up that ordinary cardboard box'.
lostbean! You are in luck! Most boxes either come in a nice tan (neutral) shade or white. Although many boxes come with a shocking red Frigidaire logo.
It sounds like you are very industrious! Wow: a double-wide! And a nice garage box! All you need now is a satelite dish. I wonder if they come in matching cardboard?
question: where am i gonna plug in the car to recharge? same place i plug in the receiver for the sat. dish? gotta move from under the bridge to somewhere with outlets on the outside of the building.
I've seen experiments showing electricity being generated from a potato, so that could be an option...not sure how many potatoes you'll need to re-charge 'Spyder'.
Or was that moonshine from a potato?
Wind power is a great idea...you could have a wind generator installed ontop of the car's roof; just make sure you always park at the top of a hill.
22 comments:
sweet! i wonder what these cost?!?!?
Hi lostbean!
I'm sure a lot!
I wonder if batteries are extra?
I think he made his for $40,000, another man built the chassis and he did all the electrical stuff.
But I read where you will spend on average $1800 a year on gas alone, not including oil changes and such. Plus, the electronic components will outlast the chassis. The batteries last about 4 to 5 years, and can cost from $1000 to $3000 to replace.
I love this car. Not much room for kids, but still it'd be one car that I'd own forever.
JDH!
I was spending $4000 a year on gas ALONE when I commuted from Prescott to Ottawa.
Now I spend about $400. So nice! I'm not much of a car guy, but I did always want an MG or TR6...the Spyder would do nicely.
I'm not much of a car guy either, but the MG, TR6, and spyder = awesome. Wish I knew why I'm drawn to them.
$4000 a year...good lord!
Yeah, it was nuts. Necessary, but nuts.
when i bought the car i have now, i was seriously considering the honda accord hybrid. they cost ~$32k then (vs. the $23k i paid for a "regular" accord i have). considering i only budget $800/year for gas, that would take a LONG time (probably longer than hondas are made to last) to recoup the price difference.
i'm all over being green and hugging trees, but it has to work with my budget or i'll be living in a cardboard box under a bridge somewhere...
Agreed LB.
Plus, there's still the battery recyling problem. Very toxic and not at all enviro-friendly.
I'm all for it, but I tend to think that the "hybrid" hype is just that. Not that it isn't a good thing, but I see the current crop of hybrids as being "dial-up". I'll wait for the "dsl" versions that will be around when I'm ready to buy my next car.
What no one had mentioned in that article is that there were 3 or 4 220 (Clothes Dryer power line) outlets on that car for recharging. And recharging takes 8 to 12 hours. That's a lot of juice.
I guess it would be advisable not to run the toaster at the same time as charging the car!
Maybe the next development will be a solar panel skin which helps keep the charge.
lostbean: You could always live in the car, unless you are partial to cardboard?
I heard cardboard box under a bridge was the new green way to live.
sawsee-yea, charging the car and making toast could cause a major black-out in your neighborhood. might wanna think about take-out.
sawsee/jdh-cardboard boxes offer a little more privacy than living in the car unless i got the really dark tinted windows. with the cardboard box, i could use press and seal on the "windows." as it is translucent, it could let in light, but still offer up the privacy needed by all cardboard box dwellers. ;o)
JDH! Yes, cardboard is a very green method!
lostbean! Yes, only consider "take-out"! lol!
Your dwelling is sounding nicer and nicer! You'll be the talk of the neighbourhood...press and seal windows, with a hot, new electric Spyder parked outside. Martha Stewart will probably get you to do a special segment on 'How to jazz up that ordinary cardboard box'.
or maybe HGTV can come in a do a "design on a dime" episode. can't cost much more than a dime to spruce up my box.
just please don't paint the walls any crazy colors-i am a chromophobe!
lostbean! You are in luck! Most boxes either come in a nice tan (neutral) shade or white. Although many boxes come with a shocking red Frigidaire logo.
sawsee-eek! a shocking red logo? well, at least it's on the outside of the box so i can sleep.
maybe i can snag 2 boxes and live in a double-wide! sa-weet! oh, and if i got a 3rd box, that could serve as the garage for my Spyder!
lostbean! lol!
It sounds like you are very industrious! Wow: a double-wide! And a nice garage box! All you need now is a satelite dish. I wonder if they come in matching cardboard?
question: where am i gonna plug in the car to recharge? same place i plug in the receiver for the sat. dish? gotta move from under the bridge to somewhere with outlets on the outside of the building.
unless.....i go really green and get my power from the solar panels i'll install on the top of my double-wide! i'd even get a hot shower then!
or, i could use wind power and keep myself cool from their breezes on those hot summer nights...
just call me green bean! ;o)
lostbean! or should I say 'green bean'?!
I've seen experiments showing electricity being generated from a potato, so that could be an option...not sure how many potatoes you'll need to re-charge 'Spyder'.
Or was that moonshine from a potato?
Wind power is a great idea...you could have a wind generator installed ontop of the car's roof; just make sure you always park at the top of a hill.
So, if green bean always parks her Spyder at the top of a hill, can't she charge it up by coasting down the hill.......?
Hi Lady!
Absolutely! She may have to move to San Francisco!
Post a Comment