Now, if those were powered by, say, the motor from a 600cc sportbike, they'd probably be pretty zippy. I'd kinda want one, even. No such luck, however...
Coal-powered. And apparently driving one causes you to want to rock out to old Boston tunes.
Tuesday, March 06, 2012
How I knew I was home:
Driving back from Way Out West last year, as I rounded one of the last corners before arriving at Roseholme Cottage, I saw unmistakeable evidence that I was no longer on the High Plains, but rather back in Broad Ripple:
Now, if those were powered by, say, the motor from a 600cc sportbike, they'd probably be pretty zippy. I'd kinda want one, even. No such luck, however...
Coal-powered. And apparently driving one causes you to want to rock out to old Boston tunes.
Now, if those were powered by, say, the motor from a 600cc sportbike, they'd probably be pretty zippy. I'd kinda want one, even. No such luck, however...
Coal-powered. And apparently driving one causes you to want to rock out to old Boston tunes.
Talk about driving a shoe!
ReplyDeleteEco Cars with crazy superbike engines is a very exciting niche among enthusiasts. Here are a couple examples:
ReplyDeleteStay with this one at least until 1:00.
http://youtu.be/sLtMh20qIp8
I could imagine terrorizing my small town with this one.
http://youtu.be/KujCUCgn6TY
Shoot it. Shoot it NOW.
ReplyDelete"What WAS that thing?'
"I dunno, but I made it puke up that guy it swallowed. He doesn't look too happy about it though."
"Hippies. No sense of gratitude."
I saw a few of those being made when I had my CB1000 seat done at Corbin's in Hollister. They could have put a serious motor in 'em or sold them as kits for the enthusiast, but getting CA DMV approval was probably the priority.
ReplyDeleteCorbin also made or claimed to intend to make a similar vehicle powered by a Harley V-twin
ReplyDeleteThey would probably be more efficient if they actually had a small coal-fired steam turbine.
ReplyDeleteThose high voltage transmission lines from the coal plant lose a lot of energy on the way to the recharger.
Scrubbing the soot out of the emissions might be a problem, though.
Maybe a small Strontium 90 nuke plant would work better?
Don't make fun of such cars. Those people are literally putting their lives on the line - using less gas - and therefore making it cheaper to drive our 400 hp sports trucks about.
ReplyDelete"Don't make fun of such cars. Those people are literally putting their lives on the line"
ReplyDeleteBetter still, they clearly don't intend to reproduce. Smart move buying a car that doesn't let you take a date home with you.
Personally, I'll stick with my BMW R1200GS that only cost $1000 more than one of those toys did new. It's more versatile, more fun, does far better than a top speed of 75mph, and I have both a passenger seat and more storage space.
Looks like something out of a cartoon.
ReplyDeleteI'd like to see something like that drive around in one of our snowstorms around here.
When I was temping at the Softdrink Factory there was a guy in the entertainment division who drove one of the Sparrows to work. Got in trouble because he was pulling it up on the sidewalk in front of his office and running an extension cord out the window to recharge it after getting to work. The property owners were not happy. His counter-argument when they complained was "But it's good for the environment!" (M$ does not own much of the property it occupies in Redmond, including, ironically enough, the building the Real Estate Management department is in.)
ReplyDeleteWhat the f*** is THAT? A Muppet-mobile??
ReplyDeleteSucker Born every minute.
ReplyDeleteAny idea how much of our Federal Tax Dollars have subsidized those .....things?
Bloody things look like a kid's shoe.....
ReplyDeleteI'd rather have a carver, painted OD Green, D-Day stripes on the side and an RAF Roundel on the side....
Or the same done to a Morgan....
I don't think that I would drive one all the time, but depending on how much they cost, it may be a cheap way to get back and forth to work.
ReplyDeleteAs gas approaches four dollars a gallon, a fifteen mile commute to work would cost about $15 a month, as opposed to $165 a month for gasoline for my SUV.
Even a motorcycle isn't that cheap. The question is: are they cheap enough to pay for themselves. Probably not.
I read somewhere that Morgan is going to start making trikes again, with big Hawg motors on them. Now that sounds like fun.
ReplyDeleteDamn Tam I think they could be fun.
ReplyDeleteFilled with Tannerite out on the 700 yard line.
Also check your email from a week or so ago , i might have tripped a spam filter or something.
from www.corbinsparrow.com
ReplyDelete"Unfortunately, even less than the 285 have survived worldwide with several catching on fire."
Sounds like the Chevy Volt
When your hippie friends see you drive by, you get More Than A Feeling that they envy your state of Grace with Mother Gaia.
ReplyDeleteToo bad the battery doesn't last a Long Time.
;-)
I think Mike Corbin got the idea from making hard saddle-bags for Harley Dressers, but the only sex you can have in the backseat is with yourself.
ReplyDeleteTiddlywinks.
ReplyDeleteEven with a bike motor in it, it would still qualify for the commuter lanes here in CA. Unfortunately, they seem to hold their value, as the last one I saw for sale was $8k. And it needed work.
ReplyDeleteIIRC, they had a waiting list of buyers, but went belly up due to a financial backer attempting to take over control. That, and a new model with problems.
What to do with surplus ejection capsules.
ReplyDeleteGoldmember drove one of those.
ReplyDeletehow many clowns can you fit in 'em?
ReplyDeleteThat's the most damn unnatural thing since the AMC pacer.
ReplyDeleteThe sucky motive power and ugliness aside, at least they weren't stupid enough to put the single wheel in the front like the little ZAPCAR I saw that went flat-side-down on an icy road here a month or so back. The whole left side of the ... car? ... got a severe case of road rash.
ReplyDeleteBSR
I'd rather have a Carver One(with a sports engine).
ReplyDeletehttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TK4wzBYmTIo
Are you sure you were home in Indy and not on the set of Brazil?
ReplyDeletedc
Somebody will stick a Ninja engine in them. They'll be boss.
ReplyDelete(BTW, this is my third try to put in this fluffy, little-meaning comment. The captcha words have gotten REALLY hard to read and enter the first time.)
Muhgawd, a toon-mobile!
ReplyDelete"coal-fired steam turbine" - love the idea. I think it's past time for steam to make a comeback.
If I had to have anything close to these... things, I'd prefer the Messerschmidt bubble car that Cousin Itt drove.
Stay safe
Some of the Corbins had a 750 twin in them! I toyed with the idea of becoming a rep, until the issue of $50-100,000.00 franchise fee came up. To be secured by inventory, delivered in the sweet bye and bye. Or was that Buy and Buy?
ReplyDelete