Matthew Botos

After talking with Brian and Merle last weekend about the mismatch between the short trips and giant cars people drive, I did a little bit of research on current state of electric cars.

The big auto companies have had some small pure electric projects over the years, but lately have focused more on hybrids. This is certainly the most palatable to the consumer, since there’s no change in behavior to get the benefit of greater fuel mileage. Still, the result is disappointing as most hybrids merely use the technology to slightly improve the mileage of big, overpowered vehicles.

A few smaller companies offer more impressive vehicles: Tesla Motors roadster for $90,000 and Phoenix Motorcars pickup for $45,000. Both use lithium ion batteries like those in laptops, which offer a greater range (over 200 miles) and performance for a higher price than standard, heavy lead-acid car batteries. Expensive batteries limit the target markets to rich enthusiasts for Tesla and company fleets for Phoenix, though. Availability is also a year or two away, with a $50,000 Tesla sedan further out according to CNET.

The green crowd has taken matters into its own hands in the meantime; there are many resources for building your own electric car. As an engineer in constant need of projects, it’s certainly tempting. Individual parts or kits can be purchased to convert a gas vehicle at a cost of around $10,000 if you do your own labor. The lead acid batteries will last about 5 years before needing a $2,000 replacement. Older small cars and pickup trucks are favorites, though some sports car conversions have beaten Vipers and other high performance gas racers. Since electric motors have full torque from 0 RPM, they can really launch - another aspect I find personally appealing.

In summary, getting an electric car for today’s common short trips isn’t easy or cheap. The big companies will sell you a hybrid for a premium. A much larger premium gets you a niche vehicle that can be driven off the lot. But to get something more affordable and practical, you have to roll up your sleeves and roll your own.

The Vintage Aircraft and Classic Car show at Wings Field was a fundraiser for Angel Flight East, and a fertile ground for photography. There were lots of old vehicles with a real style to them.

View the Wings Air and Car Show photos

After A Long, Short Local Trip, I knew I was in for a bit of a car repair bill, but the magnitude of it still gave me a shock. The immediate culprit was the slave cylinder and hoses for the hydraulic clutch, all of which had to be replaced.

The second wallop was from the lingering “check engine” light, whose vague phrasing must’ve tested better with the focus groups than an “open wallet” light. Not one, but both oxygen sensors were broken, and carried the usual price tag of anything electronic. As an aside, the trend of expensive electronics in previously “dumb” mechanical devices is only going to increase; Brian just told me that his recent air conditioner problems were purely due to incorrect settings on its electronic controller.

So, two major repairs, plus towing and diagnostic fees topped out just shy of four figures. The latter does bug me a bit; one of the excuses for doing the ScanGauge Installation was to save a few bucks by just telling them what the error codes were. Alas, computerized engines are too sophisticated for that; there’s a whole slew of information that has to be extracted for an exact diagnosis.

On the plus side, the Maxima is paid off, so after the equivalent of three months worth of payments, it’ll be free and clear again. Actually, better make that four - the radiator hoses are getting worn…

A quick trip out to run errands on a Saturday afternoon turned into a long, car-towing odessy. I did meet some nice people along the way, though, which is a rarity for my introverted nature.

My last stop was a Lowe’s, where I didn’t find what I was looking for. Instead, as soon as I pulled out of the parking spot, I found the clutch on my Maxima just sunk to the floor. Using instincts finely honed from using computers every day, I restarted with no gain. After some tinkering and grumbling, I found the clutch fluid reservoir under the hood, which was bone dry.

Luckily, across the barren expanse of two big box parking lots was a Target. Two engineering degress came in handy in a staredown with bottles of brake fluid that made no mention of also being good for the clutch. I finally reasoned that both were hydraulic and covered in the same section of the manual, and that if it didn’t work, the system would have to be flushed anyway.

Back under the hood, the grimy reservoir cover confirmed my assumption before taking a paltry amount of fluid that didn’t do anything to solve the problem. With my cell phone safely at home, I trekked into Lowe’s to find a phone. Pay phones have become extinct in our cell phone culture, but the folks at the service desk were nice enough to provide a phone and deliciously dead tree phone book.

My luck wasn’t so good with the complimentary Firestone MasterCare road service. After providing all the details of my situation, just shy of smart bomb worthy geographic precision, they came back from a long hold to offer me an hour wait and a $250 bill for a 5-mile tow. I must’ve dialed the sucker hotline. The first local place recommended another one (usually a good sign), who in turn offered me a similar wait but a much more reasonable $55 + $3/mile.

With time to kill, I pulled up a barstool with anthropomorphic legs at nearby Max & Erma’s and ended up chatting with a guy who restores older cars. Discussing cable versus hydraulic clutch activation was much more entertaining than the golf tournament that was on TV.

Steve showed up a little early with his tow truck and placid dog Gracie in the back seat. The truck was quite the marvel of modern technology: the rear view camera and wireless controller were only reined in by the paper note pads carpeting the dash. We discussed the relative durability of the Maxima on the way to Firestone, which was surprisingly still open.

The local Firestone, despite being a large chain, has earned my trust over the years. One of the early times I took my car in for a mystery problem, they spent all day swapping parts that didn’t fix the problem and charged me nothing for the effort. They earned extra points today; one of the mechanics, Chad, was kind enough to offer me a lift home after they closed.

Which leads me to the final twist in this little vignette: while waiting, the TV was tuned to an ungarage-like choice: Alton Brown road tripping on the Food Network.

Following up on my ScanGauge Installation, here are some of the typical gas mileages I’m seeing:

• 16 mpg during stop and go traffic on the short drive to work
• 27 mpg on longer highway drives
• 25 mpg with the bike on top on the highway

These are all for a 1998 Nissan Maxima with a manual transmission and a Yakima roof rack with two bike trays. The EPA estimates are 22 mpg city and 27 mpg highway.

I recently added a ScanGauge to my car. In addition to revealing the true reason behind mysterious “check engine” light, it calculates fuel economy and other statistics while providing a real-time display of data. In the photo of the display are miles per gallon, voltage, intake air temperature, and engine load; there are several other options.

It plugs directly into the On-Board Diagnostic (OBD) 2 port under the steering wheel, so the real installation was mounting the display. Rather than pull apart the center of the dash, I cobbled together some scrap wood that holds the display in the pocket under the radio using Velcro and a stylish coat of black spray paint. The wire passes out of a hole drilled in the back of the pocket and behind the carpet to the OBD-2 port.

View the ScanGauge photos