PriusChat

There are hybrid cults.  Witness the second annual Hybrid Fest recently held in Madison, Wisconsin.  Or the EAA-PHEV maniacs hyperactive over the Prius annoucement (read and/or join the frenzy here).  But the mother of all hybrid enthusiasm is PriusChat, established shortly after the debut of the Gen 2 Prius, rich with “Senior” Prius Posters, photo’s of Prius’s (or Prii, if you like), and—blessed be the internet—individual opinions.  (Strangely I find cats are the only thing featured on the site as often as the car.)

I have been watching this site for years but only joined yesterday.  I did a brief search on it’s history only to find this article from Toyota’s “Open Road Blog” specifically on PriusChat.  My favorite feature is the Prius Accessory Shop, with which I intend to spend some major time.  We need to make these items available to LG customers. Ok, and maybe the shop car needs a cargo liner mat…

Posted by Carolyn Comments 1 Trackbacks 0 Permalink Categories:

Toyota PHEV out of the closet

This story broke ages ago on Green Car Congress:

GCC, Toyota to Obtain Permission for Public Road Test for Plug-in Prius in Japan

But the news is worth echoing.  We’re talking a Toyota-made, plug-in version of the Gen 2 Prius with some interesting specs:

• Same transmission (50 kW motor for MG2)
• Expanded battery (Ron Gremban estimates a second stock pack running from 90% to 30% State of Charge (equating to roughly 60% of the 2.6kWh capacity of two OE Prius packs) to allow 8 miles All Electric Range (AER)
• Another Battery ECU for the second pack
• Updated HV ECU software to allow the vehicle to reach 62 mph in EV Mode (current models will not exceed 34 mph in EV Mode), request 50 kW from the battery (max output for MG2), and use greater range of the battery SOC
• Improved DC:DC converter (also according to Ron) to account for greater MG2 acceleration
• Onboard charger/inverter

Note that this list is not long.  We’re essentially talking about the PHEV conversion performed by Steve Woodruff of AutoBeYours, plus a few adjustments that only Toyota could reasonably make (i.e. software).

The technology is proven, accessible, highly useful, and cost effective.  Kudos to Toyota for getting it on the road in an OE package.  Very, very, very exciting development; let’s hope it reaches the US.

More info:

GCC, Toyota Announces Development of Plug-In Hybrid; First Manufacturer to Have PHEV Certified for Public Road Use in Japan

Reuters, Sweet video of PHEV Prius in action

Posted by Carolyn Comments 0 Trackbacks 0 Permalink Categories: Automotive News »

A Luscious Sign

Our sign went up today.  It looks great—thanks to Cobra Creative, for the logo, and Barber Sign, for the shingle—but it feels even better.  So much has been accomplished, and the time is right to make our project public.  Hello Clementina; hello world.

Posted by Carolyn Comments 18 Trackbacks 0 Permalink Categories: Milestones »

Our Shop Floor

Most shops use epoxy paint to seal their floor, the industrial equivalent of nailpolish (if concrete wore nailpolish).  It’s non-porous, which is essential so that oil and coolant won’t seep into the ground water.  But the paint itself is as toxic as California will allow (along with the prerequisite treatment of muratic acid); you still need to wear a ventilation mask during application. Oh, and stay away a few days while it dries.  (That’s just cancer; don’t get me started about photochemical smog.) Like any status quo, it’s popular because it’s popular.  It’s also readily available in many colors; it can stand up to high traffic, including that from tires.  In 2-3 years, though, it will weaken and chip, requiring another treatment and the same parade of toxins.  In short, for the green garage, an alternative to the epoxy floor is an absolute must.

The green home movement has since developed a selection of concrete treatments like AFM SafeCoat MexeSeal and EcoProCote.  The trouble is that they are largely unproven in a truly industrial setting: repeated pressure, sheer and lift from rolling tires and attacks from highly caustic fluids (gasoline, brake fluid).

Luscious Garage inherited the original concrete slab at 459 Clementina, dating back ninety years.  It had old black paint and lots of chips and cracks.  At least we needed to clean all this off before we sealed it.  This would essentially leave us with a virgin surface—highly porous, ready to soak up whatever we selected—so we wanted to choose wisely. 

