Green Options

One of the things people who’ve driven electric cars seem to enjoy (including myself) is the complete silence of the electric motor. The only noises you hear while driving an EV are dependent on how fast you’re driving, the kind of tires you have, and the condition of the road. For a commuter, this feature alone can be worth millions in sanity.

But at low speeds while driving around town, EVs represent a bit of a threat to people who aren’t able to pick up on the visual cues of such a silent car — namely the visually impaired, children and the elderly. In an effort to address this problem, Nissan has decided that at speeds under 12 mph, the upcoming LEAF EV will emit a “beautiful and futuristic” noise reminiscent of the sounds that flying cars emit in sci-fi movies such as Blade Runner.

The world is a bit out of funk for GM right now, and the reality is no pundit or politican or executive really knows where the world’s former manufacturing heavyweight will be even a year from now. The General has some interesting projects in the works, not least among them the plug-in electric Volt which could be a pariah or prophet (pun!) for the ailing automaker.

Earlier this year GM unvieled the Cadillac Converj concept which would be a luxury version of the Volt, and that apparently got some people thinking; what else could be built on the Volt platform? Why not a Saab for instance?

The urban environment depicted in the cult classic film Blade Runner (intended to represent Los Angeles in the year 2019) has received its share of scholarly attention… and no wonder. Scenes in which flying cars zip through a maze of city “streets,” riding thousands of feet above ground level, are among the movie’s most captivating. And while the film is dystopian, depicting a distressingly dense and inhumane cityscape, it may nevertheless be prophetic: current explorations in neighborhood development are more Blade Runner than they are The Andy Griffith Show.