Everyone is talking about the new Slate trucklette, what with it being the new battery hotness and all, and I get it. I dig it, even. It is indeed a cool little machine, and I’m 100% with Jason on everything he opined this morning about its crank-window coolness.
It’s also got me thinking about what my idea of an ideal EV is, if only for me and only me.
While I have tremendous respect for what Tesla did with the Roadster and even more so the Model S to establish that EVs needn’t be weird little pods for ecology nerds and could instead just be good (great, even) regular cars that happen to be electric, I have to confess that I actually have a soft spot for the weird pod concept.
Take the Aptera in the top graphic, for example. I suspect it’s just too bizarre to succeed, but I love how it goes Full Jetsons as an aggressively aero teardrop-shaped two-seater rolling on three wheels. More of that, please.
I see myself using an EV most frequently to commute solo to an office (I work from home and hope to never have a commute again, but go with me on this). As such, I don’t need 300+ miles of range, and I certainly don’t want to lug around all that battery weight, either – or pay for it. A mere 100 miles of range would be plenty to get me around during the week, with a nightly top-off in the garage at hole.
Room for myself and a passenger plus a couple of carry-on bags would be all the space I need in my ideal EV, and I wouldn’t say no to a single-seater. Make it lightweight, fun, and futuristic. One can certainly go too small (and/or narrow, see below), but I love the idea of a driving what feels like a personal fighter jet on wheels.
But then again, I’m a bit of a weirdo. Let’s hear from you! Please, Tell Us About Your Ideal Electric Car.
Top graphic image: Aptera
We have three parking spots. One holds a do-anything family truckster that we swap out every few years based on getting the best deal. It can handle longer trips, so I wouldn’t need fast charging or a big battery in the EV. One spot is always a toy, some more practical than others. At the moment, it is a Miata.
Right now, the third slot is a bare bones Tacoma, but an EV Kei-truck, if it could be registered for non-freeway street use, would be a great swap. Give me a range of about 120 miles, drop-side bed, and 4WD. That would be a long enough range to get out of the city core to get plants/gardening stuff at the bigger nurseries we use, firewood, purchases of larger stuff like appliances & furniture, all the home project stuff, or any short-range errand like groceries. All with the ability to charge at home without replacing my antiquated electrical panel.
While I do use the Tacoma for camping, we could upgrade the family truckster next time to something more camping-appropriate. Maybe a Sienna with AWD and a small lift.
My ideal EV has a nice gasoline motor in it and no crap EV in it
My optimal favourite EV is already made, just not sold here in Finland (yet) the Mobilize Duo https://www.mobilize.co.uk/range/mobilize-duo.html
It corrects every little nitpick I had with my Renault Twizy
You don’t know how much fun you can have with 15hp until you’ve tried a Twizy ???? and the Mobilize is like that but with buttwarmers…
I’m an Aptera accelerator, meaning my name is on one of the first 2000 cars.
That is if they come to market at a price I’m willing and able to pay. Fingers crossed. ????
I envy you. I would also like to rock a Aptera!
We’re not there yet, but I’m really hoping.
A Volvo V60 or CC version of it. Perhaps the new Subaru trail seeker AFTER a refresh to improve its looks, range and charge speed.
An electric Pacer.
The main problem with the Pacer was the engine didn’t fit, and production realities weren’t really up to the design
Oh, and the EV equivalent of a Lotus Seven. 50 miles range would be plenty.
The Equinox EV LT is pretty close with 320 miles of range for $35K but it could use some tweaks.
For looks give me the ground clearance of the VW Alltrack with a square back wagon shape of a 2nd gen Volvo V70. Switch it from FWD to RWD and give it the charge speed of a Hyundai Ioniq.
with that new ev pick-up truck reminded me that I always wished I could chose selected items for customization than having to go all in on a trim just to get a single feature
and I wish batteries where exchangeable on the cheap, so I could opt to change them in the future without paying for a brand new car for that
Something where the top comes off. As far as I know, there’s not a single convertible EV on the market right now.
Those prototype Mini Cooper convertible EVs had me drooling. ????
