GadgetMETER - Meet The Coolest Trends » Automotive

12 things x-mas list, part 4

Sarah — Tue, 15 Dec 2009 13:00:50 +0000

This is post of unreasonable things that I know I will never get but just want to fantasize about having…

First, the Brammo Enertia Electric Motorcycle

So first things first, it’s 100% electric. All its components can be recycled, including the batteries. It has a range of about 42 miles and can reach up to 65mph. And the batteries can be charged in about 4 hours, with 2,000 recharges possible.
For more on the specifications, check the Brammo website.

An interesting point on this bike is that the production requires less than 10% of the material resources needed for an average car, and it is manufactured in the US so the transportation costs in getting it delivered are minimal.

Also, they just dropped the price from $11,995 to $7,995. And since it is 100% electric you can also qualify for a government rebate so the final cost will be $7,195.
I love it. It looks great and is perfect for my needs. Of the three items in this post, this is the most accessible.
Check out your local Best Buy to test drive one (weird, I know, but whatevs).

Via Inhabitat Green Holiday Gift Guide

Going a little deeper into fantasy land we have the BMW Vision, a diesel plug-in hybrid that gets 63 mpg.

It can go up to 31 miles on electric only, perfect for commuters, and has a total range of 431 miles on 6.6 gallons of diesel.
Unfortunately this is a concept car and only prototypes have been produced. But this is a beautiful car. I mean, it’s gorgeous, actually. I love it. And I bet it’s a dream to drive. Too bad I’ll never get to. Sigh!

Via dvice.com

And finally, the show stopper. A car so beautiful and so futuristic looking as to inspire me to think of it as a hovercraft with wheels, the e-Wolf e2 all electric car.

Inspired most notably by Lamborghini and Ferrari, this all electric sports car should be going into production in 2011. Yes, that’s right. They are actually making this one!
So, specs?
0-60mph in under 4 seconds.
Top speed of 155 mph.
Possible range of 187 miles per charge (getting very near the Tesla range of 200 miles).

Maybe someday I’ll be able to race this thing along the pyrenees mountains and pretend that I’m a Bond girl, being chased by supervillians that want to destroy the world for their own financial gains and my mission is to stop them by using super gadgets, kung fu, and killer sports cars.
Ok, probably not, but a girl can dream, can’t she?

via Boing Boing gadgets

Green auto trends…

Sarah — Fri, 18 Sep 2009 12:30:03 +0000

GadgetMETER is all about trends. Technological trends. Well everything right now is trending towards green. Energy, architecture, automobiles. My friends in architecture say everything is going green. There is no debate about it. The future is green.
And that is the message that the Frankfurt Auto Show is sending now too (not surprisingly the American presence at the show was minimal, sadly).
I’ll admit, I’m not super into cars. I don’t even own one (anymore). But I’m hyper-aware of the impact cars have directly and indirectly on my own life and everyone else’s life as well. So I was super excited to see such green innovation in the cars at the show.
Here are a few of my favorites:

Audi’s R8-based all-electric sports car boasts four electric motors — two on each axle — and a lithium-ion battery pack mounted behind the two-seat cabin for gravity and load distribution. It has an estimated combined-cycle driving range of 154 miles (248 km).
Currently just a concept but will hopefully be one of the ones that actually gets put into production.

The VW L1 turbodiesel hybrid claims 170 mpg or a 100 km on a little more than one liter (hence the name). It reportedly has rear-view TV cameras instead of mirrors, and a small 800cc engine that gets up to 99 mph (160 km/h) and 0-62 mph (100 km/h) in 14.3 seconds. It weighs only 840 lbs (380 kg) with a streamlined body that may offer the most aerodynamic and be the “most fuel-efficient automobile in the world.”
I love this one. I admit, I’m a V-dub fan.

And finally, the Roadster from Tesla. The first in production all electric sports car. I’ve fantasized about owning one of these since I heard about them a few years ago. This is the only all electric car at the show that is currently in production and it makes me break out in sweats every time I see it it’s so hot.

I’d be proud to own and drive any of these. Maybe, someday, I will.

