Rad Wagon or Euro Wagon? Another Saturday Ramble

The post is colored bittersweet green. It's because I have green-car envy.

It doesn't help that I keep parking the Vespa at work, looking around, and noticing all kinds of green cars parked around me. (Woohoo! More green cars around!)

Since the truck broke down (and went away), I've been two-wheeling it on the scooter and the bicycle. The electric bike broke down too. And I've been fighting bronchitis. So, it's mostly been scootering and catching rides.

I'm missing having weather protection, and I'm missing being able to haul stuff about. So, even worse than usual, I've been dreaming about a new ride.

Look what popped up on Craigslist this week:

How that for some serious Euro-Dork street cred?

I have a weakness for wagons - they make sense to me and it's a little easier to dream that I'm buzzing about in a space shuttle. And this one could easily shuttle my people about and haul a kayak and dogs and bikes and all kinds of groovy stuff. It could even haul the little guy to school in all weather. But this one has some serious drawbacks - it's old, it'd be expensive to maintain/register/operate, and it's definitely not green.

(Also, the good doctor's latest climate study hit the presses this week, and let me tell you, we need to be taking green action now - not later.)

The other wagon in the same price range (not on Craigslist) is the $1599 (with free shipping) RadWagon electric cargo bike. Instead of a space shuttle, this one'd help me feel like I was buzzing through the trees of Endor on a speeder bike. And it'd haul many of the same things (less conveniently and less far). It'd even take the little guy to school - weather permitting. And it would be very green (and orange) and would be super cheap to maintain, (not) register, and operate. Weather protection, though, is sold separately.

And both are a little beyond this lower-middle class income at this point. So, it looks like it's time to fix the electric bike, tackle a DIY cargo bike frame, and keep pinching the pennies.

But it sure is fun to dream about all these sexy wagons cruising about.

May we find greener ways (both big and small) and make healthier choices, no matter how tough.

Fossil Free Friday: Fun Electric Conversions on Ebay and Craigslist

Yep, it's me being lazy again, but there is some fun stuff to check out this week. Enjoy:

Fiero!!!! Ebay

Check it out - a Fiero that runs! (And it's electric!)

All the deets

 BMW Ebay

The 2002 BMW is my favorite BMW

(and this one is electric)

BMW deets

VW Beetles

 

Slug Bug Red (Ebay)

Slug Bug Orange (Dallas Craigslist)

Isuzu Pickup

 

Electric Pickup! (Austin Craigslist)

These are not conversions, but I thought you might want to see them:

Zero Motorcycle (Dallas Craigslist)

 

Green Citicars on Ebay: Tennessee and Alabama

 

May you find something out there that helps you get off the gas, clean up the air, and grin everywhere you go!

 

Sidebar Minipost: From Russia with Love?

I never expected to say this, but it seems that Mesquite Hugger has something in common with our new American president - receiving much love from Russia!

I feel like the dorky kid in a teen movie who says he has a girlfriend in another country.

I am going to laminate this and keep it in my upcycled-bike-tube wallet!

Mesquite Hugger is a pretty low-rent blog. A good day around here gets a few hundred clicks, and those clicks usually focus on the most recent posts.

The top 10!

So imagine my surprise this morning when I logged in and saw over 5000 clicks for the day. With a little investigation I learned that there were indeed a few hundred clicks here in the States, but the rest came from Russia. And they're not all focused on yesterday's brilliant post about a pedal-powered pump. As a matter of fact, the most viewed post is about one of my favorite subjects - the Citicar. If you've been around this blog much, you know that the tiny little beast is the pinnacle of the Mesquite Hugger dream!

Vintage Electric Car Profile: the almighty Sebring-Vanguard Citicar!

 

So here's my hope - that the Russians are hoping to copy the design of the Citicar and start building their own version like they did with the Vjatka scooter and the Ural motorcycle. If so, I am all about it!

 

 

I think they should name it the Dorky Park Car. I want mine in blue and gray, like the Vjatka!

 

Or maybe black with flames!

 

May it always be this much fun (and eco-friendly) to be loved by Russia!