I agree with Uncle Turbo and Keith about the Honda Element. I don’t think Honda makes this vehicle any more, but you may be able to find a good used Honda Element.
I would think twice about a hybrid in the type of vehicle you want. A friend of mine has two hybrid vehicles: 1) Toyota Prius; 2) Ford Escape hybrid. The Prius gets great mileage, but his Ford Escape hybrid gets about 27 mpg. I was assigned a later Ford Escape Hybrid from my institution’s fleet and the road mileage on that was about 32 mpg–really not enough to justify the additional expense. Ford has since discontinued the Ford Escape hybrid probably because Ford’s eco-boost engine attains about the same mpg.
I was also assigned a Honda Civic hybrid for a road trip. My research partner owns a Honda Civic with the manual transmission and she said her mileage was the same as what we obtained with the Civic Hybrid.
I agree 100% there is an element of security in sleeping in the driving area. But, a pick up bed fit with a cap with screens offers the ultimate in flexibility for comfortable sleeping. An inexpensive pick up truck has many more options for caps that can serve as sleeping quarters and side access haulers along with separation. Crew cap pick ups also give you the option of doing either. The fully reclining front row seats can bed convert with a simple pad. Acces between the two is not there, but when transporting animals, that is a definite safety advantage.
And, the biggest reason I would want a separated bed from driving area is THE BEES ! At least, if I were going to transport them. You want to move bees in and out of your driving area, you can, not me.
If the hives are moved with bees inside, a minivan with a small trilaer would make the most sense. Living in Louisiana I would not ever entertain an electric vehicle. A hybrid makes the most sense if you travel a great deal, which our “gal” does not do.
So a standard minivan with removable seats makes the most sense.
A trailer in the city of New Orleans might be tough to deal with. St Charles would be difficult but getting on and off the Huey P Long would be impossible.
The hives could be transported on one of those platforms that goes in the hitch receiver. Saves on storing a trailer when not in use. Something to consider…
Like I said a pickup with a excab. You can sleep on the back seat. The cap with a lock can keep your stuff safe.
“The cap with a lock can keep your stuff safe”.
The OP said she has a dog. That beats the lock on the cap.
Many Americans cities are dangerous these days and New Orleans is among the worst. We need to get busy making some changes and New Orleans would be a great place to start.
@LizNOLA, forget about the hybrid. You drive so little that the improvement in gas mileage won’t equal the higher cost you pay or the hybrid for many years. A nice, small gasoline-only SUV or station wagon will work fine for you. While it looks like you are willing to pay more than $1500, you didn’t set a maximum price. I’ll bet it’s a lot less than many SUVs cost. Give us a price range to work with.
Sounds like someplace from a Stephen king novel. I’ll “pass” on the invite.
The best suggestion I can make is to stop by the local bookstore, pick up a Consumer Reports New Car Buyers’ Guide, and select some that look interesting to you. Then spend lots of quality time doing test drives. CR will contrast and compare all the options currently available.
I wanted a plug-in hybrid because I can drive electric most the time and I have solar panels but can evacuate or drive further on the hybrid engine. I will own the car for a long time. I wanted something technically advanced, not just a gas engine car that is already outdated.
Bee hives are stapled closed and the front of the hive is closed up when I move them - no chance for escaping bees. I don’t move them very often. It is the size that means I need a bit of a floor or flat bed in the back.
I agree about the van, but a SMALL one, for every answer to my needs. BUT where to get the plug in hybrid? I think the Ford Transit would be the answer, if it had the plug-in/hybrid mix. It would be perfect… small van + electric option + hybrid option. Meanwhile car companies dither as people wait and wait for them to get past yesterday’s technology.
As for doing something for New Orleans and the Gulf Coast, as one post noted… I really don’t know. I think we have done too much damage and systems are starting to spin out of control. Fishing is suffering… wetlands eroding… I don’t know. Congress throws rocks at each other we have some real problems - and they are in a pissing match wasting everyone’s time. Pox on both parties.
Liz,
I totally agree about the value of the plug in hybrid, especially when it can be coupled with rooftop solar. Running cars off solar energy is exactly what we need to do, and soon . Trouble is, it’s going to be a while before PHEV technology appears in minivans. But that’s one place where they would work well because so many of them are used for local driving where the daily usage is within the battery range so that the gas engine never starts until you head off for a weekend trip. But you know all that…
What some posters were saying is that the price of a hybrid, or PHEV, is not cost effective unless the owner puts on lots of miles. But that’s not the only consideration, especially as just reported - atmospheric concentration of CO2 is not only still increasing, the RATE of increase is accelerating. The data is in: The problem is worse than anyone predicted a decade ago, and it’s getting worse faster.
That’s why I suggested the electric bicycle/scooter for local transportation, and a used short wheelbase Caravan when you need to transport pets, bees, or to escape storms. When my e-bike was working, I started my car only when I needed to haul something, or go a long way.
