Hey- be careful who you're calling stupid!

Robert
1982 Westfalia

--- On Wed, 7/2/08, David Marshall <mailinglist@FASTFORWARD.CA> wrote:

> From: David Marshall <mailinglist@FASTFORWARD.CA>
> Subject: Re: Hybrid Vanagon
> To: vanagon@GERRY.VANAGON.COM
> Date: Wednesday, July 2, 2008, 8:50 AM
> The average North American driver is too stupid to deal with
> anything else
> other than a stop sign.  In Europe, Germany at least, most
> non-major
> intersections don't have any stop or yield signs, they
> are unmarked four
> way yields meaning always give way to the guy on the
> right... meaning that
> you don't stop at every intersection...
>
> David
> Marshall
>
> http://www.hasenwerk.ca
> Box 4153, Quesnel BC,
> Canada V2J 3J2
>
> Engine Conversion FAQ -
> http://www.hasenwerk.ca/faq
>
> On Wed, July 2, 2008 08:27, Dug
> Smith wrote:
> >> Around town you'll get the benefits of
> regenerative braking, but
> >> I'd be surprised if that alone
> bought you more than 2-3mpg or so in
> >> around-town driving.
> >
> > I did wonder whether this would be a more efficient
> way
> of charging the
> > battery than using an alternator, hence
> eliminating that drag on the
> > engine.  That's got to help right
> there :o)
> >
> > The hybrids also have juiced up starter
> systems, allowing them to shut
> > down the motor whenever you stop
> for more than a few seconds - I shudder
> > to think how much fuel
> we waste sitting at red lights.
> >
> > At the end of the
> day, if the government really wanted to help fuel
> > economy,
> they'd do away with all the 4 way stop signs.
> Accelerating, then
> > braking, a 5000lb vehicle continuously to get from A
> to B is
> incredibly
> > inefficient.  I drive my Vanagon to the gym a couple
> of times a week, and
> > I make that 5x 4 way stop signs (and 2 sets
> of traffic lights) each way
> > for a 3 mile drive (if I weren't
> carpooling, I'd cycle).
> >
> > toodle pip,
> > --
> >        Dug Smith         | Terry Pratchett: It's
> almost
> >
> (mailto:dug@dugbert.com) |  impossible to ride a rock and
> roll
> >
> (http://www.dugbert.com) |  motorbike and stay on for three
> verses.
> >