MSNBC: Early electric car adopters are the "lunatic fringe"
by Sebastian Blanco on Jul 16th 2009 at 12:43PM 
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Ever wonder about your friend who's been converting an old Ranger to battery power? He's a nut. Or the lady who runs Electric Cars Are For Girls? Off her rocker. This is according to MSNBC, which wrote recently that electric cars have, until recently, been the domain of the "lunatic fringe."
In an article that talks about the bright near future for electric vehicles, MSNBC uses the terms "fanatics," which can be kind of charming, and the "lunatic fringe," which is less so. MSNBC says that, "while everyone won't be propelled by electrons anytime soon, for the first time, everyone can at least consider that as an option when the buy their next car." Guess the lunatic fringe is making its mark.
We learned about this little bit of name calling from our friend Chelsea Sexton, who's probably as responsible as anyone for giving EV fans their crazy edge. Good work, Chelsea.
[Source: MSNBC via Chelsea Sexton]
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 2)
Rain 12:57PM (7/16/2009)
Yeah,the lunatic fringe!
From the People who salivated like Pavlov's Dog at the bulge in Chimpy McFlightsuit's
abdominal bladder and who offered to go easy on the errant philanderers,Ensign and Sanford.
They are the reason I do not read a newspaper or watch the nightly news/op-ed networks.
I just don't care what They think.
I guess that I am a lunatic and They can shove it.
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LaughingMan 12:58PM (7/16/2009)
Comments like these reinforce the sad reality that the auto industry continues to have its share of unfair biases.
As Chelsea says, a Corvette fan is normal, or at the most an "enthusiast" because in the old "car guy" club, a Corvette is considered universally an awesome car.
Nevermind the subjectivity of what's awesome or not. Car guys don't care. They are the established adjudicators of what's good in the car world. Performance is GOOD. The internal combustion engine is GOOD. Sports car look is GOOD.
Alternative vehicles aren't conventional. Many don't have ICEs, so they are weird. The people who like them are either lunatics or are grandmas who don't care about "drive" and treat the car like a toaster.
/S obviously.
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Randy C. 10:40AM (7/17/2009)
I agree there is 100 years of bad blood against the electric car. And a lot of it is propagated by those who stand to loose the most, OIL COMPANIES. Building and electric car is easy, selling them is hard. Unfortunately for America GM, Ford, and Chrysler realized to late that the products they were making are bad for America. Ever larger vehicles requiring more and more fuel with more than 60% of it being imported is not a good situation. It may be good for the corporate pocket book but not America. Remember at any time a oil exporting country with a grievance can decide not to sell the U.S. any oil.
I'll say it to anyone “don't knock electric cars until you've actually tried one.” If you've never tried one how do you know they are wrong. Are you basing your opinions on actual facts or just repeating what other people have said . Are you sure they were in possession of valid facts.
Evan 1:04PM (7/16/2009)
"Fanatics" and "Lunatic Fringe" is similar to what the mainstream press said about people who used email and the internet 10~15 years ago. Even when the movie "You've Got Mail" (1998) came out, some movie critics blasted it for the lunacy of internet dating. I wish we could make people literally eat their words!
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Kyle 1:18PM (7/16/2009)
There is a reason MSNBC's viewership is in the dumps.
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nixon 1:24PM (7/16/2009)
Sorry guys, but we ARE "fanatics" and the "lunatic fringe".
If there is a decade of success with electric cars selling in the retail mass market, then we will be called "early adapters". But first we actually have to buy and drive these cars, and only then will be actually become "early adapters". After we actually "adapt" something.
If there are two decades of success with electric cars, we will be re-labeled as "visionaries" retroactively.
If after three decades, we have a club of rare first-gen electric cars and rare high performance EV's that we take out and show off, then we will be "car club" "enthusiasts".
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vfx 2:30PM (7/16/2009)
In fact, in 10 to 15 years those whose are (still) driving today's EVs will be mocked for "living in the past".
A Tesla Roadster in 2025 will be an amazing supercar and while the 2008's will still be reliable long lasting Electric Vehicles, they will be seen as quaint as an Cathode Ray Tube television is today.
bob 11:57PM (7/16/2009)
I really hate doing this sort of grammar police thing - well I guess it's more vocabulary police - but regardless... the term that is most commonly used is "early adopters". Maybe in your neck of the woods they say adapters but I just figured someone should let you know that's we are early adopters not adapters.
why not the LS2LS7? 1:25PM (7/16/2009)
Other than the choice of words, she's right. For that matter, many hybrid owners are also. When you are willing to pay $60,000 more to get less and save $1K a year in fueling costs, you are definitely not thinking the same as everyone else is. It's not all bad thing (as lunatic fringe might imply), but it's certainly far off the reservation.
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polo 2:41PM (7/16/2009)
What EV costs $60K?? Even the Model S will cost under $50K. And the savings in maintanence alone will be in the five figure range, not to mention in very low depreciation.