Bravo to you for your commitment.
–Roadtrippper
WesternRT… I love those electric bicycles. There is one that has a battery you can pull out and charge with a regular plug. The electric scooters are pretty expensive for no cover in the rain, though. Presently I have a lovely peddle bike - our roads necessitate mountain bikes in town. We lost some mighty fine people down some of the road holes (when we aren’t shooting them dead). They go out for a little ride and never seen them again, gone for good… just a tennis shoe and a bike lock at the edge… and those are the city streets. Whole circuses and eight wheelers swallowed alive in some of those rural roads.
I am still hoping a US car company will put 2 and 2 together and give us good mileage, smaller vehicle crossovers and the plug in hybrid flexibility. I’d really like to hand over my old car to that family this summer. Don’t want to wait.
I’d really like to hand over my old car to that family this summer. Don’t want to wait.
Get a good older minivan for short term, then sell it when you find the right PHEV. Meanwhile, check this $900 electric step thru scooter, and its more powerful cousin. It’s something like mine, but better. Don’t need to pull the battery to charge, there’s a receptical somewhere on the bike for the charger, which you plug into a common wall outlet:
https://www.internetwebpros.com/Merchant2/merchant.mvc?Screen=PROD&Store_Code=all&AFFIL=xtr&Product_Code=XB-502
@LizNOLA If you lived in Washington state I would be in favor of having some kind of plug in car. Washington electricty is hyro (water) generated, and so no CO2. Louisiana burns fossil fuels (coal, gas) to generate power and if it is mostly coal, plugging in your car will be a zero reduction in CO2!!!
If you don’t care about the overall cost of your transportation, by al means maximize electricity.
A solar system on your roof or backyard will generate VERY EXPENSIVE electricity which you save to STORE in batteries and then charge you car up. The whole system, including the car, will be very expensive and and will require new skill on your part. Those skills barely exist in California and might not be available in Louisiana.
As per the internal combustion engine being obsolete, that was voiced when I was in high school. Although electric vehicles will make some inroads, the gasoline/diesel/ natural gas engine will be around for at least another 40 years, but with much refinement. An electric car with the Air conditioner on has a very limited range!!! Same as one with the heater on in the winter.
I appreciate your efforts to do something for the environment, but you own budget should take priority. By the way, Al Gore does none of the things you want to do; he has 2 palatial homes and his monthly electric bill is more than mine for the whole year! He represents the new class of eco-hypocrites who make a fortune scaring and shaming people like you and get richer in the process.
When all is said and done I would still recommedn a mini van with a small motor. Putting solar panels on your roof to help with hot water heating is cost-effectve and widely practiced in Israel and other sunny countries.
The hybrids and electrics are impractical for the vast majority of drivers. They are very expensive fashion accessories for most buyers.
Impractical AND uneconomical in the long run. But for those that want them, I support their freedom to get one. Personally, if I had the cash I’d be on the list for a Tesla. I think they’re cool.
If you want a plug-in hybrid, your choice will be limited in an already limited market. If you drive 30 miles per day, theonly PHEV that uses almost no gasoline is the Volt. Two-thirds of your miles will be on gasoline in the Prius PHEV and one third of your miels will use gas in a Ford (Fusion or CMax).
I still have to ask:
Where, besides your own home, are plug in stations for vehicles along the evacuation routes in LA?
While they MIGHT hold their value longer, those technologically advanced cars can depreciate quite a bit. A brand new S-class Mercedes is 92k, a 2006 S55 is about $25k; in 7 years, the car lost nearly 75% of it’s value. Keep in mind, most advancements in auto tech comes from the S-class; anti-lock brakes, airbags, stability control, etc.
New technologies are almost always expensive and, as these new technologies improve, the cost goes down. I remember back in about 2002, my son worked for Sears. My wife and I went through the store and noticed a large screen television. The price was over $5000. Today, you can purchase an improved version of this television for under $1000. The present generation of the Toyota Prius is much improved over the original Prius that hit the market in the early 2000s and yet the price is about the same or may have even gone down in some locations. Back about 1984, I paid about $300 for a VCR. It had a wired remote control. Ten years later, you could buy an even better VCR for about $75 and today you can’t even give one away. My brother had a mobile phone for his business. This telephone was in a bag. Twenty-five years later, he has a cell phone at much less cost.
The point is this–at what point do you want to jump into the new technologies? I spent about $2500 for a computer with the “486” chip. It was important to have this machine at the time for the work I was doing and I did get my money from the machine. Today, I use a laptop with a much improved processor, much higher speed and I paid less than $1000 for the computer. Keep in mind that the plug-in hybrid you purchase today will, no doubt, be supplemented by an even better plug-in hybrid which will cost less. Your only decision is what utility it will have for you.