Getting an Electric 'Vespa'!

[Sparko]

OK, wait --- you run on one of the batteries at a time? If so, that makes a lot of sense.... You could reasonably get back the same distance as you got "there".

So, another question --- is there an auxiliary charger available? Like keeping one at home and one at work? (Naturally, if you're doing short runs, that wouldn't be necessary)

This is interesting.

look at his first post. It shows both batteries under the seat.

[Cow Poke]

look at his first post. It shows both batteries under the seat.

Yes, but only one of them is "hooked up".

[eider]

OK, wait --- you run on one of the batteries at a time? If so, that makes a lot of sense.... You could reasonably get back the same distance as you got "there".

Yes. The picture in the OP shows the separate battery sockets for individual use.

So, another question --- is there an auxiliary charger available? Like keeping one at home and one at work? (Naturally, if you're doing short runs, that wouldn't be necessary)

This is interesting.

You could buy a second charger but there is a compartment in the left hand 'bulge' to put the charger, so just take it with you, I guess.

[Cow Poke]

Yes. The picture in the OP shows the separate battery sockets for individual use.


You could buy a second charger but there is a compartment in the left hand 'bulge' to put the charger, so just take it with you, I guess.

Makes sense! So, if you DO get stuck somewhere with dead batteries, you're not totally stuck.

thanks

[eider]

[rogue06]

Enjoy the ride. But remember, if you're grinning too much during it you might get some bugs caught in your teeth

[Bill the Cat]

Silencio Bruno!!!*








* An amen if you catch the reference

[eider]

Silencio Bruno!!!*








* An amen if you catch the reference

Ah! I had to cheat because I could not grasp the reference Google directed me to a cartoon where two kids raced down a mountainside upon a scooter, calling out that slogan.

But you're right, it is so silent! Too silent, really.

[Cow Poke]

Ah! I had to cheat because I could not grasp the reference Google directed me to a cartoon where two kids raced down a mountainside upon a scooter, calling out that slogan.

But you're right, it is so silent! Too silent, really.

My wife's Toyota Rav4 makes NO engine noise when backing up, so they have a weird sound that plays from the engine compartment that, to me, sounds like some kind of demonic angels singing.

[eider]

My wife's Toyota Rav4 makes NO engine noise when backing up, so they have a weird sound that plays from the engine compartment that, to me, sounds like some kind of demonic angels singing.

Rav4s, I've always liked them. They were being sold in Britain as far back as 1991/2 because my wife's colleague drove one, the short wheel base model. The short wheel base Ravs are very good when off-road because their short body length assists their ground clearance. My wife prefers the Suzuki Jimny; there's a rough track (called a Byway) that leads off our estate across fields and we can use it with the Jimny, but a Rav could handle it as well. If her Jimny is reversing and comes within about ten feet of anything it makes a squeaking noise!

[eider]

Moving forward.......d
And so yesterday this EV 'Vespa' was road legal and ready to go. My (E-bike) top speed has been about 20mph up till now, if I pedal strongly and use maximum E-power, and so I didn't expect to be impressed with a moped's 28/30 mph, but the acceleration was brilliant, and it can hold its speed up steep hills easily.
I'm reluctant to disclose what the combined weight of myself and wife might be but I can tell you that our IC Vespa of thirty years ago definitely had an easier time of it with us on board. But the torque on this moped is amazing and it could take us both up hills with more ease than a 150cc machine.
It is quiet. Too quiet, and horn buttons are fitted on both sides of the handlebar for better access. The trouble with the horn is that it is very shockingly loud and to sound that is not only going to warn people hundreds of yards ahead but fill anybody more close with as much adrenalin as if they are jumping out of an airplane. I have always assumed that everybody is as deaf as a post when riding my E-bike and that is exactly how I will ride this machine.

But for a second vehicle to take my Missus to work if her jimny cannot take us........ it's ideal, almost cost free, and if you ignore the dreadful emissions count caused by digging Lithium out of the ground it's very very clean. But it sure can replace our second car.

