[amanda11270]

I went with my wife to test drive a new car last night, Chevy Volt, which is an amazing economy car, both her girlfriend and her gf's husband drive them, and use only $29 worth of gas to go 1000 miles about monthly. Well she chose to hold off for a little while yet.

I however saw the most amazing Camaro ever, and I don't know if the car was as amazing as the price. They had this orange, brand new 2012 for $24,000, yes it was only a v6, however, they said it was a leftover and for some reason didn't sell, so they sent it out to have it customized to make it more appealing. They added huge @SS thin spoke wheels (they were GM as they said "Camaro" on them), with the thinnest tires I've ever seen, I swear you could almost do the brakes without removing the wheels, they also added carbon fiber over the car racing stripes with matching interior accents. It was just the right color combo, I wish I'd of photographed it. And on top of it, it was I think a 6 speed manual. And I really am not usually into Camaro's except for the first time I saw a new one, since the newness has worn off and they are everywhere now.

My wife and I decided to be car payment free for awhile though, I am still pondering though. But im sure this car wont last for long where it was for sale, it was steal that someone will snatch up. The friggin Volt we drove was $13,000 more.

I think I need this crappy weather to change so I can drive the Esprit to get me out of this cabin fever before I do something stupid.

 

[bharper]

they might want to check their power bill too for their 1000 miles a month. just saying..

Brian

 

[maxvelocity]

they might want to check their power bill too for their 1000 miles a month. just saying..

Brian

13K more plus power bill might make the return a bit longer to make sense of the extra costs. I think there is some sort of tax credit but I don't know much about it.

Cal H

 

[petemon]

13K more plus power bill might make the return a bit longer to make sense of the extra costs. I think there is some sort of tax credit but I don't know much about it.

Cal H

Good point.
The combined EPA rating for the '14 Camaro V6 is 20mpg, at current gas prices ($3.20/gal here in VA) you'd have to drive the Volt 120,000 miles just to make up the difference in price assuming the Volt costs about $.05/Mi to run solely on battery power (using any gas would greatly increase this).
Even with a $7,500 tax credit for the Volt, you're still stuck driving it for 50k miles before you're better off than you'd be with the Camaro.

I've seen some studies that indicate they really aren't any better for the environment either. The energy expended and pollutants generated in producing the Li-ion batteries negates most of the savings. Power plants used to produce the electricity (mostly coal) further erode any benefit and energy lost to power transmission and conversion probably make it a wash.

Lastly is the danger to first responders in the event of an accident.

Remember this next time someone tries to smugly suggest that they are saving the planet by driving a Prius.

 

[MotoGeek]

I really like the V6 camaro. They did a great job of not making it look neutered compared to the V8 cars. I'd take one over a BRZ any day.



I work with this hilariously smug Prius driving lady. The other day a group of us were discussing the future of fuel taxes with respect to electric cars. She chimes in that she thinks her Prius should be exempt, because it's small and light, and doesn't have a significant impact on road wear. The kicker? She drives on steel studded tires 6 months out of the year.


I do like the volt, BTW.

 

[Autocross7]

My 88' Esprit returns a pretty consistent 31mgh on the highway. Obliviously quite a bit less in town. but I do not consider the car to be bad on mileage at all. Especially given the age of the car...

Then, I go out for a drive in the 308GTS and suddenly the Esprit seems to be some sort of wonder car that keeps a full tank for days! anic:

 

[roadtalontsi]

you need to see a zl1 in person. I couldnt help but wanting one after seeing it up close. Just could never justify that much money on a gm. The volts are pretty sweet but holy crap are the expensive new. I'd never own any sort of hybrid outside of warranty- batteries along with other components are expensive as crap. They are worse for the environment. The difference is your car isnt making smog in the city, it's the coal plant/oil power plant in a different city lol. Lead acid/nickel metalhy batteries dont absorb well back in to the wild. Benz is the only one using lithium ion batteries that i know of on the e and s hybrid. They go to the tune of 20k$ luckily they are supposed to last 10-15yrs.

 

[MidLifeZ]

Guessing too on hybrids have to take into account how old the car is. Example; a 10 year old gas engined car with low mileage has mechanicals (absent other factors of course) which is in great shape.

