The Sebring-Vanguard Electric CitiCar Takes You Anywhere At 40 MPH...As Long As It's Only 40 Miles - Jalopnik Comments

The Sebring-Vanguard Electric CitiCar Takes You Anywhere At 40 MPH...As Long As It's Only 40 Miles

mcguirev10 — Wed, 05 Mar 2008 16:24:00 EST

A used-car dealership here in Jax, FL has had one of those out front for the past 20-25 years or so. For some reason I always thought it was an old Saab. Either somebody told me that, or I assumed it (the place used to be a Saab dealership).

mcguirev10

The Sebring-Vanguard Electric CitiCar Takes You Anywhere At 40 MPH...As Long As It's Only 40 Miles

GrandmaSideways — Mon, 25 Feb 2008 23:55:03 EST

I live about 5 minutes from the bridge to downtown.
If I worked downtown (and didn't have a face so nobody could recognize me) this might be perfect.

GrandmaSideways

The Sebring-Vanguard Electric CitiCar Takes You Anywhere At 40 MPH...As Long As It's Only 40 Miles

petersterncan — Mon, 25 Feb 2008 18:24:11 EST

@smokeydog001: Oh. Well, either way, the demographic is the same. If I lived a life of leisure, I would seriously consider training to enter Le Tour d'France and then show up with that bike just so I can watch everyone shit themselves.

Oddly enough I bet that the bike is as comfortable to ride as the Citicar... for one thing they look like they have similar wheelbases.

Hmmm... I just had an idea... the "anti-fantasy garage". That bike and the Citicar would be the first two to make it in.

petersterncan

The Sebring-Vanguard Electric CitiCar Takes You Anywhere At 40 MPH...As Long As It's Only 40 Miles

UDMan — Mon, 25 Feb 2008 09:45:32 EST

@cyclopticgaze: Where else but on Jalopnik could you have a discussion about an old Electric Car, and have an obscure Adult Swim reference thrown in for good measure.
You don't find this stuff on Autoblog!

UDMan

The Sebring-Vanguard Electric CitiCar Takes You Anywhere At 40 MPH...As Long As It's Only 40 Miles

SundaySunday — Mon, 25 Feb 2008 09:34:35 EST

I can haz Jonny Cab from teh Total Recall?

SundaySunday

The Sebring-Vanguard Electric CitiCar Takes You Anywhere At 40 MPH...As Long As It's Only 40 Miles

cyclopticgaze — Mon, 25 Feb 2008 08:52:53 EST

I think I saw this on Sealab 2021, right before Hesh blew up Pod 4.

cyclopticgaze

The Sebring-Vanguard Electric CitiCar Takes You Anywhere At 40 MPH...As Long As It's Only 40 Miles

Buckster — Mon, 25 Feb 2008 08:31:27 EST

@PÖLAЯ: Not the only, Triumph TR7 has that distinction also.

Buckster

The Sebring-Vanguard Electric CitiCar Takes You Anywhere At 40 MPH...As Long As It's Only 40 Miles

smokeydog001 — Mon, 25 Feb 2008 08:15:28 EST

@petersterncan:

LOL I was refering to the recumbent bike.

smokeydog001

The Sebring-Vanguard Electric CitiCar Takes You Anywhere At 40 MPH...As Long As It's Only 40 Miles

Vee5 — Mon, 25 Feb 2008 07:55:37 EST

Wow, this looks like it belongs in the movie Brazil. WANT!

Vee5

The Sebring-Vanguard Electric CitiCar Takes You Anywhere At 40 MPH...As Long As It's Only 40 Miles

petersterncan — Mon, 25 Feb 2008 01:39:40 EST

@kleinlowe: I agree... in my case, the girl I married was still into me even though "my car" at the time we met was a combination of my mom's Ford Escort and public transit. And the first car I could truly call my own was a Ford Festiva.

She's happy as long as the car runs and actually likes cars with character.