[eider]

Update........
It was bright, sunny and dry on Tuesday afternoon and so my wife decided that we could both go for a first ride together on the new machine. It is about 26 years since she rode pillion on a motorbike or scooter with me so I was really extra careful. We just cruised around the rough roads and tracks on our estate for twenty minutes and then ventured out on to the route towards her workplace. I avoided the steep hill which follows the cliffs along the seafront and we took the flat route along the coast. And then home........ and Mrs Eider said 'Yes!'...in an emergency I could take her the 2.5 miles along the coast to her workplace....on the electric scooter.

Phew! And so we can reduce down to one car only, which is what this this whole project has been about. I've put this brilliant little machine under its cover for now because for me it's all about cycling and walking for fitness. This is a secondary mode of transport. I would like to buy an electric car at some point but at this time they are very expensive; I hope that prices will come down soon.

Thank you for your interest.

[Sparko]

Update........
It was bright, sunny and dry on Tuesday afternoon and so my wife decided that we could both go for a first ride together on the new machine. It is about 26 years since she rode pillion on a motorbike or scooter with me so I was really extra careful. We just cruised around the rough roads and tracks on our estate for twenty minutes and then ventured out on to the route towards her workplace. I avoided the steep hill which follows the cliffs along the seafront and we took the flat route along the coast. And then home........ and Mrs Eider said 'Yes!'...in an emergency I could take her the 2.5 miles along the coast to her workplace....on the electric scooter.

Phew! And so we can reduce down to one car only, which is what this this whole project has been about. I've put this brilliant little machine under its cover for now because for me it's all about cycling and walking for fitness. This is a secondary mode of transport. I would like to buy an electric car at some point but at this time they are very expensive; I hope that prices will come down soon.

Thank you for your interest.

My next car might be an electric. I still don't think they are quite "there" yet. My current car is a standard "petrol" compact SUV (Kia Sportage) it's 10 years old but only has 50,000 miles on it. I think it can last me another 5 to 10 years. Hopefully by then the electric cars and the infrastructure to support them will be better. I would also like to see self-driving options become mainstream too. They kept promising us self-driving cars by 2020, but that never happened. I still like to drive manually, but on long trips it would be nice to put it in auto mode and be able to sit back and relax without fear your car will kill you.

[eider]

My next car might be an electric. I still don't think they are quite "there" yet. My current car is a standard "petrol" compact SUV (Kia Sportage) it's 10 years old but only has 50,000 miles on it. I think it can last me another 5 to 10 years. Hopefully by then the electric cars and the infrastructure to support them will be better. I would also like to see self-driving options become mainstream too. They kept promising us self-driving cars by 2020, but that never happened. I still like to drive manually, but on long trips it would be nice to put it in auto mode and be able to sit back and relax without fear your car will kill you.

Very reliable..... Kias. A few neighbours around here have got the little Kia Picantos and they just go on..... and on. Yes, I reckon that your 50k Kia will take you all the way to practical and reasonably priced EVs.
If I travelled great distances on dual carriageways and motorways I might be more interested in self-drive vehicles, but I still find the concept scary even though humans at the wheel can be horrifically dangerous. But we don't. We had a holiday afternoon out, driving around the Northern Downs of East Kent last Thursday, quite the furthest distance travelled in two years. and must have burned a whole 1.5 gallons of petrol in my Wife's little Suzuki Jimny.... we just don't travel far anymore. But......... if a vehicle could take a very disabled or blind person to a destination, that would be quite wonderful.

[QuantaFille]

My current car is a standard "petrol" compact SUV (Kia Sportage) it's 10 years old but only has 50,000 miles on it.

Is such low mileage normal for vehicles outside of Texas?
My current vehicle is about the same age, with probably three times the mileage. My first car was about 25 years old when we sold it, and had almost 300k miles on it. That includes minimal driving in England for three years; only half of those 25 years were spent in Texas.