Electric cars, hybrids, and related vehicles

Now you know two. I’m 6’ 2" or so. I’ve had two Coopers- one 1st gen ('05) and one 2nd ('09). They were amazingly comfortable.

Speaking of size creep, I’ve noticed that even the standard smallest Cooper model has grown to be 4-door now in the 3rd gen. Sad.

Some new electrics from Geneva, with the first two being concepts.

Pininfarina Batista:

Kia Imagine:

Audi Q4 e-tron:

My personal favorite, the Peugeot e-208 GT:

Isn’t the Audi not launching until 2024 though? So… it might not be a concept but I don’t consider it quite real yet.

Edit to add: Actually, I just checked it out and it seems it’s launching in spring 2019, so that’s not the car I was thinking of. There’s some electronic car that I thought Audi announced that isn’t going to be available until 2024.

Can’t talk, I have to go find my $75,000 to plop down on that e-tron!

There were ads for the e-tron all over the resort when I was skiing the other week.

Did you see any ads from the deck of your yacht too?

The Audi is definitely nearly here. My dealer has been taking orders for them for quite some time and is looking eagerly towards getting some actually on the lot to show (before their owners collect them, I suspect, as I don’t think there are any being sold to walk-ins right now). Very nice looking EV SUV, if you’re into that sort of thing, for sure.

Though the recent spate of Teslas bursting into flames doesn’t bode well for traditional LI batteries…

The Audi Q4 e-tron is launching in 2020. The full-size e-tron is launching in the next month or two.

The audi e-tron seems very nice, but the name is very close to the french word étron which means turd. I just can’t think of anything else when I read that word now…

I had to read this thread to find out about the release of the Hyundai Kona. I had register to the news letter for the Kona, but never got anything (maybe spam folder?). The range and the price makes it my top pick for now. Anyone did a test drive yet?

It’s like the Chevy Nova all over again. But yeah, there’s the e tron, e tron GT, e tron sportback…and that’s all before the q4.

Good catch. They are leading with a larger more expensive model, not surprisingly.

Have you seen the digital door mirrors in the e-tron? It’s a terrible idea of technology for the sake of it - it also seems to take your vision further from your straight-ahead field of view.

I have seen pictures, not the real thing. I’m not even sure those are coming to the US; something about regulations or what not? We’ll see I suppose.

Theoretically, I suppose, replacing mirrors with cameras is a solid concept. I think some supercars/exotics already do this, mostly for aerodynamic and aesthetic reasons. But I am old-school enough to be very leery of not having a direct or indirect analog view of things. Hell, I even still turn my head and look, over the back of the seat through the rear window, as well as use the actual mirror, when backing up, rather than rely solely on the camera and sensors. Though those do help, to be sure.

I hadn’t paid any attention to the Tesla Y until I heard a story about its official announcement this morning. An SUV? Really? Its just a hatchback, right?

I imagine they’re calling it an SUV because most people would balk at 42k for a hatchback.

It’s a compact SUV, which is what you get when you select the top of a hatchback in your CAD program and stretch it vertically.

I haven’t followed the Y stories, much, since I’m one of those weird Americans who is happy with sedans, including my model 3. I did do a bit of reading after watching that event last night.

Turns out the Y is basically 70%+ a model 3, just stretched vertically, as Fishbreath jokes. It makes a lot of sense, since the market is obviously demanding that while, at the same time, it let’s Tesla leverage all of their model 3 development, production, and supplier learnings.

The price seems pretty reasonable for being a stretched up model 3. The 7-seater configuration is probably the biggest draw that the Y has over the 3, for those who care about more than just being a littler higher up. My sister-in-law who has 3 kids and a model 3 does find the seating a little tight and probably would have sprung for the Y, had it been available at the time she bought her 3.

On a separate note, Jesus, apparently Tesla is cutting costs in all areas. That presentation last night was horrible. I’ve seen high school musicals with better stage lighting.

It’s higher up off the ground than a hatchback. For example look up Subaru Impreza hatchback vs Subaru Crosstrek. Both have the same essential body, but the Crosstrek has a higher ride height, which makes it a compact SUV.

“Hatchback” = bad

They are making a comeback, especially in the compact suv market, but no one is going to call them hatchbacks, except for some special cases like the VW Golf.

Not even “hot hatch”?