Green Transportation Expo coming to Washington, D.C. Thursday
The Green the Capitol Office will host a Green "Transportation" Expo on October 25 from 11 a.m. to 3P p.m. The event will take place at two locations: inside the Cannon Caucus Room, on the third floor of the Cannon Building, and outside on 1st Street, between the Cannon Building and the Library of Congress. Inside the Caucus Room you'll be able to check out bikes from several area stores and chat with a host of other alternative transportation agencies and manufacturers. Outside, you will be able to ride Segways and see and sit in over 20 of the coolest alternative vehicles on the market today! No registration is required. If you could go, what would you ask these exhibitors?
[Source: Green the Capitol Office]
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
Kardax 6:18PM (10/22/2007)
That's a very diverse bunch of companies, including some that really don't like each other (Miles Automotive versus Tesla Motors jumped right out at me).
I really wish I could go to this :)
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Lascelles Linton 6:22PM (10/22/2007)
Kardax, What would you ask them :D
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Kardax 8:46PM (10/22/2007)
I'd probably start at the Miles booth and grill them on their "XS500":
- What's the relationship between Miles and Hafei (the maker of the Hafei Saibao the XS500 is based upon)?
- When will the first operational prototype be presented?
- Chinese cars haven't exactly fared well when faced with a crash test... a recent Chery sedan had a front crumple zone that apparently included the whole passenger cabin... is Miles prepared to make the XS500 satisfy NHTSA crash testing? Is there a particular star-rating you're targeting?
- You've recently attempted to disrupt Tesla Motors' NHTSA approval process. If you succeed and Tesla dies, aren't you concerned about your own EVs being caught under the fallout of such a massive failure?
- What sort of battery system are you using? (possible follow-up) Has it ever been used in an automotive application before? Can it be recycled?
- How long will the factory warranty on the XS500 be? If EVs are so reliable, why so short?
- When will EPA range numbers for the XS500 be available?
- When will the XS500 be available for purchase? Are you sure? The time between then and the release of the Chevy Volt is not that big. How will you stay competitive?
I'd probably think of follow-up questions, too.
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Lascelles Linton 8:51PM (10/22/2007)
Kardax,
"You've recently attempted to disrupt Tesla Motors' NHTSA approval process."
Got support for that?
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Kardax 8:50PM (10/22/2007)
Next I would go to GEM. This would be a brief trip.
- Why should I buy a GEM instead of a used car? Ah, carbon emissions... well how much carbon is emitted in order to build a GEM?
- What sort of warranty do you offer? If EVs are so reliable, why so short?
- Your vehicles are certified as NEVs, right? 25MPH top speed? Can use up to 35 MPH roads, I see. My driveway is connected to a 45MPH road. So you're saying I wouldn't be able to leave my driveway with one of these?
That'd be about it.
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BlackbirdHighway 9:00PM (10/22/2007)
I'm going!
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Kardax 9:32PM (10/22/2007)
Of course :)
Go to this address: http://www.regulations.gov/fdmspublic/component/main
Choose "All Documents (Open and Closed for Comment)".
Choose "Docket ID".
Fill in NHTSA-2007-28821 as the Docket ID value.
This should give you a listing of the saga. In a nutshell, Tesla is using the same semi-outdated airbags as the Lotus Elise and is hoping to get permission to use them, just as Lotus did. Miles is insisting that Tesla be required to use the more current type of airbag. Notably, they did this on the very last day of the comment period, not giving Tesla a chance to defend themselves.
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Kardax 9:31PM (10/22/2007)
Anyway, back to my theoretical visit, my last main stop would GM. The Volt and the fantasy world known as the "hydrogen economy" would be my topics.
- What's the current price guestimate for the Volt? Would GM make any profit at that price?
- Why bother with the Volt if hydrogen is so promising?
- What will happen if a Chevy Fuel Cell Equinox is rear-ended by another Chevy Fuel Cell Equinox at 30 MPH? Boom?
- When the hydrogen economy is fully established (I'll resist giggling), what will a fill-up cost me?
- Hydrogen is virtually impossible to contain. How much do the tanks lose every day? (If they answered the above) So I'm losing $x of fuel every day?
- You have flex-fuel vehicles in customer hands today. The EV is being more or less revived by the Volt. Where does hydrogen fit in this product mix?
I love picking on hydrogen advocates :)
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Lascelles Linton 9:35PM (10/22/2007)
Kardax, ...how in the world did you come across that? Looks like an interesting story. Do they just not like each other? Odd thing is I just posted a video about Tesla and safety. How did this conclude?
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Kardax 10:08PM (10/22/2007)
Lascelles: I can't take credit for finding it; TEG first revealed it here: http://www.teslamotorsclub.com/showthread.php?t=576
(TEG linked to the older system, I gave you a link to the new system in case the old one gets shut down at some point. The new system sucks, though, in that you can't direct link to anything.)
It's pretty remarkable that Miles would publicly attack Tesla like that (I wouldn't call it an attack if they didn't wait until the last day). Clearly they see Tesla as a threat to their business and saw this as an opportunity to hurt them. In doing so, Miles is exposing themselves to the same (or worse) scrutiny by the NHTSA when they try to certify their XS500, so I'm not sure this decision will work out for them in the end.
As for the NHTSA decision itself, I haven't heard either way. I would assume the results would show up in the same docket search. I believe Tesla will get it, based on the Lotus Elise precedent and their well-reasoned argument. If they don't get it, another Roadster delay seems assured.
I really don't know how many regulatory challenges Tesla is facing. This could be one of many. But this is critical to Roadster production so I think it's likely someone at Tesla is checking on this every day.
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Domenick 8:20AM (10/23/2007)
Reading legalese makes my brain melt. >_< I don't think you can assume the Miles comment was an "attack". Maybe they didn't find out about it until the last day. I'm wondering how Miles even found out about the request. Was it also mentioned on the TeslaMotorsClub forum?
It seems pretty clear though that Miles is confident their car will be NHTSA compliant. I only have one question for them at this time. "When are you going to put pictures of the Javlon on your website?"
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Domenick 8:41AM (10/23/2007)
I've got a question for another exhibitor. I'd like to ask Electro Energy about how their batteries systems may be superior to those of A123 or Altairnano.
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Mike Weston 11:44AM (10/23/2007)
I'd ask Segway why they don't lower prices. Everyone I know who has ridden one would really like one, but can't justify the price for something that's mostly a toy.
I'd also ask Myers Motors how they can ask $35K (didn't it used to be 25?) for a one passenger vehicle with only 30 miles of range.
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BlackbirdHighway 12:15PM (10/24/2007)
Ok folks, I'll take these questions with me, and try to ask a lot of them, and report back tomorrow night.
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Joe L. 12:43AM (10/31/2007)
Can anyone provide more information about this "do-it-yourself prius solar panel conversion which appears in this video? http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OBc19GfYnls. I believe that it was taken at The Green "Transportation" Expo in DC. I would like to know more about the car and how I can contact the person in the video. Thanks. Joe
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Lascelles Linton 12:46AM (10/31/2007)
Joe, The Prius is made by Bob Bruninga. The article I wrote and his web page is below. Below is also a link to an article you might find interesting about another solar Prius.
http://www.autobloggreen.com/2007/09/20/prius-software-cuts-possible-electric-only-range-by-80-percent/
http://web.ew.usna.edu/~bruninga/aprs.html
http://www.autobloggreen.com/2007/06/05/video-the-solar-prius-in-action/
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