Oh yes! This. This is exactly what is missing in the EV space and it makes a perfect pairing. You get a convertible to enjoy fresh air. It would be great if it we clean and quiet. EVs and convertibles are a great option for 2nd cars. EVs and convertibles are both even better at lower speeds.
And there already a few but they’re just not sold in the US, like the Mini Cooper SE convertible and the 500e Cabrio. That and BMW already makes the i4 and 4-series convertible on the same platform. Should be a no brainer
The Tesla Model Y is available as a convertible, but you don’t know if you get that option until after you own it.
https://www.theverge.com/2020/10/5/21502379/tesla-modely-roof-flies-off-convertible-quality-issue
I always thought the Dodge Magnum would make a great EV. I love hot rod wagons and I liked the style of the car. Modernize it a bit and it would be great.
If I want a single car to cover all my needs, a Lucid Air Wagon would be about perfect, even if it loses a few miles of range.
If it has a specific focus i.e. commuting, personal transportation, back road carving… then things change a lot. But I’d like to see more crazy designs specifically tailored to all those use cases.
An early Tesla model 3 with an iffy battery that can still deliver at least 100 miles of range for the next five years or so. Max price $2500
A Chevy Trax with an electric motor.
Small, light, friendly, rather affordable:
https://microlino-car.com/en-us/microlino?_gl=1*142uer5*_up*MQ..*_ga*MjI4MjU4MDAxLjE3NDU2MTkwNzI.*_ga_K90DJXD508*MTc0NTYxOTA3Mi4xLjAuMTc0NTYxOTA3Mi4wLjAuMA..
There’s a guy on YouTube, who put a tesla motor and i3 battery pack under a 80s Toyota pickup on 35s, now he’s putting a range extender in the fruck. That with a ventilated seat with lumbar support is what I want.
For a car that I know I can eventually buy, the Aptera is on the top of my list. It’s the ultimate in efficiency which is the whole reason to buy electric, plus it looks fun, has excellent site lines, and would cover 99% of my driving needs.
My unattainable electric dream is to.own an original GM EV1, they look awesome and are sporty little cars, unlike most all other EVs
My actual dream build is a MINI, with about a 150hp electric motor driving a real mechanical 5 speed manual to make the most of the small motor. Just because you can get away with not needing gears with an electric drive train does not mean that some extra gear ratios can’t help performance and efficiency. I’d also put my money where my mouth is if Jeep would build the Magneto concept Wrangler with an electric motor driving the stock manual transmission and 4wd transfer case.
I want an EV wagon. Long, but not exceptionally tall, and preferably without much slope down at the back. Think like a Saturn LW200 in size or slightly larger. Range I would prefer enough to get at least 300 miles at highway speeds running the AC. Now I could talked into less with better charging infrastructure and fast charging capability.
Take the Mach E, make it wider, lower and improve the ride quality. Job done.
They shout totally use the Mach E platform to make a Thunderbird (grand touring coupe) and a convertible Mustang or Tbird too
I get the whole GT BEV thing but its already been done over and over again. I think where BEV really shines and can effect change is small cheap city cars and trucks. Basically Kei Bev for a global audience just without the kei restrictions. The slate and tello seem like great ideas. I also like the radar truck from China and the panda. The idea you can get a truck for $14k or a little car for $8k solves alot of issues for alot of people. I think slate really has something with their modular diy approach. The Chinese really have embraced a similar system just not at a manufacturer level yet.
I have gone round and round on this myself. I feel like it’s actually a couple of EVs, a small EV truck like the Slate for going to the dump, hardware stores, helping friends move, daily driver, and a relaxed fun car for trips, daily driver commuting, weekend getaways. Basically what I’d want for gas cars, just, electric.
We have 3 EVs currently, my Ranger electric fits most of the 1st criteria, we have 2 other cars that are great daily drivers, a Bolt and Prologue, the Prologue is great for trips, really comfy, but other than performance the fun aspect is missing.
I’m thinking when the lease on the Prologue is coming up, depending on what we do with that, I may look for a project like leaf-swapping a new beetle or some such, kind of want a convertible but I’m kinda big so a Fiat cabrio ev would be a little too comical, maybe something like a Geo Tracker, but where to put the batteries is the question.