The Saab I own right now was more her idea than mine.

petersterncan

The Sebring-Vanguard Electric CitiCar Takes You Anywhere At 40 MPH...As Long As It's Only 40 Miles

skulldriveshaft — Mon, 25 Feb 2008 00:15:40 EST

Where is this road legal?

skulldriveshaft

The Sebring-Vanguard Electric CitiCar Takes You Anywhere At 40 MPH...As Long As It's Only 40 Miles

LandofMinos, Don't you fucking look at me! — Mon, 25 Feb 2008 00:05:35 EST

Wow!!! A couple of these for ramps on my car trailer.

LandofMinos, Don't you fucking look at me!

The Sebring-Vanguard Electric CitiCar Takes You Anywhere At 40 MPH...As Long As It's Only 40 Miles

timbuktu — Sun, 24 Feb 2008 23:54:11 EST

Am I the only one who immediately thought "Welcome to Johnny Cab!" and expected the Governator to pop out?

timbuktu

The Sebring-Vanguard Electric CitiCar Takes You Anywhere At 40 MPH...As Long As It's Only 40 Miles

kleinlowe — Sun, 24 Feb 2008 23:40:41 EST

@petersterncan: If the girl you're dating is cool enough to be into a second date after the CitiCar, propose. Heck, if she's car-smart enough to be into you after the Saab, propose! It's like speed-dating for gearheads.

kleinlowe

The Sebring-Vanguard Electric CitiCar Takes You Anywhere At 40 MPH...As Long As It's Only 40 Miles

ranwhenparked — Sun, 24 Feb 2008 23:35:20 EST

1979 model year, last registered in 1983. The car was used for about 4 years and 763 miles. That's 190 miles a year- and the seller still mentions that the interior is free of wear and tear- as if it wouldn't go without saying on something with practically test drive miles on it.

Looking at this car, I'd say it was more of a case of the electric car committing suicide, rather than being killed by someone else.

ranwhenparked

The Sebring-Vanguard Electric CitiCar Takes You Anywhere At 40 MPH...As Long As It's Only 40 Miles

POLAЯMISSESEVEЯYBODY — Sun, 24 Feb 2008 23:02:43 EST

¡ʎddɐɥ ¡ɯou ɯou ɯou ɯo

POLAЯMISSESEVEЯYBODY

The Sebring-Vanguard Electric CitiCar Takes You Anywhere At 40 MPH...As Long As It's Only 40 Miles

Vipper Of Vipp — Sun, 24 Feb 2008 22:56:57 EST

What, no "nom-nom-nom" caption yet?

Vipper Of Vipp

The Sebring-Vanguard Electric CitiCar Takes You Anywhere At 40 MPH...As Long As It's Only 40 Miles

petersterncan — Sun, 24 Feb 2008 22:22:30 EST

@smokeydog001: Nah... the style isn't "fabulous enough" for a gay person. Gay people are into Land Rovers and Volvos. Also, gay people have sex... which disqualifies them from having a Citicar/Commutacar. I believe there are two demographics for the Citicar:
1. Someone who is celibate, is interested in the efficiency differences between an electric motor and a gasoline/diesel engine, gets a kick out of the much greater efficiency he's getting compared to everybody else and is interested in getting the best efficiency per dollar.
2. Someone with a sense of humour and would get a kick out of people's reactions to the car. For example... you're dating a girl that you kind of want to break up with. So to help the process along, instead of showing up for dates your Porsche/Jag/Mercedes/Saab... etc, you show up with the Citicar/Commutacar... and then perhaps drive by an area where she'll be seen by people she knows.

I fall into the #2 demographic.

petersterncan

The Sebring-Vanguard Electric CitiCar Takes You Anywhere At 40 MPH...As Long As It's Only 40 Miles

hootjigga — Sun, 24 Feb 2008 22:01:42 EST

Let's see... 763 miles, divided by 40 miles per charge... comes to 19.075 chrages, and thus 19.075 hours have been spent driving the fucker.

hootjigga

The Sebring-Vanguard Electric CitiCar Takes You Anywhere At 40 MPH...As Long As It's Only 40 Miles

Bubs — Sun, 24 Feb 2008 21:46:13 EST

A smart man once made quite the statement about electric cars such as this one. It was of this effect:

You can't run the heater because you'll wear the battery down.

