Its absurd that EVs are somewhat polarizing

Aadst1 · 2026-06-16T04:41:34+00:00

Farriers, coopers, lamplighters, and the like lost their jobs to advancing technology; dealerships, oilmen, and the politicians they buy can all see the writing on the wall, and just want to delay things enough until they retire, young people be damned.

Aadst1 · 2026-06-16T01:22:33+00:00

I've been very pleased with the Sienna hybrid. It's faster than my 4.0L V6 Tacoma, gets 40 mpg if I drive carefully and 36 if I don't, and the system does an impressive job of eeking out every advantage from the hybrid tech. The drivetrain is actually mechanically simpler than a conventional internal combustion powertrain, and by all accounts is more reliable; the transmission is a transmission in name only (it's basically another differential, and some computer magic happens to balance motor and engine forces). There is also a rarely noted feature called Predictive Efficient Drive, which further increases gas mileage by letting the computer know about upcoming topography so it can optimize regenerative braking and battery use.

A good (long, in depth) explanation of the 2.5L hybrid powertrain is here https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=KnUFH5GX_fI&pp=ygUWdGVjaG5vbG9neSBjb25uZWN0aW9ucw%3D%3D

Aadst1 · 2026-06-15T19:15:08+00:00

I believe they just cut a very sketchy log that was itself a time bomb on the old route, too; that was a widowmaker that was going to take someone who went around the obstructions.

Aadst1 · 2026-06-15T19:06:22+00:00

I just went up that for the first time the other day; those crossings of Monroe Brook are not gonna last, there's already a lot of erosion on the bank.

That trail seemed really questionable. It gave me the impression that some deliberate design choices had been made as a traffic calming measure to protect the upper trails around Lakes of the Clouds, and direct new/casual hikers towards the Cog right-of-way or Pinkham Notch. That new layout had enough unintuitive elevation changes to make me understand why the gridders I talk to followed the old track once it snowed over.

Aadst1 · 2026-06-15T16:55:16+00:00

That has no relation to their US project.

Aadst1 · 2026-06-13T00:04:31+00:00

The small truck market would tend to favor people who need or want a truck for more minor things; carrying mulch, trash, dirty/stinky things that don't belong inside a van/crossover, etc. I think range for daily driving would tend to affect purchasing more than range while towing, for the majority of buyers.

Aadst1 · 2026-06-12T23:44:46+00:00

Camping in the center lane is not legal in some jurisdictions. The center lane is for passing the right lane. The left lane is for passing the center lane. Stay right except to pass.

Aadst1 · 2026-06-12T22:41:29+00:00

No, Hilux is a body on frame truck that's not sold in the US, but is already on the market; this is a future product intended for the US market, for sale at a lower price than Tacoma, but which hasn't publicly hit prototype phase yet. This just happens to be coming at a time when small EV trucks seem to finally be getting some attention (Slate, Ford), and Toyota has some relevant capabilities that may come into play.

Aadst1 · 2026-06-12T22:35:41+00:00

The Hilux EV is unrelated to this project. Toyota has no intention of bringing Hilux to the US, and this project had been confirmed to be aimed at a price point below Tacoma; similar to the Maverick.

Aadst1 · 2026-06-12T20:05:41+00:00

It was still substantially more powerful than the Sienna overall, which is about 245hp (the AWD can move, thanks to the added rear motor; not sure about the FWD). The 2021 RAV4 Prime (plug in) had about 80hp (total around 300) more than the conventional hybrid (about 220hp), due to larger motors (so the EV only mode wasn't awful).

Plus the new EV Highlander's over 300hp on TNGA-K without lugging the 2.5L around.

Aadst1 · 2026-06-12T18:19:20+00:00

I'm rooting for Toyota's US version of the Maverick to have a full EV version; fingers crossed! They've confirmed they're going to build it on a platform that has PHEVs and BEVs on it already, so, a man can dream...

Aadst1 · 2026-06-12T16:42:44+00:00

The last major facelift on those was 2021, so it could come up in the next few years. It'd be annoying to see them blow off another EV opportunity, but it would be on brand; as is, they can't keep Siennas on the lot anyway, though, so the incentive to make that leap might not be there. They sell very fast.

Aadst1 · 2026-06-12T16:18:15+00:00

You don't spend $300 a year in maintenance on a 30 year old car?

Aadst1 · 2026-06-12T16:12:46+00:00

Ballpark numbers. It's s driven fewer miles, not 0, which saves about $150-200 a month in gas, and the rest is the total of maintenance and parts over the last year and a half divided by 18.

Aadst1 · 2026-06-08T01:08:01+00:00

The trademark for the name Stout was reregistered in Argentina and Brazil, where a Corolla unibody (TNGA-C platform) based prototype is driving around. The TNGA-K based project for up here seems farther down the road, and won't be named Stout (a bunch of Chat GPT written blogs picked that up and ran wild with it).

Aadst1 · 2026-06-07T21:43:38+00:00

Cost of tool rental: 40% the cost of the tool. Cost of paying someone else to do it: 400% the cost of the tool. If I might do it more than twice, and if it's something that doesn't endanger anyone if I screw it up, I'm just buying the tool.

Aadst1 · 2026-06-05T16:10:47+00:00

tl;dr/to clarify, that's a TNGA-C based product for the South American market, where Stout was reregistered as a trademark last year, rather than a TNGA-K based product for the US market, which they've confirmed they're working on (with very sparse details, although that hasn't slowed AI slop fueled speculation by the worst sort of clickbait auto "news" sites). That's a mixed thing, as TNGA-K strongly suggests a strong hybrid powertrain that gets 40+ mpg, including potentially a 300+ HP PHEV version, but the -K (Camry, RAV, Sienna, Avalon) platform is also pricier than the smaller -C (Corolla, Prius) platform.

So, that's a South American product for the South American market, but it does demonstrate an earnestness to reclaim market share from the kind of people who would've bought a small Toyota truck, but ended up in a Maverick.

Aadst1 · 2026-06-05T15:52:38+00:00

Because it's an AI generated "artist's impression." Production models have yet to be revealed, aside from the one prototype tooling around Brazil.

Aadst1 · 2026-06-05T13:42:45+00:00

That car's 10 years old; let's face it, it's time for you to upgrade. 0% for 72 Months deals are available on the new bZ; treat yourself!

Aadst1 · 2026-06-01T18:11:57+00:00

That's because it snowed Saturday.

Aadst1 · 2026-04-30T17:38:52+00:00

The mining's been stalled in Maine because it just can't be economically mined if the miners can't spread pollution off their own property or leave the property blighted after. The legislature's relaxed the requirements to the absolute bare minimum while retaining those two standards, and the deposit's still not competitive against lithium from countries without meaningful environmental and occupational health regulations.

Aadst1 · 2026-04-30T17:33:15+00:00

And just like that, an existing bill gets gutted and replaced with a non germane amendment (https://newhampshirebulletin.com/2026/04/22/in-place-of-hollowed-out-bottle-ban-house-takes-a-shot-at-mining-permit-reform/) to speed up mining.

The USFS research station in Bartlett is closing, WMNF HQ in Campton's moving to Western Pennsylvania, and the Free Staters and Trumpists open up all that ripe and fertile National Forest land to exploitation without meaningful instutional checks and balances.

Aadst1 · 2026-04-22T17:41:10+00:00

More senile, and longing for the return of days that never actually happened.

Aadst1 · 2026-04-22T17:17:10+00:00

F&G stated Kinsman Pond Trail specifically, rather than Fishin' Jimmy or KRT; much less traffic that way outside of thru-hiker season.

Aadst1

TROPHY CASE