Ideally car makes could start offering fun daily driver cars along the lines of 90s sporty compact coupes like the Eagle Talon/Dodge Neon/Toyota Celica/Z24 Cavalier/Hyundai Tiburon/Mercury Cougar/Ford Escort ZR2/Ford Probe/Mazda MX6/Pontiac Grand Am/Honda Del Sol, man we had an embarrassment of riches back then, but that’s kind of what I’m looking for.
So is Toecutter preparing a opus of such great insight and detail to be dropped as the final word, or is he so paralyzed with happiness that he can’t even type??
I’ve been working 12+ hour days. I just now am reading the comments to this article. I will probably respond later tonight. Have to take a 50 mile trike ride soon for a business meeting.
Last week, I was testing the field weakening settings, and spun the rear wheel unloaded to 132 mph:
https://i.imgur.com/5jBfRKC.jpg
https://i.imgur.com/V63misc.jpg
Without the body on it, it won’t reach anything near that in reality. Maaaybe 70 mph on the current 10 kW power setting. I might find out on a stretch of flat, smooth, lightly-trafficked road I could test it on. With an ultra-slippery body, 110+ mph should be possible. I am upgrading it to AWD and 25 kW, too, so that I might troll Hellcats at a later date.
My ideal electric car would be a total death trap by the standards of any suburbanite Karen housewife HOA-member power-tripping bitch that would immediately want it banned while she endangers everyone around her with her 8,000 lb electric SUV. My ideal electric car would also be the ideal hooning machine as well, perfect for all sorts of vehicular jackassery, disturbing of the peace, mayhem, and general overall chaos. And it would have e-bike operating costs, since it would be well under 1,000 lbs with the aerodynamics of a velomobile. Think an ultra-streamlined Ariel Atom like car as an enclosed coupe, but shrunken.
Where do you find bicycle tires rated for that?
You don’t.
My preference for a < 150 lb vehicle is Mitas MC2. DOT rated for 62 mph on 400+ lb scooters. Except you’re in a < 150 lb trike or quad. Solar car builders love them for their low rolling resistance, low cost, proven highway capability, and robustness. I’d trust doing a test run to triple digit mph in a light vehicle to see how they behave.
I wouldn’t do triple digits with slightly lighter Hutchison Spherions(DOT rated to 30 mph) or any ebike tire though.
Cedric Lynch used to take Schwalbe Marathon Plus to 60+ mph in his 400 lb custom build on the highway. They’re rated for 32 mph in Europe, but that’s all they were officially tested to, just as the Mitas MC2 were only tested to 62 mph.
Worth the wait for sure – I feel like Peter can close the comments now!
I expanded a bit in another comment. Going to get off the internet now. I have a project to work on for my last few hours before bed.
I kind of drive one right now. My Polestar 2 is almost ideal. I’d give it some fancy new battery for more range, and put more service centers around for it. Of course I’d also add way more charging stations in the middle US as well.
Dreaming, though, I’d love a Lamborghini Countach in LP 5000 dress that runs off a nuclear-electric power cell, has AWD and a chauffeur mode to self drive my drunk face home after all the wild 2080’s parties I would be at.
A non-vaporware version of aptera is pretty much what I want in real life.
Already exists! Rivian R1T and Lucid Air are pretty much the ideal
I don’t need an EV with 350 mile range–I’ve got my Subaru for that. But I need an efficient runabout/commuter car, and I need something that has a back seat I can mount my kid’s car seat. So, maybe three seats–one with plenty of room for me, the driver; a passenger seat staggered forward of the driver’s seat for when I’m carrying someone else; and a single seat behind the passenger for my kid, close enough that I can turn around to reach them at a stoplight. Then a non-seat cargo shelf behind my seat for a briefcase, gym bag, etc.
It should be highly aerodynamic and lightweight, something like the Volkswagen XL1. Range doesn’t have to be high–150 miles would be plenty. I’m a pretty sedate driver, but it would be nice to have a switch for “performance mode” where I get all the torque I want at once.