You can't use the wipers because you'll wear the battery down.

You can't use the headlights because you'll wear the battery down.

You can't bring a passenger because you'll wear the battery down.

You can't being luggage because you'll wear the battery down.

You can't use your turn signal because you'll wear the battery down.

You can't listen to the radio because you'll wear the battery down.

You can't speed up because you'll wear the battery down.

You can't change lanes because you'll wear the battery down.

And, you can't slow down because you'll wear the battery down.

Welcome to the world of the Citicar.

Bubs

The Sebring-Vanguard Electric CitiCar Takes You Anywhere At 40 MPH...As Long As It's Only 40 Miles

smokyburnout — Sun, 24 Feb 2008 20:53:03 EST

i imagine the safety guys wanted a flashing yellow light on top to warn people there was a slow vehicle ahead, but it cut the rage to 20 miles...

smokyburnout

The Sebring-Vanguard Electric CitiCar Takes You Anywhere At 40 MPH...As Long As It's Only 40 Miles

POLAЯMISSESEVEЯYBODY — Sun, 24 Feb 2008 20:10:16 EST

@Яṻst-MÿËnemÿ: I love how it only managed to accumulate 736.1 miles before at least one person said, "WTF was I thinking?"

POLAЯMISSESEVEЯYBODY

The Sebring-Vanguard Electric CitiCar Takes You Anywhere At 40 MPH...As Long As It's Only 40 Miles

Rust-MyEnemy is stll out there! — Sun, 24 Feb 2008 19:10:24 EST

I love on the speedo how there looks to be a long pause between the 45 and 50.

At least it's realistic.

Rust-MyEnemy is stll out there!

The Sebring-Vanguard Electric CitiCar Takes You Anywhere At 40 MPH...As Long As It's Only 40 Miles

smokeydog001 — Sun, 24 Feb 2008 19:00:20 EST

@petersterncan:
That looks like something a poofer would pedal.

smokeydog001

The Sebring-Vanguard Electric CitiCar Takes You Anywhere At 40 MPH...As Long As It's Only 40 Miles

ShastaMcNasty — Sun, 24 Feb 2008 18:59:17 EST

Wow, this guy really knows how to sell:

"This is a complete car with side doors and door handles."

Really? Do you actually have to specify this? On a vehicle that isn't a Jeep I mean.

I do like the optimistic 50 MPH speedometer and funky sideways odometer though.

ShastaMcNasty

The Sebring-Vanguard Electric CitiCar Takes You Anywhere At 40 MPH...As Long As It's Only 40 Miles

Rusted — Sun, 24 Feb 2008 18:58:23 EST

@PÖLAЯ: The doorstop is more reliable. Bean power works for me in nice weather, most everything is a mile or less away.

Rusted

The Sebring-Vanguard Electric CitiCar Takes You Anywhere At 40 MPH...As Long As It's Only 40 Miles

Ray Wert — Sun, 24 Feb 2008 18:55:28 EST

I'm disappointed to see faux side scoops are not a "new" thing.

Ray Wert

The Sebring-Vanguard Electric CitiCar Takes You Anywhere At 40 MPH...As Long As It's Only 40 Miles

mikedrawcar — Sun, 24 Feb 2008 18:49:43 EST

it's good to see the world's t-squares and triangles were put to good use.

mikedrawcar

The Sebring-Vanguard Electric CitiCar Takes You Anywhere At 40 MPH...As Long As It's Only 40 Miles

DoctorNine makes tires squeal in terror — Sun, 24 Feb 2008 18:33:40 EST

Pffft. I can move faster than that on a recumbent bike.

