On 26 Sep 2016 at 19:44, Mark Hanson via EV wrote: > I was thinking of buying a 2014 Smart ED but I can't find a service > manual/schematics ... I have a Leaf currently and it was easy to > download/print the 3" thick shop manual ... the local Mercedes dealer > wanted $25K for a battery replacement ... the Leaf is $5.5K ... is the > Smart ED a throw-away car that you can't service? ... The Smart ED > warranty is 4 years 48K miles ... without paying $80 battery rent per > month ... I also use LeafSpy but didn't see info app like that for the > Smart ED ...
Wait. You're thinking of buying a Smart ED instead of another Leaf? With all those hassles, WHY? > I'd like to replace my electric Ghia www.evalbum.com/4346 soon when it > needs $8k batteries with a $8k 2014 Smart or similar small commuter car > to make my 48 miles round trip to work. > Ohhhh. The Smart ED is a compliance car. Diamler are selling it at below its actual cost so they can make big profits on their expensive ICEVs. They're complying with the law in selling the ED, but AFAIK nothing in the law says that a buyer actually has to be able to keep or use the car. Diamler also probably expect to make up their purchase price losses via their vastly overpriced service. They want and need you coming back to the dealer regularly. Making manuals unavailable and charging over 3 times the cost of the car for a new battery is pretty much a gigantic skyward middle finger from Diamler to you, and to the state regulators who passed the EV laws. Are you going to accept it? My crystal ball is foggy, but ATM it seems there's a chance that US politics will change direction next year, or if not, 2 years after that with midterm elections. That will put the future of EV legislation and incentives in doubt. If they collapse, as CA's Braude Initiative did when CARB caved in the 1990s, compliance EVs are likely to vanish almost overnight. Your cheap ED is would probbly become an expensive orphan. Diamler might carry on supporting it for as long as they were making enough money on it -- or not. Why should they care if your ED turns into a dusty shelf in your garage? In this scenario your best shot would be teaming up online with other owners to reverse-engineer the ED. But look out, vehicles are software now. DRM (digital restriction management) already makes reverse engineering illegal for John Deere farm equipment owners. Nothing is stopping Mercedes or any other auto company from similarly sending the law after you if you try to crack the software restrictions in their EVs. The media companies who produce and distribute movies and music love paid downloads and streaming. By law, you can still own CDs and DVDs; but in almost every case, download and streaming agreements that you "sign" by using them give you no ownership. All you've paid for is the limited right to listen to and view the stuff for as long as the companies let you. This is the inkjet printer cartridge model on steroids. Similarly, the automakers don't really want to sell you a car. Even if you don't lease, they want to sell you nothing more than the right to drive the car for as long as they let you, and for as long as they're making money from you. IMO this is the way vehicles are going. Increasingly, we (and neighborhood mechanics who can't afford to buy the licensed software and tools from the manufacturers) just won't be able to work on new vehicles, ICEV or EV. So my advice, for what it's worth, is to forget the ED. It's cheap, but it's not a bargain. You could get a used Leaf, cheap right now. Better yet, bite the bullet and spend the $8k (or more, since you seem to need more range) on a new battery for your Ghia conversion. Either will probably end up cheaper in the long run than all the fins and sawbucks that Diamler will whisk out of your wallet. And if you refurb the Ghia, you'll be able to work on it yourself, always and forever. Think about it. David Roden - Akron, Ohio, USA EVDL Administrator = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = EVDL Information: http://www.evdl.org/help/ = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = Note: mail sent to "evpost" and "etpost" addresses will not reach me. To send a private message, please obtain my email address from the webpage http://www.evdl.org/help/ . = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = _______________________________________________ UNSUBSCRIBE: http://www.evdl.org/help/index.html#usub http://lists.evdl.org/listinfo.cgi/ev-evdl.org Read EVAngel's EV News at http://evdl.org/evln/ Please discuss EV drag racing at NEDRA (http://groups.yahoo.com/group/NEDRA)
