[968Syncro]

MUNICH, Germany — Electric drives have a property that makes them interesting for sports car manufacturers: They offer an incredible torque even at low speeds. Now Porsche apparently is planning to join the electric bandwagon.

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Full article: E-Porsche comes in 2009, paper says



Roland

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[banditsc]

Louis Ruf has been working on a 911 and Cayman electric. There was a press release about the 911 Electric a few weeks back. Ruf is big into electricity, it's kind of a hobby of his, he actually owns a couple of electric plants.

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[biotechee]

I was actually thinking of getting a giant hamster wheel for my basement, then getting my daughters to run on to generate electricity...



<img src="/forum/images/smilies/968/ohmy.gif" class="smilie" alt="" /> <img src="/forum/images/smilies/968/laugh.gif" class="smilie" alt="" />



An electrically driven Porsche would be neat! I believe there's a 928 guy over on rennlist who did an electric 928- but i could be wrong.



Perhaps some partially insane forum member should look into making a 968 biodiesel?!

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[flash]

we made a VW run on Jack Daniels - does that count?

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[94SilverCab]

...and only about $110/gallon..and a horrible waste of good booze...LOL



Jay

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[rhudeboye]

Appears to be great benefits in the torque dept. for these electric cars. I've even seen the Prius spring off the line with a bit of Omph. Not tire smoking fast but relatively quick all things considered. I'd be curious to see what the top end is like. Either way its a good idea.

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[flash]

most of the electric cars top out about 100 (there is a notable exception in the tesla)



the running argument was that they had no range - at 150 miles or so (up from the 90 it used to be) it more than satisfies the requirements of 95% of the population - think about it - how far do you drive to work and back home so you can plug it back in? how fast do you drive that route?



not great for a weekend road trip, but perfect for the commuter or mom



the other advantage is that there are very few parts to wear out - no brakes (it uses the motor) - no combustion - no fluids - nada

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[banditsc]

But how many will shell out 100k + for a Electric 911 that will only get them to the market or to work as long as there not caught in a slow moving traffic jam?

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[flash]

well, i wasn't so much referring to a porsche electric car, as electric cars in general - porsche will need to get their head out of their butt on that one, and price it competitively, if they want to sell any - either that or give the public some performance reason to buy one of theirs over the competition

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[Duckman]

Actually, Porsche has been known to have their collective butt up their behinds before when it comes to pricing. They've been spoiled over the past decade by first reducing their pricing to a more competitive level and then by a solid economy that kept their cars selling, even at rapidly escalating prices. Porsche has become the most profitable car company, as measured by percentage of sales revenue.



I beleive Porsche is at risk, now, of slowing sales in an economy that doesn't offer as many well-heeled buyers willing to pony up the big bucks for great cars. That could put the company right back where it was in the early- to mid-nineties.

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[Cloud9...68]

The limiting factor up to now has been the batteries. GM seems to think they're on the brink of big improvements in that department with the lithium ion battery back they're feverishly developing for the Chevy Volt. It will be interesting to see how that develops over the next few years. The biggest hurdle will be the cost - the Volt is rumored to have a base price between $30 and $40K, largely due to the high cost of the batteries - a lot of upfront dough to fork over for the purpose of saving on gas. If gas is $4+/gallon, the ROI probably makes sense for a lot of people. If the complex interplay of factors that influence oil prices transpire to keep gas in the, say, @2.50 - $3.50 range, electrics will be a tougher sell.

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[flash]

even if they use the second generation batteries from the EV, the electricity cost, at least out here, beats the fuel cost unless it gets down to about $1.60/gal



on top of that, there aren't the repair costs, unlike a gasoline powered car - no brakes - no oil changes - nada



add to that the fact that you NEVER have to waste another minute at the gas station



all in all, the average PRIUS driver would save about $1000 a year (a lot more if you drive a "normal" car), and all the time and money involved at the gas stations, repair facilities, and all that



they would also get to drive in the commuter lane



no brainer

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[banditsc]

Until that Prius comes time to replace the batteries, which can be as soon as 115k miles. Some dealers have suggested just selling the car for scrap since it didn't make sense to drop more money then the car is worth into the car.

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[biotechee]

But, you'd be driving a Prius! Yuck! <img src="/forum/images/smilies/968/laugh.gif" class="smilie" alt="" />



As a bit of an aside... My father-in-law bought a new '06 Ford Escape. When he told me he was getting it, I went and compared the base price of his to the base price of the Escape Hybrid. The difference was somewhere around $5,000. At gas prices back then (roughly 2 years ago), it would have taken somewhere around 7 or so years to save that $5,000 and make the two cars "equal". He doesn't keep his cars for more than say 5. I am sure I didn't spend too much time in generating the numbers, but you get the gist.



I suppose a totally electric car with decent performance and styling (I like the looks of the Volt for sure) and, more importantly, at a price point where the "masses" could afford it would be a hit undoubtedly.



Isn't most electricity in the US generated by fossil fuels (oil, coal, etc.)? Seems to me we need more wind and solar generated electricity.

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[flash]

lol - by that time, the batteries will be less expensive, but yes, it does reduce the resale value significantly



this is one of those things that mass production will help though in cost over time



also, in a purely electric car, you have to realize that, based on the data on the EV, the lifespan of the car is at least double that of a gasoline powered car, even a hybrid, making it a better investment, and more likely to still be cost effective at the time it needs new batteries

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[PorscheDude]

[quote name='biotechee' post='61611' date='Oct 14 2008, 09:02 AM']I was actually thinking of getting a giant hamster wheel for my basement, then getting my daughters to run on to generate electricity...



<img src="/forum/images/smilies/968/ohmy.gif" class="smilie" alt="" /> <img src="/forum/images/smilies/968/laugh.gif" class="smilie" alt="" />



An electrically driven Porsche would be neat! I believe there's a 928 guy over on rennlist who did an electric 928- but i could be wrong.



Perhaps some partially insane forum member should look into making a 968 biodiesel?![/quote]



Or you could do this. Seems to be all the rage with Z-28 guys.

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[biotechee]

Smoke- That picture is priceless! That dude probably graduated from my high school in Jersey...



Like I said, I'm all for electric vehicles as long as they look good, perform well, last a long time, and are relatively inexpensive to own and operate. And if we get off our asses and really focus on alternative methods of generating electricity, I think it will be good in the long run.

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[flash]

agreed

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[biotechee]

Sorry for the hijack- but I think I might upgrade my current utility plan to include partial electrical supply via wind. Our local energy company offers this on a voluntary basis- and PA has three "wind farms". I'll find out how much the additional cost is then I'll probably switch.

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[DiREW0LF]

I think I went to highschool with that guys younger brother, he had the first twin hamster powered Civic if I remember correctly.



<img src="/forum/images/smilies/968/laugh.gif" class="smilie" alt="" />

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