Via Inhabitat and CNET

Time to video pimp your auto…

Sarah — Thu, 11 Jun 2009 08:30:04 +0000

Sometimes I fantasize about making movies. I even made one once. A short one. It was pretty good too (there were zombies in it and a hot girl killing them). But it would have been way better if I had a camera mounted on a car to get some crazy fast shots. If only I had known about the Fat Gecko Camera Mount from Delkin.

The Fat Gecko is a dual suction cup mount that allows you to mount your camera (up to 8lbs) on motorcycles, cars, trucks, airplanes (!?!?) or any other smooth surface. They even have a pic of one on a snowboard. The design of the mount also allows for 360° tilt, turn and rotation (for that all important driver through the windshield shot).
This mount runs $89.99. Totally reasonable in my opinion, especially if it is as good as they say.
They have one specifically for bikes too:

However, it seems a little pricy at $64.99 especially since you could probably build one very similar for a few bucks if you have any motivation at all.

via Wired GadgetLab

Chocolate Powered Race Car

Sarah — Mon, 08 Jun 2009 08:30:41 +0000

Another advance has been made in the world of sustainable technology. This time it has to do with race cars. Researchers at the University of Warwick recently unveiled the “WorldFirst Formula 3 racing car”.

Dr Kerry Kirwan from the research team:
“Components made from plants form the mainstay of the car’s make up, including a race specification steering wheel derived from carrots and other root vegetables, a flax fibre and soybean oil foam racing seat, a woven flax fibre bib, plant oil based lubricants and a biodiesel engine configured to run on fuel derived from waste chocolate and vegetable oil. It also incorporates a radiator coated in a ground-breaking emission destroying catalyst.”
In fact the car meets all the Formula 3 racing standards except for it’s biodiesel engine. For some reason Formula 3 cars can’t use biodiesel, but I suspect that rule will have to be changed in the near future. I can think of few things more wasteful of fuel than car racing. And apparently in the current environment the viability of motor racing is being questioned.

This technology may likely save it. Apparently the WorldFirst car is capable of competing with the current Forumula 3 cars.

Dr Steve Maggs from the research team:  “As original equipment manufacturers focus on decreasing engine emissions, to meet future CO2, the WorldFirst project proves that if you are going to wholeheartedly embrace the ‘green is great’ ethos you have to broaden your vision and have a strategy that stretches throughout the chain from the raw materials to the final disposal of the car. The project clearly demonstrates that automotive environmentalism can and should be about the whole package.”

Here’s hoping this is the first step in realizing a greener motor racing future.

via Warwick News and Events
See the video on iTunes here

Travel Honey GPS detector finds your parked car

Jay — Wed, 27 May 2009 18:00:57 +0000

While I am elephantine in many ways, memory is not one of them. I am constantly wracking my brain when it comes to remembering where I’ve placed my keys or my wallet or my girlfriend. And finding my ride in a megamall parking lot is a royal pain. Until now.

Travel Honey GPS detector

This handy dandy little gadget is a multifunction GPS tagger and location finder. Can’t remember where you parked your car? Well just remember to hold down its little locator button before you leave your car. A two-second press will lock the current GPS coordinates into its little brain. Then when you’ve loaded yourself down with consumerism goodies, use the direction finder to navigate yourself back to the set coordinates (and your car).

But that’s not all. It is connectable (and rechargable) via a micr0-USB port. When connected, the dongle acts as a GPS unit for your PC, meaning you can use software like Streets and Trips to navigate yourself to your next megamall destination. It is constantly recording your GPS coordinates so you can plot all that data using Google Maps or Google Earth. It even provides software to allow you to attach pictures to GPS points.

Travel Honey GPS detector

All that for only $54. A bargain.

First Store 4 U GPS Receiver + Location Finder + Data Logger + Photo Tagger

Via Chinavasion via Geekalerts via DVICE.

Garmin Nüvi 760 Portable GPS

Quang Ly — Fri, 01 May 2009 11:23:27 +0000

As any of my family or friends would tell you, I am the worst and driving directions. My brother got me a Garmin Nuvi 250 for my birthday last year and it saved me quite a lot of headaches (and gas from getting lost).

Garmin now has the Nüvi 760 Portable GPS Automobile Navigator.

Garmin nüvi 760 4.3-Inch

It is quite an upgrade from my existing one. First, I like the form much better. Before the Garmin, I bought a Tom Tom GPS which gave me wrong directions half the time! I tested it driving in Center City Philadelphia and it told me to go straight directly through City Hall! Plus, the body of the Tom Tom wasn’t very friendly when it comes to portability.