That said, you are the first bonafide lunatic to post in this thread.
stevejust 3:17PM (7/16/2009)
Well, LS2LS7, let's start with the fact that there's only about two hybrids that cost $60,000 (the Escalde hybrid and the Lexus LS600h) and dozens of hybrids that cost less than $60,000 (Honda Insight, Civic hybrids; Toyota Prius, Camry, Highlander hybrids; Ford Fusion, Escape hybrids; Mazda Tribute hybrid, Mercury Mariner hybrid, Lexus RX400h, Lexus GS 450h (MSRP: $56550) hybrids.
Second, let's get this out there: the Lexus RX400h and GS450h are both BETTER in terms of performance, and luxury appointments than the conventional engine counterparts. So you're not paying more for less if you buy a hybrid ever except maybe in terms of 0-60 performance -- and in the case of the Lexus hybrids specifically, you're paying more and getting more.
Third, I have a Civic Hybrid I paid $18,600 for brand new in 2004. I got a $2k tax credit. It has the same features as a $15,000 Civic LX. With gas prices in CA what they are in CA, I made up the extra $1,000 I spent as soon as the odometer hits @50,000 miles. Do you drive your cars for at least 50,000 miles?
Why don't you try staying off the internet until you know what you're talking about? The only people on the lunatic fringe are people without enough information to realize they're the assbackwards ones.
Throwback 3:19PM (7/16/2009)
The model S is "supposed" to cost $57,500 for the base model. There is a $7,500 tax rebate. You still have to be able to afford the price of entry and judging by the Roadster I doubt the model S will be under 60K. Especially if they use a E class platform.
CaramelZappa 3:24PM (7/16/2009)
Converting a car to electric with about a 50 mile range and decent performance can easily cost less than 10k.
Mike!!ekiM 6:03PM (7/16/2009)
The lunatic fringe, is the lunatic mainstream still buying Huge V8 SUV's, Corvette's and Pickups, with China Growing 5% during a Global Recession. Gas is Cheap, at $2.65 Today. We'll see what the price of gas is in 5 years.
why not the LS2LS7? 6:57PM (7/16/2009)
$60K car?
I said $60K MORE.
The Tesla model S doesn't exist right now. So forget it. We can talk about it once it exists.
The Tesla Roadster costs about $120K, which is more than $60K more than the car it is based on, the Lotus Elise.
Hybrids may not cost $60K more (that I can think of), but for most people you will have a hard time recouping the up front costs with current gas prices.
polo:
The Tesla Model S with the short range battery pack will still be $57.4K, not less than $50K.
Like I said, the people who spend more to use less energy are not thinking the same as everyone else, most other people think with their wallet.
I think the fact that people went nonlinear and think I'm exaggerating when I'm actually underestimating is a great example of where this "lunatic fringe" idea came from.
Mike!!ekiM:
It's also pretty lunatic to believe the figures coming from China. Their released figures suit their ends. They lied on the low side when talking about CO2 emissions because it made them look better internationally, there's no reason to think they aren't lying on the high side right now about growth to make them look better. I have co-workers who go to China nearly every week. It's not growing at 5% right now. But the pause in growth may not last forever, as many have mentioned.
Level 8:59AM (7/17/2009)
why not the LS2LS7
what you doing on the yuppie green section posting? lol come back over to Autoblog man lol
You can't talk sense into these people, You do know this yuppie green people bite and attack anybody that rains on their parade lol...They are very "sensitive" lol
Tim 1:37PM (7/16/2009)
Who pays attention to ANYTHING on CNBC anyway? The sooner they are bankrupt, the better! Then again, the congressional progressives would just use our tax money to bail them out. After all, CNBC is their propaganda dept.
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Throwback 2:13PM (7/16/2009)
I would not equate fanatic with lunatic fringe. A fanatic has a passion and obsession for something. I am a car and sports fanatic and proud of it. Some folks on this board need to lighten up, everything is not a vast oil/government/big bank/ big business/ have I forgotten anyone? conspiracy. If you like plug-ins, what do you care what other people who you don't know think?
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~D. 3:06PM (7/16/2009)
it becomes pretty hard to watch sometimes, as these cable news networks (and hands-down CNBC/MSNBC in particular) are SOOO in the pocket of big business it is pretty shameless, and it makes them look like they have their heads up their rears, because all they do is bemoan the dearth and demise of whatever dinasauric industry pays them patronage.
on the one hand, these suits get on the air and talk a big game about the free market, but when the people vote with their pocketbooks (which is exactly what the so-called "premium-paying first adopters" are doing) en masse, they denounce them with abnormally-impartial vitriol for having made the "wrong" choice: i.e. NOT whatever company or industry they had THEIR money riding on.
the answer is MSNBC/CNBC DOESN'T really believe in the free market...but they do believe in the "fine folks over at Starbucks" who buy their printed newspapers.
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Brett 3:52PM (7/16/2009)
I emailed the author- his email address is available on the article.
Dan Carney, thru his emails, made it very clear he has little idea of what he is talking about. He thinks Tesla is fringe, and called the garage hobbyists nutty. He believes this is a sector being lead by 1 or 2 companies and a bunch of nerds in the garage.
This "journalist" is a joke, and I let him know so with a couple of links, and jabs with the word.
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