Sunday, October 24, 2010

Toronto Star: Homegrown EVs turn heads at Toronto show

Peter Gorrie covered our show last week, and the matter is presented - in a story by the same title as attributed to them in this blog post!

Peter Says "Most of the big names didn’t make an appearance.

No shiny Nissan Leafs, Chevy Volts or Mitsubishi i-Mievs.
Perhaps it was because the Electric Vehicle Society’s first annual autumn show was held at a Toyota-Lexus dealership near the corner of Eglinton Ave. and Leslie St.", and goes on with "Corporate competitors couldn’t have matched the array of Toyota Priuses — standard and plug-in hybrids, and a couple of all-electric conversions — that lined one side of the display area."

Then there was the reference to cars like mine - the blood, sweat, and even - yes, tears some times: "No matter, though: The stars for about 400 visitors last Sunday were mainly across the aisle; individuals who’ve caught the electric bug and created their own alternative wheels."

While I did get interviewd by Peter, I did not get quoted by him, but that might have been because another writer for the Toronto Star - Monte Gisborne - intervied me also, and was doing his own article, and while it is not online yet, it was in the Saturday, October 23, 2010 issue of the Star in Print - Wheels Section, along with Peters Story! That one has a paragraph about me, and a good shot of 'electricfly' - the Embroidered Front Seat Headrests, and Embroidered Ball Cap!

The Story - found at - the front cover - below the fold on the wheels section and online at http://www.wheels.ca/article/792247 did a pretty good job of telling it like it was and covered some of our better members projects in Southern Ontario! 

Jan Szott, with two of his projects - the Horseless Hybrid Carriage, and the Chassis of his future Electric Sportscar; Brian Kirk and Graham Lambert, with their 1983 Porsche 944 with Lithium Iron Phosphate Cells - made th cover of the Story;  Ken Roach’s 1995 Ford Escort now in phase two of PbA Battery Tests with some new ones I tracked down and he is testing; the UOIT Team with The blue Saturn Vue, and their exotic Lithium Polymer pack and exotic cooling and heating system for the cells; and Aaron Cake on his 10-year-old Honda Insight hybrid, which he got 'only' 3.8 l/100 km instead of his better 3.0 l/100 km! Aaron also brought his custom built, 48 volt, home built for abuse, scooter! Steve Dallas can be easily seen, but not heard, driving Toronto’s streets in his 'Little Yellow Car' officially called 'Project EVE', and all Electric Custom built, Prototype he hopes to produce!

Check out the Show info at http://www.evfest.ca/!

No comments: