New to Prius Chat

Hello, I'm new here. I dont have a Prius, I dont really want one

I race cars but I'm willing to race a hybrid if something cool like this concept for Lexus or this Toyota Supra hybrid or a Tesla crosses my path

I love cars & I also care about the environment and I dont think the two are mutually exclusive

Welcome to the board. We like having mixed viewpoints to share and discuss, so feel free to post your thoughts.

Tom

Note: Trolls live under the bridge in the valley (s)he says (s)he's from. The mods must have missed this one, as no such place exists.

His other posts seem mundane enough. As much as we all have a knee-jerk reaction to "racers" after the last few days, I think this one is a "wait-and-see" for the mods. Unless or until you misbehave, welcome to Priuschat, warhorse!

Thanks, I know there are lots of Ricer "wannabe" racers but I am a real racer, not a Ricer

BTW after seeing that the Prius has aluminum panels I like it a bit more

aluminum is the poor man's carbon fiber

What do you race? I'd think with an interest in hybrid/enviro tech, you'd be after pure-electrics like Tesla, not a hybrid to race... Have you seen killacycle? http://www.killacycle.com/

And speaking of aluminum vs. carbon fiber, my road bike has an aluminum-zirconium alloy frame with carbon fiber fork and seat stays... does that make me cool?

Yes LOL

Aluminum Monocoque is awesome Ive seen the LF-A, cant wait for Toyota to build it

And this post qualifies for the Prius Main Forum how? It's a 'newbie hello' and doesn't even mention Prii . . . except he doesn't want one.

There is a forum dedicated to 'newbie hellos' . . . it's called "Newbie Forum" . . .
http://priuschat.com/forums/forumdisplay.php?f=51


. . . not that I am blaming the OP. After all, he is a newbie.

I have a 92 Ferrari 512TR race car and a new 07 Corvette Z06 that I am building

I have a project I am considering. I'd love to build a very sporty carbon fiber solar/electric hybrid w massive torque and maybe 600hp +

I could use race tech to make it a very serious sports car yet environmentally friendly at the same time

Audi for instance won the 24 hrs of LeMans the last 2 years using carbon fiber w V12 diesels so they massively reduced their fuel consumption

I was driving an 04 Lincoln Navigator w 12 mpg but I decided I didnt need an SUV now so I traded it for my 07 Z06 which makes 25 mpg and almost 200 mph

I actually placed it on Hybrid News but it was moved here

This seems to be the best Hybrid forum and I have an interest in high tech and saving the environment

Let's give him a break, folks. I'm sure there's plenty of drama to go around without making our own.

Toyota was talking about a hybrid Supra replacement. From one perspective a hybrid sports car makes a lot of sense given the torque levels that you can crank out of an electric motor from a dead stop. (Heck, the big electric motor in the Prius is rated at 298lb-ft at 0RPM.) I figure something with a big battery, big electric motor, and a smallish engine could retain decent fuel economy along with the ability to go like a bat out of hell for as long as the battery holds out. Not what you would want on the Autobahn or on the track but practical and fun for a street driver.

Thanks Brick

Well then warhorse, tell us what classes you race.

I see you own a ferrari and a project car, do you race the ferrari?
How long has the 'vette been in your garage?

Because you're in a fairly time-demanding profession (with a JD) I'm guessing its recreational weekend stuff (which is fine).

Your poll asks whether Prius drivers have sports cars also, well I'm honestly not wealthy enough to afford both simultaneously (PhDs don't get paid as well as JDs). I've certainly owned a few sports cars in the past (personal favourite was 1965 Porsche 912), and I used to race, 4 wheels & 2.

But now its your turn. Tell us you do more than talk the talk.

I race in NASA, Ferrari Club and some vintage events

The Ferrari is a 92 512TR full race w roll cage, fuel cell, penske shocks, slicks, F50 brakes, Stacks Instruments, weighs 2800 #, has a bit over 500 hp, and uses 115 octane

I just got the Z06 but I have lots of plans for it starting w roll bar, 650 hp plus, some carbon fiber, race brakes, etc

what kind of bikes do you race ?

I am 51 (an old man now).
But, a 30+ years ago I used to race desert, moto-x & enduro by preference (on Huskys, Can-ams & Pentons).
My sponsor put me on TT & flat track races though, because I was lighter than many others I would fly (these were HD 250s & 500s).
I had my Kodak moments but blew out both knees shortly after moving into the prof class.
Switched to some open wheel and rally driving for a while until I had to devote more time to grad school. Later on I returned to bikes via observed trials, but the kids were just too good for me.
In my professional life my area of research is driver performance. In my experience though, most racing drivers have a pretty narrow (albeit well-developed) skill set. The exception is probably rally drivers and some of the V8 touring car drivers. But we can continue that discussion later.

Tell me, what's been your best Kodak moment with the Ferrari?

Interesting. I'm sure we'll know some of the same people then.

I'm 43 so I'm gaining on you

best Kodak moment was actually that photo at Lime Rock a few years back where I wiped the track w everybody else in front of a good size crowd, Very nice

I've won a lot of races w that car. I designed a lot of it myself and told my mechanics how I wanted it built

Its a rocket but not too good on mpg, about 4 mpg but its a race car so it gets driven only a few times a month at best