I don't want to give up on gasoline completely - I'm spending too much on the subaru engine (now the second type, a turbo) to walk away... but I think the writing is on the wall for a hybrid approach. Not sure if Fuel Cell still stands a change (MBZ hasn't given up on them), and then there are electric and gasoline hybrids... I just want to extend my mileage in the 100 miles per gallon range... but yeah, waiting it out makes sense... However, I do want to be among the first 100 vanagon owners who take the plunge into doing this. Might be tricky figuring out how to squeeze this into the Vanagon. 

From: Robert Fisher <refisher@MCHSI.COM>
To: vanagon@GERRY.VANAGON.COM
Subject: Re: Hybrid Vanagon

> My initial thought on this is that if you want to get away from internal
> combustion entirely or even mostly, than you might want to wait 3-5 years.
> There are a number of technologies or approaches that are 'on the cusp', so
> to speak, that should have either failed or made a breakthrough by then and
> the practical options should be clearer.
> 
> Cya,
> Robert
> 
> ----- Original Message -----
> From: "M'obeechi" <obeechi@RUNBOX.COM>
> To: <vanagon@GERRY.VANAGON.COM>
> Sent: Saturday, June 28, 2008 5:50 PM
> Subject: Hybrid Vanagon
> 
> 
> I was looking up hybrid vehicles. Something in Wikipedia was saying better
> to start with a car that has a manual transmission, that the AT wastes
> energy. But they were talking about a conversion that removes the internal
> combustion engine. I'm interested in maybe one day putting in electric
> motors or what-ever-is-good to supplement the engine in my vanagon (which is
> Subaru at this point). Thing is, I have an Automatic and want don't want to
> consider a manual.
> 
> Can someone point me in the right direction. Has this been discussed or done
> with a vanagon yet. I'm not really thinking propane, I'm in Southern
> California, plus my engine is being switched over to a turbo, and since
> propane needs high compression, I don't think that would make sense.
> 
> The paper today said that jet fuel cost has increased 80% this year. I won't
> be surprised if gasoline reaches 25 dollars a gallon within the decade.
> 

----- End Original Message -----