When I saw the “Hippie Edition” Prius, which I shot a few weeks ago, on CC this morning I had a stab of cognitive dissonance. That car really did stick out, even here in Santa Cruz, California. So today when I went shopping at a local grocery store, only a few blocks away from that HD, and saw this red Beetle, I had to share it. It fits in much better in my town than the floral Prius.
There were a few other potential CC’s in the lot as well … not one but two Volkswagen T2 vans. a trio of elderly Toyotas, a Saab 900 and a topless full-size Bronco, but they were all drab and undecorated and just didn’t seem CC-worthy today.
I don’t think I’ve seen a Cabrillo College sticker in years. Maybe decades!
Nice Bug. Could it be that the Prius IS the next Bug? Will you see the be-flowered Prius in the same parking lot forty years from now looking a little worse for wear but still firing right up?
No, I don’t think you’ll see 40 year old Priuses in Santa Cruz. We’ll have banned the sale of fossil fuels. Or maybe the old carpool lane stickers will be replaced by gross polluter stickers, sort of a “Scarlet Letter” for the few remaining ICE cars, whether hybrid or not. Maybe mandating odd/even driving days.
Its the Woody Allen “sleeper edition”
Well, yeah, if some “Elecricgate” will not erupt sometime in the future…
And don’t forget that EV’s still use fossil fuel… albeit indirectly and less efficiently than ICEs, which convert it directly into mechanical energy.
It’s OK to not like electrics or Hybrids but you really should get yourself a bit more informed on the subject. To say that EV’s still use fossil fuels indirectly and less efficiently than ICE’s is simply ignorant and results in your comments being taken non-seriously.
There is no reason that an electric vehicle cannot be charged ENTIRELY from renewable (i.e. Solar or Wind) energy that you can generate on your own property and which many owners do. I’ll grant you that petroleum is still used for many portions of the vehicle, i.e. plastics but not necessarily for ongoing propulsion and on par with any other vehicle, so no better or worse in that respect..
ICE’s don’t convert any fossil fuel (unrefined from the ground) “directly into mechanical energy”. You are conveniently forgetting about extracting, transporting and refining of the raw material, transporting the refined product some more, then finally once it’s in the tank it is incredibly inefficient as far as producing power, most (significantly more than half) of the energy is simply converted into heat and is a waste product.
I’m no apologist for electrics or hybrids and don’t currently own any. But I’ve educated myself enough on the subject to at least not be ignorant while freely admitting I’m no expert. You should perhaps do the same. Next you’ll be trotting out that old story about Hybrids needing a new battery every 50k miles that used to go around…
Here in the Pacific NW essentially all of our electricity comes from non-fossil fuel sources.
Here in BC we are heavily dependent on hydroelectric; even our dominant supplier is called BC Hydro. We do have some other sources, but primarily as backup that are rarely used.
And don’t forget that EV’s still use fossil fuel… albeit indirectly and less efficiently than ICEs, which convert it directly into mechanical energy.
That’s actually not the case, as a matter of fact. Since electric motors are some 95% efficient, even some additional losses in generation, distribution and charging the batteries makes them still much more efficient than ICEs, whose engine are only some 25-40% efficient.
There’s a reason the EPA created the empg rating, as it is based on a formula to roughly compare an EVs use of a comparable amount of fossil fuel if the fuel was generated by fossil fuels, not renewables. Essentially all the current EVs are rated between 100 and 130 empg.
Even if an EV is powered by electricity generated 100% by coal (which is essentially nowhere anymore) its functional consumption/emissions of CO2 will be less than a comparable sized gasoline car.
There really is a reason the US, the EU and China are spending so much on incentives for EVs: it’s a key component in reducing CO2 emissions. But maybe that’s not something you see a need for.
If as you state that ICEs are so efficient, why is each and every houshold not equipped with an ICE powered generator and disconnected from the power grid?
1966 Bug. Assuming the “1300” is original to the car. The “Volkswagen” badge, which took the place of the “1300,” in 1967, was added here by current or a previous owner.
Thanks, the parallel Volkswagen and 1300 badges looked odd to me, from my visual memories of times when Beetles were everywhere, but I’m not up on my Beetle details.
Beautiful old Beetle. In perfect stereotypical character!
These were near the end of the line for my favorite bugs – once the bigger taillights hit it seemed to be all downhill (even though the cars may have had some improvements which compensated for a few years).
Bugs looking pretty much like this were still out in great numbers when I was a college student in the late 70s and early 80s. They seemed to be getting a little expensive (for a nice one) even then. Of course any used car that got good gas mileage became relatively expensive in late 1979.
By the time this bug arrived the Beetle’s taillight size had already been increased 3 times!
http://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/evwxwkspx2cpabp93pmv.jpg
These lenses look smaller than the housing?
Despite my almost 60 years on this planet, I have only been in a Beetle once, when I was 10 or 11, in the back seat. All I remember is a dark (green?) exterior colour, beige interior and the noise. Oh, the noise….
This VW is perfect because the adornments reveal the life of the car and its owner(s.)
The Hippie Edition Prius doesn’t work because the decorations were a factory or dealership option. “Pre-fab hippie” don’t cut it, man!
Honest patina, from long and continued use. I like it.
I notice the owner used electrical tape instead of ductape to patch holes and hold things on. Does that make it an ETV?
The double badge on the hood is puzzling for sure. The hood couldn’t have been from a ’67, because the ’67 hood was (FINALLY) short enough to clear the bumper. So the Volkswagen badge must have been added… but it looks professional, not electrical taped.
Maybe it was done by the pro’s at a well-regarded local shop, The Old Volks Home.
Needs more cowbell…