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Alternative-Fuel Vehicle Recommendations?

Posted by Cliff on from the ditching-the-gas-guzzlers dept.

Ellen Spertus asks: "My husband and I lease a pure electric GM EV-1, which we love, and need to replace our second car, a conventional Honda Accord, which recently died. We'd get a second EV-1, but GM has stopped making them. I haven't been able to find any available all-eletric car with the range (>=50 miles roundtrip) and speed (>=65 mph) that I need. Does the Slashdot community have any experience, wisdom, or advice on choosing an alternative fuel car?"

"I'm currently considering:

We test drove a Toyota Prius today, and it seems like a nice car. It's said to provide a quieter and more comfortable ride than the Honda Insight, and it uses pure electric power at low speeds. The Honda Insight, on the other hand, has better gas mileage. I could refuel either at regular gas stations. The Honda Civic GX would need to be refueled at special stations, but there are many where I live and work, the San Francisco Bay Area. The GX is the lowest in emissions, which would qualify me to drive alone in the carpool lane. All of the cars are about the same price, around $20,000 new. Used cars are also available."

6 of 877 comments (clear)

  1. Blam!! by TJ6581 · · Score: 0, Offtopic

    Something tell's me that evrental's potato powered webserver just learned how to make crinkle cut fries.......

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    "Freedom of speech has always been the abstract red-headed stepchild of the Constitution"
    -Suck
  2. Re:Ethanol is no solution, it's part of the proble by JWW · · Score: 1, Offtopic

    I wish the people of Nebraska would vote for Tom Daschle.

    Many of us in South Dakota would love to get rid of him. He's South Dakota's senator, not Nebraska's.

    Although I, along with many other South Dakotans, just wish he would go away. We'll see if he can continue to dupe people here to continue to vote for him in two years.

  3. Safety Warning! by dmarien · · Score: 0, Offtopic

    i hate silent cars though. they're too easy to walk in front of...

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    dmarien
  4. Bipeds by skydude_20 · · Score: 0, Offtopic

    or bicycles? I know the 50 miles is easily do-able, but that 65 mph might be a little tough at times...

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    Jesus saves souls and redeems them for valuable cash prizes
  5. suggestions by uncoveror · · Score: 0, Offtopic

    May I suggest getting a bicycle, or a horse?

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    The Uncoveror: It's the real news.
  6. Car Sharing: Don't Buy Anything by mcguire · · Score: 0, Offtopic
    Have you considered car sharing? It's fairly popular in Europe; in the US, it's small but growing fast. I work for Zipcar, an east coast car sharing (only, we say 'hourly car rental') company. Your version in SF is City Car Share.

    While I can't speak for City Car Share, here at Zipcar we park cars in reserved spaces all around the metro area -- right now we're in Boston, DC, and NYC; you reserve online by the hour, and enter/exit the cars with an access card. When you're done, you park the car back in it's home (generally 5 mins. from your home), and the car sends back your milage for us to bill you. It's very painless, and a great alterative to car ownership, especially in cities where that ownership can run into the tens of thousands per year.