Try this site:

[www.easyracers.com]

DoctorNine makes tires squeal in terror

The Sebring-Vanguard Electric CitiCar Takes You Anywhere At 40 MPH...As Long As It's Only 40 Miles

petersterncan — Sun, 24 Feb 2008 18:32:17 EST

I've seen a couple of these on ebay before... I think it's the ultimate geekmobile.

petersterncan

The Sebring-Vanguard Electric CitiCar Takes You Anywhere At 40 MPH...As Long As It's Only 40 Miles

SupermotoThud — Sun, 24 Feb 2008 18:20:26 EST

Well one positive thing is those blind people angry at hybrids and electrical vehicles never have to see this car. Or hear it.

SupermotoThud

The Sebring-Vanguard Electric CitiCar Takes You Anywhere At 40 MPH...As Long As It's Only 40 Miles

Eldorado — Sun, 24 Feb 2008 18:12:07 EST

I remember researching these cars for an article on electric cars long ago. Actually, you would have a choice with this car on its best day. You might go 40 miles if you kept the speed below, say, 25. Or you might go 40 miles-per-hour for, say, 25 minutes (maybe). No wind, no cargo, no passengers. Yeah, you might do one of the two. I'm mad for that woodgrain dash, though, and I get a special thrill from bodies containing "cycolac." Imagine a world where we all drove around in these. Imagine the kind of mind that thinks it would be WONDERFUL if we were all forced to drive around in these. Check out [www.tcsdaily.com] I think most of what's there still applies.

Eldorado

The Sebring-Vanguard Electric CitiCar Takes You Anywhere At 40 MPH...As Long As It's Only 40 Miles

POLAЯMISSESEVEЯYBODY — Sun, 24 Feb 2008 17:20:03 EST

Quite possibly the world's only $2400.00 door stop!

POLAЯMISSESEVEЯYBODY

The Sebring-Vanguard Electric CitiCar Takes You Anywhere At 40 MPH...As Long As It's Only 40 Miles

smokeydog001 — Sun, 24 Feb 2008 16:47:04 EST

They must have found Harris Mann, "The Shape of Things to Come!" under the Illuminations in Liverpool.

smokeydog001

The Sebring-Vanguard Electric CitiCar Takes You Anywhere At 40 MPH...As Long As It's Only 40 Miles

Buzz Killington — Sun, 24 Feb 2008 16:31:19 EST

Why not just get yourself an actual golf cart and at least spare yourself some humiliation? I live in lower manhattan and would love to tool around in a golf-cart all Van Wilder style, but its not legal. This thing is just retarded.

Buzz Killington

The Sebring-Vanguard Electric CitiCar Takes You Anywhere At 40 MPH...As Long As It's Only 40 Miles

NovaloadMissesPolar — Sun, 24 Feb 2008 15:48:11 EST

@Яṻst-MÿËnemÿ: Yes, I'm willing to take the chance on being wrong on this too. But there are bound to be some mall security guys who are hanging on every bid.

NovaloadMissesPolar

The Sebring-Vanguard Electric CitiCar Takes You Anywhere At 40 MPH...As Long As It's Only 40 Miles

SLR_BlowerMania — Sun, 24 Feb 2008 15:37:00 EST

Because I want to be like Ed Begley, Jr.

SLR_BlowerMania

The Sebring-Vanguard Electric CitiCar Takes You Anywhere At 40 MPH...As Long As It's Only 40 Miles

Armand Bengle — Sun, 24 Feb 2008 15:23:01 EST

@amblito: I think it just WANTS to be a Bond Bug when it grows up.

Armand Bengle

The Sebring-Vanguard Electric CitiCar Takes You Anywhere At 40 MPH...As Long As It's Only 40 Miles

goatrope — Sun, 24 Feb 2008 14:57:55 EST

763 miles in its lifetime? A round of golf covers 4 miles, so this wasn't the most durable vehicle ever built.

It is my understanding that the new Tesla battery-powered car should be able to go at least twice as far in its lifetime.

goatrope

The Sebring-Vanguard Electric CitiCar Takes You Anywhere At 40 MPH...As Long As It's Only 40 Miles

BrianDangerHicks — Sun, 24 Feb 2008 14:51:30 EST

This is great! It's got a NACA air intake on the front, so you know it's aerodynamic. The only unfortunate thing is that the federal bumper laws really ruined its smooth lines.

