Cult of the Small Car

Volksrod!

Will Thompson — Wed, 03 Nov 2010 19:49:08 +0000

I need to keep a better camera in my car. A couple weeks ago I photographed the Nissan S-Cargo on the freeway, and yesterday I spotted a Volksrod.

Check it out!

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This morning’s strange car was a Nissan S-Cargo

Will Thompson — Thu, 14 Oct 2010 19:07:08 +0000

The Japanese Kei Car pool on Flickr came through.

As it turns out, the strange vehicle I saw this morning was a Nissan S-Cargo (snail pun probably intended). According to the Wikipedia article it was a small van produced in Japan from 1989-1992. S-Cargo vans(?) were exported for use in other countries, and are coveted as business advertisement vehicles for their rarity and abundance of ad space.

I also ran across another resource with tech specs for the Nissan S-Cargo.

What a cool little car.

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What kind of car is this?

Will Thompson — Thu, 14 Oct 2010 14:33:48 +0000

This interesting looking creation caught my eye this morning in traffic on the freeway. It had manufacturer plates and yellow round bug-eyed headlights. I was near the Nissan manufacturing facility, which would seem to go with how unique it looked.

I think I’ll upload the pictures to flickr and add them to the Kei Cars pool to see if anyone can identify it.

*UPDATE* – it’s a Nissan S-Cargo

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Chevrolet Volt real world MPG numbers are not so great

Will Thompson — Mon, 11 Oct 2010 13:06:54 +0000

I guess I should express admiration for Chevrolet in taking its first step to create an electric/gas vehicle into production that’s not just a limited range pure electric or adding another crappy hybrid to its fleet of Tahoes.

But I can’t.

According to real world road tests done by Popular Mechanics, you can only expect to go just over 30 miles after charging all night before the gas engine kicks in and gets very average fuel economy (35 MPG average).

Basically, you get to spend $45K (for the car and charger) to plug your car in every night so you can feel smug about the first 30 minutes of your drive the next morning? That’s it?

What problem does this solve exactly?

We should have let that company die.

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Smart partners with Nissan to make even uglier cars

Will Thompson — Thu, 07 Oct 2010 18:26:34 +0000

While tiny little cars might have seemed like a star in the face of five-bucks-a-gallon gas, they don’t shine so brightly when gas is back under three a gallon. What’s the solution to this?

How about rebadging a Nissan Versa and selling it as a Smart? Brilliant!

Said ugly-assed Smart(Nissan) Versa

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1,500 miles on a single tank of fuel

Will Thompson — Wed, 06 Oct 2010 14:59:00 +0000

Yup, you read that right. A VW Passat Bluemotion has was followed around by a Guinness crew, who witnessed a 20.4 gallon tank be completely filled up with diesel and emptied 1,527 miles later. Average speed for the trip was 45 MPH.

That’s some pretty good mpg, Hans. Of course, domestic automakers continue to build giant SUVs and hope their lobbying efforts pay off instead of building a car Americans would be proud to buy. Sheesh.

Source [Gas2.0, RideLust, and VW]

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Tilt shift drift

Will Thompson — Tue, 28 Sep 2010 18:12:16 +0000

I’ve seen tilt-shift before, but this video of the Formula D event in Sonoma in tilt-shift is incredible looking.

Formula D Sonoma | Tilt Shift

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Insane cars with Hayabusa engines

Will Thompson — Mon, 27 Sep 2010 14:21:11 +0000

After hearing that the new BMW K1600 inline six might be the new weapon of choice for micro car engine swaps (despite being larger and having less power), I thought I might do a quick post with a few micro cars with the power of the raging Hayabusa.

Smart car (awesome action at 0:50):

Click here to view the embedded video.

“Diablo” Smart car (warning – extremely gut wrenching music)

Click here to view the embedded video.

MK1 Golf:

Click here to view the embedded video.

Go-kart with a ‘busa swap:

Click here to view the embedded video.

The Polo linked from the Jalopnik artice:

Click here to view the embedded video.

The dune buggy linked from the same article:

Click here to view the embedded video.

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Nissan stops taking reservations for Leaf electric car

Will Thompson — Fri, 24 Sep 2010 12:49:22 +0000

Hope you got your order in early if you wanted one…

We are thrilled with the overwhelming enthusiasm people like you have shown for the 100% electric Nissan LEAF™. To date, 20,000 people have already reserved a LEAF – a number that has exceeded our expectations.

We have completed the first phase of reservations. In order to provide the best level of customer service and premium ownership experience to the first Nissan LEAF drivers, we will not be accepting new reservations until the next phase begins. A subsequent phase of reservations will begin next year, after current reservations and orders have been processed.