Garmin

Garmin’s GPS tend to be flat and thin so they can fit in your pocket for walking around. There was a quirky bug in my old Garmin 250 which was the way you choose a target destination. If you change the city, you have to change the Country you are in first. It was odd.

What’s New
The 700-series has spoken directions in real street names, MP3 player and photo viewer, and an FM transmitter that will play voice prompts, MP3s, audio books, directly through your vehicle’s stereo system.

Garmin

The nüvi 760 and 770 can also utililze Bluetooh features for hands free calling.The 770 model adds maps for Europe.

The price of these GPS has also gone down tremendously. I remember when they first came out, it was a wallet breaking $1000. It is now only $209.99. Ah, don’t you love price depcreciation? It will save you in the long run too from lost time and gas.

Garmin nüvi 760 4.3-Inch Widescreen Bluetooth Portable GPS Automobile Navigator

Cardok PopUp Is The Coolest Garage

Quang Ly — Tue, 28 Apr 2009 11:56:23 +0000

CarDok Garage

The Cardok PopUp Garage takes the phrase “Keepin Up With The Jones” to a whole new level! The garage hides your car under ground using an elevator like mechanism. It is driven by a hydraulic platform which can be hidden under a water feature, flowerbed, or even a second car. You can activate it using your electronic key fob. So far, only eight have been built in London and are growing with popular demand.

CarDok Garage

They don’t come cheap though. First you h ave to be on waiting the list which is currently four months long. It takes 10 weeks to build and will cost you up to $61,181 depending your customization. Add another car ontop and it will be $72,816 (50,000 pounds).

Don’t just watch James Bond movies. Live like him.

Via Born Rich

Honda Element goes to the dogs

Jay — Wed, 15 Apr 2009 15:11:03 +0000

I just adopted a dog. It’s a pound puppy (well, kinda) and by the time this post is published, he’ll be the newest addition to the family. So when I read about Honda releasing a version of their popular Element utility vehicle specifically for dog owners, I was all ears.

The Element was already popular with active folks cause it’s basically a giant sheet of plastic inside. You can wash the thing out with a hose. And its various tent options allow for simple tailgating to taking a family of four on a three week safari through darkest Africa. Ok maybe only a week safari through the jungles of the exurbs, but still.

The canine-friendly version can be equiped with dog restraints, a ramp to help older dogs get in/out, a raised platform so your pooch can still see the family, rear fan for ventilation, and a built-in water bowl. I am seriously eyeing this baby as my next car.

via Coolest Gadgets

Tata’s Nano 10% as much as a smartcar

Jay — Thu, 02 Apr 2009 15:57:03 +0000

This is a smartcar.

It is cute, small, fuel-efficient, and perfect for urban driving. Every time I see one of these things, I have to smile. What immediately takes that smile away is when I remind myself that some versions of this thing cost over $20K. Now while I may blow through that in a week, I’m always mindful of my less fortunate netizens. So I give you this:

This is the Nano, made by Indian automotive powerhouse Tata. Never heard of them? Me neither. Turns out Tata is the Indian equivalent of GE, with businesses ranging from manufacturing to services. Now they want to make cars. Really small cars. For really small money. The starting price of a Nano is $2200. No, that’s not a typo and I’m not missing a zero. Sure, it’s a little bigger than the smartcar (3099mm vs 1867mm for the smartcar), but the picture implies you can squeeze four people in the nano. Try squeezing four people into a smartcar. Unless you are a family of clowns, that’s just not gonna happen.

CNet has a video review of the Nano and its driving performance.

via

Garage in the sky

Jay — Fri, 27 Mar 2009 02:55:33 +0000

You know, it always impresses me when people come up with new ways to separate me from my hordes of cash. This building, though, has found the ticket to my safe.

That, my friends, is a garage. And not just any garage, but a garage in your luxury condo. This magnificent bling abode is 200 Eleventh Avenue in New York City (where else?). Each residence in the building has its own garage. You access your garage via the ground floor by driving into a car elevator, which gently lifts you and your car up to your personal garage, whereupon you back out into your parking space, step out of the car, enter your home, and are greeted by your wife/mistress/sugarbaby. The animation of how this system works is awesome and definately should be checked out.

via

solCHAT untangles your car just a little bit.