BrianDangerHicks

The Sebring-Vanguard Electric CitiCar Takes You Anywhere At 40 MPH...As Long As It's Only 40 Miles

piththeelder — Sun, 24 Feb 2008 14:41:26 EST

See! This is all anyone really needs. For those rare cases when you need a vehicle more capable than this you can simply rent it. This vehicle is perfectly acceptable for daily commuting and I, for one, can't wait until the government forces me to buy it.

piththeelder

The Sebring-Vanguard Electric CitiCar Takes You Anywhere At 40 MPH...As Long As It's Only 40 Miles

yellofury * * * * * — Sun, 24 Feb 2008 14:21:08 EST

kinda diggin the faux Bricklin bumper up front
Well you can buy one of these and pretend your a Sandman from Logan's Run except when you yell "run Runner!" thay can actually outrun you

yellofury * * * * *

The Sebring-Vanguard Electric CitiCar Takes You Anywhere At 40 MPH...As Long As It's Only 40 Miles

bmoredlj — Sun, 24 Feb 2008 14:19:13 EST

Interesting that you'd place this true minicar directly above two midsize wagons that are merely called minis.

bmoredlj

The Sebring-Vanguard Electric CitiCar Takes You Anywhere At 40 MPH...As Long As It's Only 40 Miles

yellofury * * * * * — Sun, 24 Feb 2008 14:18:46 EST

if it had an 8 track in the dash I'd be all over it

yellofury * * * * *

The Sebring-Vanguard Electric CitiCar Takes You Anywhere At 40 MPH...As Long As It's Only 40 Miles

brandonvalentine — Sun, 24 Feb 2008 14:12:09 EST

I wish I had the cash to spring for this right now. I would totally drive it on my 1 mile commute to work Jay Leno in a Stanley Steamer stylee.

brandonvalentine

The Sebring-Vanguard Electric CitiCar Takes You Anywhere At 40 MPH...As Long As It's Only 40 Miles

Kelly — Sun, 24 Feb 2008 14:05:36 EST

It has been confirmed, yet again, given enough monkeys, master works of literature could be produced. What confirms it? The gaggle of errors in this eBay ad. How do these people function on a day-to-day basis?!

Oh, and a 'reasonably low' reserve on a Malaise-era beastlet like this should be $0.50.

Jay Leno should scarf it up and slap a turbo- and supercharged GL1800 engine/drivetrain into it. Wheelies, anyone?

Kelly

The Sebring-Vanguard Electric CitiCar Takes You Anywhere At 40 MPH...As Long As It's Only 40 Miles

Rust-MyEnemy is stll out there! — Sun, 24 Feb 2008 14:04:28 EST

Looks a bit like a piece of cheese.

I may be wrong about this, but I'm pretty sure I don't need one.

Rust-MyEnemy is stll out there!

The Sebring-Vanguard Electric CitiCar Takes You Anywhere At 40 MPH...As Long As It's Only 40 Miles

amblito — Sun, 24 Feb 2008 13:34:14 EST

Looks a bit like a Bond Bug.

amblito

The Sebring-Vanguard Electric CitiCar Takes You Anywhere At 40 MPH...As Long As It's Only 40 Miles

laxman15 — Sun, 24 Feb 2008 13:28:25 EST

"No wear or tares. It needs cleaned up and a new set of batteries." nice grammar and spelling

laxman15

The Sebring-Vanguard Electric CitiCar Takes You Anywhere At 40 MPH...As Long As It's Only 40 Miles

mathlabs — Sun, 24 Feb 2008 13:18:09 EST

this should be PCH. HAYABUSA SWAP PCH!!!

mathlabs

The Sebring-Vanguard Electric CitiCar Takes You Anywhere At 40 MPH...As Long As It's Only 40 Miles

Adamskiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiy — Sun, 24 Feb 2008 13:17:34 EST

My Hummer is still hungry.

Adamskiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiy