Tiny Vehicles?

Simpler for me would be doing all the things I love to do (SCUBA diving, snorkeling, sailing, star gazing without loads of light pollution, getting sand between my toes, watching sun rises and sunsets, meeting new people from different places) without having to get on a plane!

(tu)

Keep the dream alive!

username checks out (tu)

here is a small island car ---- wrong island - but a dream of his come true and a vintage collectible these days.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2j7U_olZbjQ&feature=youtu.be

I'd never heard of this guy! Thank you for sharing 🙂

The slower way of life sometimes assumes you are living in a grass hut in the woods with no utilities, no job needed of had, you catch your own fish or iguanas for sustenance, you have a cave to crawl into when the hurricane comes, and if you have a tooth-ache you pull your own tooth using the blade from an ice skate. Oh wait, that was a movie. Never mind. Well, simple and slower can also be in the eyes of the beholder, all relative to something else, since there is no absolute measurement.

I mean grass is actually a wonderful building material, and a pescatarian with a green thumb wouldn't starve, but dentists are nice.

Never implied there was anything wrong with a thatched roof (outside of a hurricane) or any of that other stuff if it meets with one's expectations, only that it may take something like that to get to the mythical simple life. It's all that other stuff that can get in the way with a more typical existence unless your prepared for it and just deal with it as it comes. The trick is to expect it as the others on this forum have tried to explain. Dealing with the island time, island bureaucracy, limited availability of stuff, power outages and everything else that's been warned about may still be simpler than what some folks are used to or coming from as long as they're prepared for it. I'm sure McGyver would have no problem being happy here.:D

Also people will get upset when you are blocking traffic with a small car like that which won't go up the hills at normal speed.

I have a small electric car. A Wheego. Goes everywhere I want it too! I test drove a Smart car as well as a Scion IQ. The IQ was pretty impressive.

Another friend just got an all electric car.
They are solar powered so won't impact their WAPA bill.

Another friend just got an all electric car.
They are solar powered so won't impact their WAPA bill.

I was driven in one a couple of weeks ago. Not solar-powered but the owner's whole house is solar-powered so the charges cost him nothing. Full sized vehicle, lovely comfortable and quiet ride, full A/C. How would a fully solar-powered vehicle manage where there's no sun or a few days without it?

That's what I meant by solar powered from their home.
I'd imagine that there's a way that your solar power can be stored for use when there's heavy cloud cover for days.

I'm sure someone on forum who has a whole house system can comment.

I'd imagine that there's a way that your solar power can be stored for use when there's heavy cloud cover for days.

I'm sure someone on forum who has a whole house system can comment.

Not new science and here's a good primer to start with:
http://pureenergies.com/us/home-solar/solar-basics/solar-myths/

Alana, you can store solar power with a battery bank. The more batteries you have the more you can charge. Tammy

Or this: https://www.teslamotors.com/powerwall

Storage is the big challenge with solar electricity. This is one reason why the power companies aren't crazy about net metering. They can't store it any easier than you can. With net metering you get the benefit without having to deal with the storage challenges. Batteries work but are costly, maintenance issues, need to be replaced periodically, etc. There are other storage techniques but they do not scale down well to small systems for electricity. Storage is where w need the biggest advance in the science, not only for solar but for electric vehicles as well.

Alana, you can store solar power with a battery bank. The more batteries you have the more you can charge. Tammy

Thanks Tammy but it actually was OT's question.

"I was driven in one a couple of weeks ago. Not solar-powered but the owner's whole house is solar-powered so the charges cost him nothing. Full sized vehicle, lovely comfortable and quiet ride, full A/C. How would a fully solar-powered vehicle manage where there's no sun or a few days without it?"

I'm guessing it might be an issue if it rained and had heavy cloud cover for a month straight which has happened on occasion.

Thanks Tammy but it actually was OT's question.

It was a rhetorical question based on your, "Another friend just got an all electric car. They are solar powered so won't impact their WAPA bill." Electric cars aren't solar-powered, they're powered by electricity and of course impact your electric utility bill unless you're one of the few whose electricity is produced by solar energy.

Thanks Tammy but it actually was OT's question.

It was a rhetorical question based on your, "Another friend just got an all electric car. They are solar powered so won't impact their WAPA bill." Electric cars aren't solar-powered, they're powered by electricity and of course impact your electric utility bill unless you're one of the few whose electricity is produced by solar energy.

Or by wind energy.

Yes OT.
Their house is completely solar powered so plugging in their electric car will not impact their WAPA bill.

Yes, my feeble brain was able to recognize that you corrected yourself but the grammatical usage of "they" in your original statement implied the vehicle itself was solar-powered. Groan.

Good Grief!

Tiny vehicles - tiny problems

Tiny vehicle won't work for me with big dogs.
Plus it seems I've always got a project that requires my truck.

Can't live without my basic 4x4 Chevy pick-up.
Keep it simple here. Least amount of electronics as possible is the way to go.

Electric cars may be emission free, but you need to factor in battery and motor replacement. There are elements within those batteries that don't recycle very well. It's really a choice of damaging our air quality, or contaminating the ground water.

Eitherway, as with most environmental issues, it all boils down to... too many people.

That's what I meant by solar powered from their home.
I'd imagine that there's a way that your solar power can be stored for use when there's heavy cloud cover for days.

I'm sure someone on forum who has a whole house system can comment.

I was responding to the way solar power can be stored.

Electric cars might be okay in arid areas but how many have had electronics go bad because of the humidity and salt