Date:         Sun, 4 May 2008 19:21:45 -0700
Reply-To:     rpc <populuxe59@YAHOO.COM>
Sender:       Vanagon Mailing List <vanagon@gerry.vanagon.com>
From:         rpc <populuxe59@YAHOO.COM>
Subject:      Re: Vanagons as electric vehicles and other stuff....
In-Reply-To:  <380-22008504235752196@earthlink.net>
Content-Type: text/plain; charset=iso-8859-1

I think the Vanagon is a great base for electric; providing you live where you don't need heat or air-conditioning and your daily commute will be 40 miles round trip or less.  When you consider your going to retrofit an existing vehicle with many heavy the batteries your going to need something capable of that weight and a Vanagon can do it.
  Where I live the electric utility offers time of use metering-- you can use electricity at night for charging at pennies a KWH.
  Your costs are up front,buy your batteries and motor then fuel costs are almost almost nothing.  If you can do a Subaru conversion you could do electric.


  BTW, I work in the field for a utility and always get comments about high fuel costs. But hardy anyone wants to pony up and convert to cheaper / renewable systems, I think they'd rather be unhappy and grumble.  You have to stop talking about it an do something constructive.  I plan on having my home site inspected for feasibility of a solar electric net (selling back) metering system.  The higher electric rates go the sooner your system pays for itself.

  Chris C
  90mv

mathew Bennett <matsuwesty@EARTHLINK.NET> wrote:
  Electric vehicles, why don't we see them?
I haven't posted to the Vanagon list for several years. I read them and sometimes p-mail individuals with help on certain subjects. This issue of safe vehicles, electric vehicles, oil dependence, etc., it really burns me that the auto makers and the oil industry are so slow to recognize what is going on. They are cashing in while the getting is good and we will be left holding the bag when oil prices are $5 a gallon by next winter (or sooner). There are several folks on this list that have converted their vans to electric power, neat idea, but a box powered by an electric motor isn't ideal. Good aerodynamics are needed to obtain an efficient package. There was a movie made called, "Who killed the electric car?" that was VERY revealing. It is available on Netflix and probably on Blockbuster. This was about a SUCCESSFUL electric car that GM made back in the 90's (?), where everyone that owned one really liked them. There was a waiting list for them! They weren't actually sold
 to people, GM leased them to the owners. After someone in the government (big oil?) put some pressure on GM, GM took all of the cars back from owners. Some of the owners tried to keep them, but GM wouldn't let them.
It's a sad reflection of turning a quick buck and the big corporations controlling the daily lives of us lowly citizens. The more I read and see on TV about all of the stupid things that the United States government has done (poor handling of Iraq from the onset, limiting resources for alternative fuels/energy, outsourcing basic supplies/industries to other countries that ends up hurting the economy of the U.S. and INCREASING costs for those supplies/industries in the end, etc). Sorry, I'm ranting and I don't usually do that. I'm just disgusted with the direction our current government/economy is heading.
Back to your normally scheduled Vanagon info.................

Matt
'87 Subie powered Westy

Matsuwesty Adventures website: http://home.earthlink.net/~matsuwesty
FAVOR website: http://home.earthlink.net/~clubvanagon
Yahoo FAVOR website: http://autos.groups.yahoo.com/group/vanagon_club