Jay — Wed, 25 Mar 2009 13:14:40 +0000

I don’t know about you but my car is a mass of wires. I’ve got power cords for my iPhone, my GPS, and (for really long trips) a couple headrest monitors connected to a DVD player. That’s a lot of stuff plugged into cigarette lighters jacks. Thank god I don’t smoke, cause I really need the plugs. And while I like wireless Bluetooth headsets, they’re yet another thing I gotta have a power cord for just in case I run out of charge while chatting with my supermodel actress “friend” from Sweden. Well Scosche has just announced their solCHAT to help me deal with that last problem.

The solCHAT is a solar powered Bluetooth speakerphone. So you throw this little puppy on the dash, connect it to your iPhone or Bluetooth capable handset, and head off into the sunrise talking away.

Now my supermodel friend has said that the wind noise when I’m driving topdown in my Aston Martin makes it difficult to hear my melodious voice, but that’s a small price to pay for having one less thing to plug in.

Should be available soon.

via

ParaJet SkyCar – Do you ever want to fly one of these?

Quang Ly — Sun, 01 Mar 2009 13:57:20 +0000

This is followup to our previous post on the ParaJet SkyCar. We now have a video. This is quite amazing and I’m really excited and passionate about this. The footage is one of the first flights of the Parajet Skycar. It also featues interview with the pilot Neil Laughton and creater Giles Cardozo.

**Footage Courtesy of Mentorn Media and Height and Hazard for Channel 4′s Daredevil series.**

www.youtube.com/watch?v=s7qg3lNsxmQ

Comment below if you want to give the SkyCar a try.

Fast cars. Really fast cars.

Jay — Sat, 28 Feb 2009 18:01:11 +0000

Do you have a spare 100K+ laying around? I know, I know, it’s busy keeping your bed soft cause you’ve stuffed all your savings into your mattress. Personally, I just bundle my wealth into bricks for cooking purposes. But if you want to do something less frivolous with your conspicuous consumption, then check out these beauties:

This here is the Bentley Continental Supersport, producing 621hp with a top speed of 204mph. And it runs on flexfuel, so it’s got green cred. Of course, this kind of beauty is going to cost you. Luckily, Bentley hasn’t decided on the price yet, so you can imagine that you can afford it.

Now this beauty is the Perana Z-One, and it does have a price – an uber reasonable $75K (or so). Pick up one of these and you’ll be one of just 999 lucky owners. Course, since you’re paying under 100 keys, you have to make do with a Corvette engine vs. the hand-built engine in the Bentley. But you’re still doing 0-60 in under 4 seconds with 440+ hp, so really, it’s up to you – how do you want to pick up the ladies? Classy refined elegance or stare-at-me-cause-I’m-rich sleekness?

No related posts.

Speeding Bullet! The Mission One EV Electric Sports Bike.

Quang Ly — Fri, 13 Feb 2009 20:21:17 +0000

The Mission One EV Sports Bike

Meet the new and long overdue Mission One EV Electric Sports Bike. I must say this bike just looks so damn cool. The Mission One EV brings the future in design to the present. This electric bike continues the trend to help save our environment and dependency on foreign oil. I must say I’m quite surprised it took longer than I expect. Electric bikes should seem more feasible and less costly than than cars since they are lighter and require less energy to burn so I’m not sure why it took so long. Anyhow, I’m glad to see them here.

[svgallery name="missiononesportsbike"]

This crotch rocket beauty has speeds up to 150 mph to keep you from getting late to work. And yes, that’s on battery! I’m sure the cop will simply let you go knowing he will never catch you anyway. Another great feature about the Mission One is it can fully recharge in less than 2 hours. The distance range is an estimate 150 miles without a charge.

The founding fathers of this elegant speed demon is Forrest North, Edward West, and Mason Cabot. Need their credentials you say? How’s the fact that they worked for Tesla Motors, Ducati, and Google. The results of their talent don’t come cheap though. The expected price tag of the Mission One EV Sports Bike is $68,995 for the special Limited Edition while a more affordable version to come in the summer.

Doesn’t it just look so cool? Leave us a comment and let us know if you’re getting one.

Via – AutoBlogger