Black River Blues: The Sky Is Falling

Wow. What a couple of weeks. Biden did great in the VP debate, and all the "Moose in the headlights" could do was shout "I'm not going to answer that question. I'm a hockey Maverick, you betcha!" and wink. Sad. Obama-Biden has now opened up a bigger lead in the polls and taking some swing states. We may (should) have a landslide. Bush-Cheney is leaving a disaster for the next administration and generation. Sorry, kids, I didn't vote for them.

My own 401K's have shaved off 15% in the past week or so. Ouch!
Hi-tech layoffs are just starting to ratchet up, too. It's time to really buckle down!

Thus, I plan to put more time into the EV and drive more EV miles - if the battery pack can hack it. Here's what's new on the EV front:

New dog dish hub caps installed to give it a slightly less 'junk car' look.(ebay)
Vintage VW car stereo is on order. (ebay)
Books arrived to 'paint your own car' on a budget (amazon). Bought a vintage 1979 VW Rabbit brochure as well (see above). (ebay)
Bought a new charging cable and plug. - not sure I need the plug. (osh)
Bought safety glasses and industrial strength chemical gloves. (osh) Finally, added almost 2 gallons of distilled water to the batteries which means they were probably too low... grimace. "Full" voltage is now looking like 80% instead of 85%. Shucks.
Estimate from Andy at falconev dot calm for 96V LiFePO battery pack is "about $15K". Hopefully that gets cut in half in two years.
Still debating getting a paktrakr or pakcheq'r. Cost is in the hundreds.
All the while, the bailout bill allows for up to $7,500 in federal rebates for EVs of "production quality". They should include conversions, but Detroit won't get a nickel of those - consume and waste - that's what this economy thrives on. Screw that!!! It should be reduce, re-use, recycle or do without.

Here are some sites of interest:

Vatican installs solar panels. Finally, a prayer from above answered!

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20080929/ap_on_re_eu/eu_vatican_going_solar_1

A good build an EV rabbit blog.

http://electriclittlecar.blogspot.com/
http://www.usabuiltev.com/

Some VW rabbit 1979 history. Looks like mine is a C package with the L package enhancmements, a Wolfsburg edition built in Germany with all the trimmings. Nice!

http://www.cargurus.com/Cars/Overview-c7082-1979-Rabbit.html
Stupid loud ICE Rabbit video: http://www.cargurus.com/Cars/v-1979-Rabbit-c7082

quoted from above:
""

CarGurus' 1979 Volkswagen Rabbit Review

The 1979 Volkswagen Rabbit was the first VW made in America, at a new plant in western Pennsylvania near Pittsburgh. In fact, the '79 Rabbits were the first European cars produced in the U.S., and demand was high for the high-mileage vehicles, especially at a time when a gas crisis was pushing up prices at the pump.

One of the most noticeable changes for the American-made Rabbit was the use of square headlights in a black grille, instead of round headlights. New trim packages were also available for 1979, with a Rabbit C and a Rabbit L joining the basic Rabbit in the lineup.

The Rabbit C package was equipped with an AM/FM radio, a color-coordinated interior, reclining front seats, a rear window defogger, and a day/night rearview mirror, while the Rabbit L package added such features as a wood-grained dash, special moldings on the windows and hatch, and a lockable glovebox. In addition, several other special packages were available, including the Rallye Package, an Air Conditioning Package, and a Custom Exterior Package. Plus, the Rabbit was available in a number of new colors for '79.

Standard power for the Rabbit was a 1.5-liter overhead-cam four-cylinder engine that generated 71 horsepower. A 1.5-liter diesel engine (made in Germany) was also available. MacPherson struts, large disc brakes, rack and pinion steering, four-wheel independent suspension, and energy-absorbing bumpers were all standard equipment.

The 1979 Rabbit was generally very popular with drivers, particularly the diesel models, which were especially appreciated for their high gas mileage at a time when gas prices were soaring