So I get a call from my counterpart and friend Jeff Maier in Ohio today explaining that he received a call from our VP of Product Management last week expressing the need for him to check out a new type of vehicle that is being made in his area by a company called Myers Motors in Cleveland. This car is supposed to be electric and have a driving radius of 15 miles. Target customers are people living in cities with a short commute. They contacted our company to join in a partnership with them for advertising and insurance, basing it on that the public would be all for an insurance company backing an environmentally sound car alternative.So Jeff goes out with a couple of his supervisors to check out the company and the car. This is what they are producing. A three wheeled golf cart thingy. He forwards me this picture and I just can't stop laughing. He then calls me to explain his driving experience. Not only did he crack his head on the roof when he went over a speed bump (no head room), but it is rear wheel drive. Rear wheel drive???? With only one wheel? So what happens when Jeff is pulling out into traffic on wet pavement? That's right, spins it out of control and almost wrecks the thing into a curb. Jeff seems to have these issues of wrecking cars when it is most inconvenient, like over in Spain or a driving a prototype vehicle. And speaking of accidents, we as an insurance industry are extremely concerned with all of the hybrid cars that are being produced now, since they are made out of paper (one cheap way to increase the MPG). I alone have seen at least 10 pretty bad accidents with hybrids that have resulted in serious injury with a moderate impact. That's not good. And now you want to put these things on the road? Yeah, that makes sense. On the flip side, he did say that the vehicle was extremely fast and quick and did not make a sound for whatever that is worth.
Anyway, my biggest pet peeve about this whole hybrid/electric car transition is when will the car companies realize that they don't have to make the car look ugly or odd for it to be a hybrid? When will there be a normal looking car that comes out that is either electric or a hybrid. Am I missing something????
1 comment:
Yes, you are missing something. The design is inherently unsafe. No WAY do you put 2-wheels in the front with one in the back. Its gonna tip real easy.
Think about airplanes here folks. How many have you seen with the 2 wheels leading and one trailing? There is a reason for it.
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