Maui Meadows resident plugs into the future.When I arrived to talk with Buck Joiner about the four, new, all-electric Flybo low-speed vehicles he just received from China, he already had one of them partially disassembled in his backyard. That is precisely what makes him the perfect person for this adventurous transaction. He is a tenacious, fix-anything-engineer, but according to him, the paperwork needed to make this purchase and get the cars licensed is more challenging than the work he will do on the cars—and it isn’t finished yet.
“Tackling this was a horrendous undertaking,” said Joiner. “Like wrestling four 800-pound gorillas, in a tag-team match.”
This purchase is part of his larger plan to use renewable energy for as much as 90 to 95 percent of his needs. His home already has a rooftop covered with solar panels, and the tent housing the rest of his electric fleet—a scooter and a bicycle—is also topped with a solar panel used to charge them. Joiner is reasonably sure he will be able to charge one of the four cars he plans to keep for himself with his existing solar output, but admits he may need more panels.
Joiner has been interested in renewable energy for many years, but research started late in 2007 for just the right electric car. His first crossroads was whether to buy a new electric car or convert a traditional car. He has an old Triumph Spitfire and knows that a conversion is possible, but it seemed more than even he wanted to take on, though the cost might have been about the same as his purchase.
Through his Internet research, Joiner found a futuristic-looking, three-wheeled car (classified as a motorcycle). The Aptera, which will go over 80 mph with a range of 120 miles, sells for around $30,000. The company has a sound strategy: They are only available in California, within range for testing and repairs. But that policy excludes Joiner from the driver’s seat.
After many more hours on the Web, the Flybo finally emerged. The Flybo is made by the Shandong Pioneer Motorcycle Company in Jinan, China, a maker of motorcycles since 1956. As there is no U.S. distributor, all dealings were direct with the manufacturer.
The Flybo is considered an experimental vehicle; Joiner got numbers 91 through 94. The car is made of lightweight, molded fiberglass. Some design elements seem to be adapted from the Mercedes Smart Car. The front grill looks very BMW-like, even though it goes nowhere, as there is no radiator under the hood. (Is this homage to the masters or a clever marketing ploy?)
The inside of the car is very stark by American standards, though, curiously, it has a radio, CD player and power windows. Buck has wisely installed carpeting on the plastic-lined floor. Although they are available, Buck ordered his cars without heaters.
The car is required to sport an orange safety triangle on the back and is legally required to stay to under 25 mph. It is also required to have safety glass, certified lap-shoulder belts, headlights, brake lights, backup lights, directional signals and horn. It is not required to have airbags or to undergo crash testing. The “low-speed vehicle” designation exempts the vehicle from having to meet more stringent safety regulations—which it definitely wouldn’t meet.
The car will keep evolving as the company receives feedback from buyers like Joiner, who has already started an after-purchase dialog with them.
According to Joiner, it can be a challenge to import a new technology from a country where details can literally get “lost in translation.” But he said he would do it all over again—even with everything he has had overcome so far.
At press time, the papers requested to license the vehicles were still “in process.” Meanwhile, Joiner gets my “walk it like you talk it” award. I will talk to him again after these cars are out and about for awhile.