We’re grateful for your understanding and patience as we work to bring this 100% electric car to you.

Source

UPDATE – here’s the press release from Nissan USA

NISSAN REACHES 20,000-RESERVATION MILESTONE FOR NISSAN LEAF; FIRST PHASE OF CUSTOMER RESERVATIONS COMPLETED

– Drive Electric Tour Kicks Off in October –

FRANKLIN, Tenn. (Sept. 23, 2010) – Consumer interest for the Nissan LEAF continues to grow, as Nissan North America Inc. today marks its 20,000th reservation for the 100-percent electric car.

Nissan had anticipated reaching its stated target of 20,000 reservations at the time of the first U.S. Nissan LEAF delivery, in December. This achievement comes three months ahead of schedule and just days before Nissan kicks off the “Drive Electric Tour.” The 23-city tour will give reservation holders and those interested in driving a Nissan LEAF a chance to experience all-electric driving firsthand.

Achieving 20,000 reservations marks the successful completion of the first phase of the Nissan LEAF rollout, which began more than five months ago, and no further reservations will be taken until next year. Nissan now is focusing on providing the best level of customer service and premium ownership experience to those who already have enrolled. A subsequent phase of reservations will begin next year, after current reservations and orders have been processed.

Consumers who already have made reservations will continue to have the opportunity to purchase or lease an all-electric Nissan LEAF. Nissan is following its planned order-release timing for existing reservationists. Orders have been prioritized based on market timing and when consumers submitted their original reservations online and paid their refundable $99 reservation fee.

Those who are interested in the Nissan LEAF but have yet to make reservations are invited to sign up for information and updates on www.nissanusa.com. They will be contacted in advance of the next phase of vehicle reservations.

“As of today, 20,000 consumers have spoken, and they are choosing the Nissan LEAF and a zero-emission future,” said Brian Carolin, senior vice president, Sales and Marketing, Nissan North America. “We, along with our dealers, now look forward to focusing on providing an absolute top-level purchase experience to our first customers, and to help ensure that the transition to gas-free driving is a seamless one. We invite all who are interested in experiencing the Nissan LEAF to join us at the upcoming Drive Electric Tour, which is coming to 23 cities beginning this fall.”

Consumers and other interested drivers will have the first opportunity to test-drive a Nissan LEAF in select markets starting Oct. 1 through the “Drive Electric Tour.” The tour will provide information about the car, its technology, and its features, along with the first public test-drives.

Tour stops include:

Oct. 1-3: Santa Monica, Calif. Jan. 7-9, 2011: Houston
Oct. 8-10: Anaheim, Calif. Jan. 14-16: Dallas
Oct. 15-17: San Diego Jan. 21-23: Jacksonville, Fla.
Oct. 22-24: Los Angeles Jan. 28-30: Miami
Oct. 29-31: San Jose, Calif. Feb. 4-6: Orlando, Fla.
Nov. 5-7: Hillsboro, Ore. Feb. 11-13: Tampa, Fla.
Nov. 12-14: Seattle Feb. 18-20: Atlanta
Nov. 20-28: San Francisco Feb. 25-27: Knoxville
Dec. 3-5: Tempe, Ariz. March 4-6: Charlotte, N.C.
Dec. 10-12: Tucson, Ariz. March 11-13: Raleigh, N.C.
Dec. 17-19: Austin, Texas March 18-20: Washington, D.C.
March 25-27: Nashville

Interested drivers can learn more about the tour, including specific locations, and register to drive the Nissan LEAF at www.drivenissanleaf.com. Sales of the Nissan LEAF begin in December in California, Oregon, Washington, Arizona and Tennessee. In January 2011, sales begin in Texas and Hawaii. The Nissan LEAF will be available nationwide by the end of 2011.

In North America, Nissan’s operations include automotive styling, engineering, consumer and corporate financing, sales and marketing, distribution and manufacturing. Nissan is dedicated to improving the environment under the Nissan Green Program 2010 and has been recognized as a 2010 ENERGY STAR® Partner of the Year by the U.S Environmental Protection Agency. More information on Nissan in North America, the Nissan LEAF and zero emissions can be found at www.nissanusa.com.

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Stanced Nissan Juke

Will Thompson — Thu, 23 Sep 2010 13:03:22 +0000

OK, it’s just a photoshop of one, but still. I never would have thought this ugly mini-SUV could be morphed into something I’d be happy to roll. Click picture to view full size

Original:

Photoshop:

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