Men and Their BIG Cars.

Link Volt Part 1 - Wichita, KS

The good news. It seems three guys in a garage, with a lot of beer, in Wichita, Kansas, may beat three humongous auto makers in solving the fossil fuel problem. One of these guys is rock legend, Neil Young. He and his team have retrofitted a 1959 Lincoln with an electric generator and a biodiesel engine. It is called the Link Volt, pun intended.  The Lincoln, 19 feet long, the longest car ever made, weighs 2 1/2 tons and in its day got 10 miles to the gallon. Young is determined to have his car and drive it, too. Rather then continuing to build new cars, he encourages retrofitting what we have.  We can hope.

In fact, the Link Volt was just driven from Wichita to Los Angeles ("the Shore," as Young calls it) with a fuel average of 65 mpg.  Once they perfect the car, they envision the big lug  getting over 100 mpg.  So what's the deal?  Current Big 3 "hybrid SUVs" are getting barely 22 mpg!! Neil Young and his electric car may turn out to be the coolest thing about the failure of the auto industry.If you're like some of us, who are contemplating a live-in vehicle for use when the economy tanks, a big Caddy or Lincoln is beginning to look like a viable mode of residence. We're counting on their success.

It will be a great story to follow.  And, Young and his crew are going to help us do just that.  The garage has a live web cam, the Link Volt test vehicle is wired for the Internet and Young and his team provide regular video reports on their progress.  The shooting of a documentary film is in the works. Also, the men and women of Mileage Quest are helping to fill in some details.  The whole enterprise is dedicated to letting us share the experience as the American dream is rewired.

Hat tip to Brent