We learned the latest fashion in concrete floors is a thing called ”RetroPlate”.  The idea is simple: take a virgin slab, apply a non-toxic hardener that densifies the stone so much that it becomes non-porous (and very strong).  Then polish the hell out of it.  The result is very pretty and also very expensive.  I hear that several dealerships have used it for their showrooms and shops (including Burlingame Lexus?).  It’s also common in restaurants, retail stores, even school cafeterias.  It has no coating in the traditional sense, so it never wears away.  It actually gets stronger and shinier with age.

So we thought this was a great idea.  But would Burlingame Lexus to pay for it? 

The good news is that RetroPlate is the second generation of an equally capable treatment.  The original product came out over fifty years ago, called ”Ashford Formula.” It behaves the same way, is still non-porous, but is not quite as strong or as glossy (40x stronger than regular concrete, versus 500x with RP).  As for toxicity, it states, “The Ashford Formula is an odorless and non-hazardous material. It contains no solvents or volatile organic compounds. The Ashford Formula is non-toxic, and produces no harmful fumes or vapors. The Ashford Formula is completely water-based and environmentally safe. Use of this product requires no breathing apparatus or protective clothing.” Best of all, it was within our budget. 

CDI Commercial Flooring performed the application this past June.  They ground all the cracks and surface imperfections by hand (their arms are as big as my leg) and resurfaced the floor with professional-grade diamond grinders.  They used a comprehensive vacuum system that collected all the dust and debris, eliminating particulate matter.  The pictures show what a tremendous improvement they made.

If you can’t tell, I am really proud of this floor.  Not only is it environmentally sound, it allowed us to extend the life of the existing slab (rather than pour a whole new one).  The result brings out the natural imperfections of the stone and all the interesting places it has been extended or repaired.  Best of all, it is totally non-porous and non-dust producing.  Oh, and it’s fully capable to handle automotive abuse. 

Posted by Carolyn Comments 584 Trackbacks 0 Permalink Categories: Green »

Parking Etiquette

I have never had a dedicated parking spot, in California or elsewhere, so you can imagine the adjustment to an entire warehouse in downtown San Francisco in which to park any day or night.  Instead of searching for a space, channeling The Secret, I simply press the door opener and pull into a bona fide garage.  I savor this luxury as I watch our neighbors shuffle their cars, a dance for the meter maid that often ends with fists clutching tickets shaking in the wind. 

But yesterday my Schadenfreude backfired: after giving an out-of-town guest a tour of the shop, we discovered our driveway entirely blocked by a C230 Kompressor.  I couldn’t believe it and tried to pull our car out anyway.  When geometery prevailed I felt like a person tailgated on the highway, tempted by the opposite pedal, fantasizing about the utter satisfaction of stomping the carpet.  I managed to control myself. 

The tools of a business owner develop half in advance and half in response.  This time I got to learn the city protocol for getting cars towed from blocked driveways.  The phone number is 415-553-1200 and just by calling you have the apparent authority to have a car cited, or cited and towed.  You do not need to have a sign posted that says “No Parking” or a red curb or similar warning.  I’m not sure who makes the judgement call as to whether a vehicle is truly in violation; I imagine a system rife with persnickety homeowners.  And yet I suddenly relate to them.

In this case the owner was tracked down in a condo down the street.  “I’m so sorry!” Blah blah blah. Who parks across a driveway, let alone one with the door open?  People who know the people inside.  Or at least I thought. 

A full day later I concede that no vehicle belongs more in the city than another.  But for the sake of doing business, and therefore pulling cars in and out of the garage, there must be parking etiquette.  Before I didn’t want a “No Parking” sign; we just repainted the roll door and, besides, they are so unfriendly. The second complication is that our curb is not very well defined.  This will be fixed when the city buries the power lines on our side of the street, but it may be several years. 

Now, in the meantime, we need a sign.  I will apply for a 15 minute curb zone.  For the overstepping bumper, I need to compose a note (in advance).  And for the totally oblivious, the towing number is now in my cell phone. 

Posted by Carolyn Comments 0 Trackbacks 0 Permalink Categories: Shifting Awareness »