California Prius HOV lane sticker "gold rush"

[inventor00]

It was an inventive to get people to buy more fuel efficient cars, and it has worked- you see more Prius every day. There are way more than 75,000 hybrids that qualify for a sticker yet there are only about 54,000 stickers issued as of last week, so not everyone is greedy.

By the way, the "advantage" ends at the end of 2007. Fran Pavley who sponsored the bill is termed out this year. A new legislator is needed to sponsor a new bill in CA if you want to continue the carpool. So I guess it would be "Hasta la Vista" for the sticker in 1 and 1/2 years anyway.

[BellBoy]

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(fredmertz @ Apr 4 2006, 04:31 AM) [snapback]234621[/snapback]</div>

Well Bellboy, I'm really starting to understand the South Park episode more every day. I am also a big idiot because the only reason I purchased a Prius is to drive in the HOV lane. Driving 120 miles a day in the car pool lane saves me over an hour of time five days a week. That is about 240 hours a year. My time is valuable. I also own a Hummer and a few track cars that get about 3mpg on race fuel at over $6 a gallon. I guess that makes me an even bigger idiot.
[/b]

I guess the real idiot here is me...I guess I'm too much of a romantic to realize that anyone would want to buy a green vehicle to do anything but help the planet. <_<

[cmwade77]

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(BionicWeasel @ Apr 3 2006, 10:36 PM) [snapback]234578[/snapback]</div>

Well I live in the San Fernando Valley, and have to drive to Marina Del Rey 5-6 days a week....!!
I want my dang stickers....it's been 2+ months since they cashed my check
[/b]

I got them only about two days after they finally cashed my check. (They must have come in Fri. or Sat. as I have been out of town this past weekend, but I would sure be calling someone if I were you).

As for the original point, if California offers them, I am going to take advantage of saving me about 1-3 hours (depending on traffic) commute time per day, 5 days a week. Why wouldn't I? Why wouldn't everyone, regaurdless of how much they are going to use them? If it's the law of the land, go for it.

[darelldd]

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(fshagan @ Apr 3 2006, 09:38 PM) [snapback]234547[/snapback]</div>

For all of these incentives, the goal is to drive the demand for cars the government feels are a better choice for the environment and for our energy policy. [/b]

I certainly WANT to believe this... but if it were really true, we'd still have the option to purchase an electric car today (the first vehicles to have the solo-HOV incentive).

[fredmertz]

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(BellBoy @ Apr 4 2006, 08:44 AM) [snapback]234708[/snapback]</div>

I guess the real idiot here is me...I guess I'm too much of a romantic to realize that anyone would want to buy a green vehicle to do anything but help the planet. <_<
[/b]

I personally don't think there are any idiots on this board. The folks here provide some of the most thought provoking posts that I have seen. We may be a smug group, but I don't see the huge egos and nastiness that typically follow the anonymous board poster.

PS: Being a romantic is a good thing. Who knows, one of these days the light bulb may go on and I may convert over to your way of thinking.

[fshagan]

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(darelldd @ Apr 4 2006, 09:25 AM) [snapback]234724[/snapback]</div>

I certainly WANT to believe this... but if it were really true, we'd still have the option to purchase an electric car today (the first vehicles to have the solo-HOV incentive).
[/b]

The major manufacturers aren't offering them anymore as a business decision, right? I know you have had several (a Rav4 that you still have, IIRC, and also GM's EV1 they made you return as they only leased them.) So you know a lot more about this than I do. But it seems to me that consumer acceptance is only half the story ... a company has to be willing to produce them and the incredible liability that comes along with making a product that is involved in fatalities. I suspect there wasn't enough demand for the EV1 or electric Rav4 for the manufacturers to continue making them.

Aren't there any small companies doing electric conversions? Those are still eligible for the HOV stickers.

[BellBoy]

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(fredmertz @ Apr 4 2006, 05:42 PM) [snapback]234989[/snapback]</div>

I personally don't think there are any idiots on this board. The folks here provide some of the most thought provoking posts that I have seen. We may be a smug group, but I don't see the huge egos and nastiness that typically follow the anonymous board poster.

PS: Being a romantic is a good thing. Who knows, one of these days the light bulb may go on and I may convert over to your way of thinking.
[/b]

Agreed.

PS: One of these days I hope that Lamborghini makes a 100 MPG car that I can afford.

[darelldd]

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(fshagan @ Apr 4 2006, 09:02 PM) [snapback]235077[/snapback]</div>

The major manufacturers aren't offering them anymore as a business decision, right? I know you have had several (a Rav4 that you still have, IIRC, and also GM's EV1 they made you return as they only leased them.) So you know a lot more about this than I do. But it seems to me that consumer acceptance is only half the story ... a company has to be willing to produce them and the incredible liability that comes along with making a product that is involved in fatalities. I suspect there wasn't enough demand for the EV1 or electric Rav4 for the manufacturers to continue making them.

Aren't there any small companies doing electric conversions? Those are still eligible for the HOV stickers. [/b]

The answer is too long to be appropriate in this thread. I'll be as brief as I can be...

Yes, of course it was a business decision. No reason to build crazy electric cars when there already exists huge profits in gas cars - an established money-making business! Same way that GM made the business decision to NOT make hybrids for so long.... and about as brilliant.

There are fewer liability concerns with electrics than with cars filled with 10, 20, 30 gallons of gasoline so I'm not sure where that's going.

As far as demand goes, we will never know. These cars were not marketed, were not sold (except for exactly eight months in the Rav4's case) had zero options, and on and on. For a bit that I wrote to Car and Driver on this subject, please see here:

http://www.darelldd.com/ev/darell_writing.htm (item 2 - makes more sense if you first read the linked article)
And for a bit more on the CARB hearings regarding why automakers are not making BEVs, please try item 1 on that same page. And then more here on the ZEV mandate. You get the idea. Go to my main EV page (always in my sig) and click on "docs" in the left side and you'll find all this stuff.

Thanks for your interest.

[samoan_ridah]

I hope I don't offend anyone but the only reason I even considered buying a hybrid was for the solo HOV access. Of course the other money-saving bonuses were nice, they were just that, bonuses. I work in Downtown LA and although I have been enjoying the luxury of driving brand new Mercedes Benz' over the last 6+ years, recently it really started to get to me that as I was getting massaged by my drive-dynamic seats doing 10mph in my beautiful German automobile, about 2 dozen Prius' and HCH's were jetting right past me in the carpool lane.

I still have the Benz for going out to eat or a night out on the town but I really enjoy saving about an hour a day on my commute. I paid $36,400 out the door for my Prius and I would have paid double that if I had to. I also would have done it all over again in a heartbeat even if it only got 10mpg but still had the ability to utilize the carpool lane.

With that said, I believe that these cars have earned the right to drive solo in the carpool lane. That is, to me, what is really making these things sell for thousands over sticker in LA. They are also helping to cut down on the air pollution so more power to them!

[savingtheearth]

I am liking this healthy debate.
I live in LA and used to work with the AQMD on a project. The diamond lanes or HOV lanes were designed to decrease air pollution by increasing carpooling, thus having less polluting vehicles on the road. In such, the Prius acts to decrease air pollution- and is rewarded for this by allowing it to be in the HOV lanes.
However, what happens when everyone has a hybrid car- when all manufacturers produce low or no emission vehicles? I think eventually the HOV lanes will be toll ways and if you want to pay for the shorter commute- your money can go into the funding of better roads etc. But for now, driving a Prius in the HOV lane makes sense for the goals of why the diamond lane was set up originally. I just wish those stickers were more attractive on the car!!