Recent content by Mad Mac

You are perfectly welcome. I rode the heck out of the HOV lane in Houston using it every day that it was not raining in the morning for six years on my Yamaha V-max. On a couple of commutes I counted the cars I passed in one lane during rush hour for one mile. Multiplied that by three lanes...

We started with HOV but now also have HOT. Per Ride Metro: HOV/HOT Express Lanes HOV stands for High Occupancy Vehicle. HOT stands for High Occupancy Toll. Both refer to a barrier-separated lane in the middle of I-45, Hwy. 59 and Hwy. 290. The lane runs in one direction, but it’s reversible...

Here in Texas an "autocycle" with three wheels enclosed with seats and seatbelts may use the HOV lane. Autocycles are classified as motorcycles for registration and title purposes. As of 2023, operators in Texas generally require a Class M motorcycle license, and safety, insurance, and...

FWD! That makes it even more puzzling why it would be a 3-wheeler.

It's deja Vu all over again. Vehicle purgatory is littered with rear drive three-wheelers, albeit the Aptera is an electric one. The Canadian T-Rex. The Corbin Sparrow. The Polaris Slingshot. Elio Motors (I still have the t-shirt) and others. British ones in the past were created to defeat...

Excess energy! Curtailing energy? Maybe the utility companies should use the excess energy to mine cryptocurrency. Do I have to think of everything?

Right. My electric co-op bill breaks it down. Bill Page Unfortunately this one has no credit for solar energy delivered to the grid by the homeowner but if it did it would be at the same rate per kwh as energy delivered. The co-op changed out my electric meter at no charge for a dual meter...

The next thing will be to tax our EVs for the miles traveled since we will not be paying the 60 to 70 cents per gallon excise tax on gasoline. Oh wait. Vermont and Utah are already charging an odometer tax, a vehicle miles traveled tax (VMT), and other states are considering it.

Evidently I am not intelligent enough to understand how disincentivizing homeowners and businesses from installing solar will produce more clean energy, decrease our dependence on foreign oil and move us toward energy independence.

Texas does not have a state-mandated, universal net metering policy, but many Retail Electric Providers (REPs) and municipal utilities offer solar buyback plans, allowing homeowners to receive credits for excess energy sent to the grid. https://meterplan.com/help/how-solar-billing-works Mine...

It should run the house for 50 to 80 hours depending on the electrical load. F-150 Power Boost has a 30.6 gallon tank. So refill every two or three days. Buc-ees and some other stations have their own generators to pump gas.

Evidently, it is enough.

But wait, that's not all. A hybrid F-150 is at most only $3,500 more than a comparable F-150. You have to drive something so the rest of the cost of the truck is irrelevant.

Wait. There's more. Hurricanes or tornadoes and the related power outages are actually a more likely threat than blizzards where I live. Assuming the house survives the storm trying to cool down in comfort with air conditioning would be the challenge at my age. Air conditioning is a heavy...

"Prolonged freezing temperatures in February 2021 gripped Texas for nearly a week, pushing demand to record levels and knocking power plants and natural gas systems offline as equipment froze and fuel supplies failed. More than 4 million people lost electricity, contributing to more than 240...