What about a battery powered vehilcle? Since batteries age and degrade..

 

[carbuff]

Guessing too on hybrids have to take into account how old the car is. Example; a 10 year old gas engined car with low mileage has mechanicals (absent other factors of course) which is in great shape.

What about a battery powered vehicle? Since batteries age and degrade..

There are reports of a Gen2 Prius with 330k+ miles on it, no probs with the battery pack.

That said,

My experience with laptop & cellphone batteries has not been that good.

 

[amanda11270]

I wouldn't believe the Volt story except we have two good friends that own them, and have for the past year or so, they use as much electricity to charge as a small refrigerator monthly. This couple we know is super crazy about being conservers, their electric bill went up $10 a month with 2 Volts charging every night. But they only use $28-$30 worth of gas monthly.

The $7500 tax credit is only good for whatever you would owe in taxes the year you buy it, so if we owed $250 next year, that's all its worth.

The car came down from $45000 when it first came out, to $35000 now.

And the couple we know REALLY gets like 80-95 MPG because the charge takes them both to and from work, no gas all week. But the cold does affect it a little bit.

The car comes with a 8 year warranty new on the battery (my first question I asked the dealer)

We decided to wait and keep our cars (Pontiac G6 GT, sucks gas) and my (Chevy Avalanche, sucks gas) because we almost own them both and would rather be car payment free for awhile.

Its a pretty cool car, its interesting to drive too, the one we drove they didn't get to charge it before we got there, as it was a salesmans car, and it was running the gas motor, but it did not rev, it was running an electric motor to drive the car, WEIRD feeling.

And my Esprit is without a doubt the best fuel economy car in my house, it cannot be replaced with a Volt and wasn't gonna be. We were gonna trade my wifes G6. But that Camaro is still in my head, it was incredible with the big @ss wheels and carbon fiber stripes they put on it. Again I wished I photographed it.

 

[MeisterS4]

life is way too short to worry about MPG

 

[jphoenix]

Maybe the next engine swap will be an electric motor instead of a v12?

National Electric Drag Racing Association - Build an EV Drag Racer

Weight would be an issue.

 

[Turbo R]

Jphoenix,

An electric Esprit? Already been done...at least twice!
A Giugiaro Esprit and also a former Esprit V8.

Here's one of them:

Students electrify a Lotus Esprit, and drive it across the U.S.

Will see if I can find the other one for you as well.

Roy

 

[Turbo R]

Former Esprit V8:

Receiving our New Lotus Esprit! | The Geek Group

 

[Turbo R]

And now for something totally different...what used to be an '88 Esprit Turbo, but you would never guess by looking at it:

Dale Robinson's 1988 Lotus Esprit Custom

 

[oldmansan]

life is way too short to worry about MPG

Agreed. Life is too short to drive ****ty cars.

San

 

[Turbo R]

As for Camaros...would kill for a ZL-1 or a new Z/28 whose nameplate just came back from the dead and is now a very capable track car. The ZL-1 really has a presence to it when you see it in person, you can tell that it is something special. I'm sure there is no end of suspension upgrades available for all new Camaros including the six cylinder models. Even the V6 Camaros are a lot more capable nowadays...I think it would be a fun addition to the Esprit, although personally if I were in the market (I'm not), I would lean towards a used RS/SS with the LS V8. More bang for the buck

Roy

 

[Turbo R]

Camaro Z28 Returns in 2014: Shocking Debut in NYC | Chevrolet

 

[MidLifeZ]

As for Camaros...would kill for a ZL-1 or a new Z/28 whose nameplate just came back from the dead and is now a very capable track car. The ZL-1 really has a presence to it when you see it in person, you can tell that it is something special. I'm sure there is no end of suspension upgrades available for all new Camaros including the six cylinder models. Even the V6 Camaros are a lot more capable nowadays...I think it would be a fun addition to the Esprit, although personally if I were in the market (I'm not), I would lean towards a used RS/SS with the LS V8. More bang for the buck

Roy

Except... NOWHERE near worth the $$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$ they want for the new Z28! Saw one at Texas State Fair last year, if memory serves it was something like $70,000!

 

[s2mikey]

life is way too short to worry about MPG

Yeah - at least for the most part.