What the hell is a 'quadrocycle'??
Looks like a car to me.
Surely a quadrocycle is an ATV (or quad, preview.tinyurl.com/39d7df ), a bike with four wheels, not a car that looks like a car and drives like a car?
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Aim low, expect nothing & dont be disappointed
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Why do people believe that electric cars are pollution-free?
Powering a car by electricity simply transfers the pollution from the car itself to whatever produces the electricity.
On the other hand, Radio 4's You And Yours re-ran an item with Tony Benn and one of his sons discussing the latter's G-Whiz. It was claimed that the it was equivalent to a 600 mpg petrol car but there was no explanation of how this was calculated. Did they just mean in terms of cost?
www.bbc.co.uk/radio4/youandyours/listenagain/thurs...l
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Sigh. Yes, but it's still cleaner and more efficient overall, even if you're using polluting electricity generation. It's much easier to deal with pollution from burning fossil fuels in one power station than in tens of thousands of cars, and you can burn the fuel more efficiently.
But even more importantly, shock horror, you now have the option of using cleaner and renewable electricity sources to power your car. Not going to get tidal barrages or wind turbines producing petrol now, are you?
As the electricity gets cleaner and more renewable, so does an electric car.
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Oh, and yes, that 600mpg was almost certainly a cost calculation. Yuck. I wish people wouldn't try to give electric cars mpg figures. You might as well calculate how many bales of hay per day your petrol car requires.
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What the hell is a 'quadrocycle'?? Looks like a car to me.
According to VOSA's definition a quadricycle must weigh under 400kg unladen (inc. without batteries) and have maximum net power of 15kW. ie. something too small, slow, and carp to be classed as a car. That 700cc quad bike should be quite a bit too powerful to fit the criteria. ;o)
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So it should really compared with a quadricycle (which presumably is what the rest of use think of as a quad-bike) which is probably a lot more hazardous. Anyone who thinks a G-Wiz should be tested to the same standards as a Lexus or X5 is either unhinged or a Health and Safety inspector.
I ride a motorbike, in the sure knowledge that I am more vulnerable than when I am driving. This doesn't stop me, however, and claiming that G-Wizzes are dangerous (as all the tabloids have, apparently) is pandering to those who would stop everyone doing anything that involves any risk at all. So far, I gather, no-one driving a G-Wiz has actually been hurt...
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Electric cars have a number of advantages - partularly in congested city traffic. In particular the 'distributed' vehicle pollution is 'shifted' away from the city to one location where it can be treated. And of course many forms of electricity generation do not involve fossil fuels.
Another of the advantages of the electric car in city is that it does not consume any energy when it is not moving (e.g. in a stationary traffic queue). The IC engine is massively inefficient in slow moving/stationary trafffic of course. So all those queuing cars are throwing out pollution and using a lot of fuel to no useful purpose.
In terms of safety then of course it is not as safe as a larger vehicle. But then its probably safer than a bike or moped and I guess you are less likely to be tempted into a potentially suicidal manoeuver in one.
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Still safer than a motor bike or pedal bike, plus you don't get wet when it rains.
These things can do 40, but so can a motorbike (lets say 150 mph) but so can bicycles on the flat (given the right rider). The G-Whizz is safer than those two.
Can see it's uses on traffic jammed commutes when the owner can't use other methods.
Me, I wouldn't buy one. Still like real cars, and pedal bikes !
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Seen at least two or three today, swerving silently about.
They aren't serious and I wouldn't have one, but I don't actively object to other people having them.
Didn't know they were Indian. Thought they cost 8k. They are a bit small.
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If they are unsafe in a crash, then the only people carrying the risk are the occupants.
If this country was organised on more sensible lines, it would be left up to the individual to choose, but oh no, we can't be allowed to go and make our own decisions can we? We have to ask a nice man from Brussels to make them for us.
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It's worse than that Lawman. Our own faffing politicians ask them and they do it. We don't ask them ourselves.
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"It's worse than that"
Indeed. We've only just avoided a total ban on Imperial measures:
www.guardian.co.uk/uklatest/story/0,,-6618585,00.h...l
although no doubt it is only a postponement. This in a country where distances are still measured in miles, beer in pints and babies in pounds and ounces! (Although of course you can be prosecuted for using the latter to sell groceries...)
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