[mou] a car designed for birders

[Den Henrickson]

I also own a Jeep Wrangler and second everything Blaine said (including 
poor mileage). I have a hard top which I remove in the summer. It's 
great for slow driving on backroads. The visibility is great and you can 
also look up with binocs. One birding feature I never considered when I 
bought it was using the cd player for playing bird cds. I often take 
late night trips with owl call cds.

Den Henrickson

Avocet13@cs.com wrote:

> From: Avocet13@cs.com
> Subject: Re: [mou] a car designed for birders
> To: mikee@cadence.com
> Date: Mon, 10 Mar 2003 21:31:57 EST
> 
> Howdy all,
> 
> I have to put my two cents in on this one also. I thought for some time
> about my next vehicle, considering birding from it among other things 
> and am
> very pleased with my Jeep Wrangler. Aside from the mileage it is a great
> birding vehicle.
> 
> Four-wheel drive to get about anywhere.
> Very tight turning radius.
> High clearance.
> Small to fit some places larger vehicles cant.
> Flat front windshield ( no bowed vision ).
> High visibility especially when the weather is nice. Having the top off is
> awesome.
> 
> And actually it stays plenty warm in the winter. I have a soft top but real
> doors with windows. And yes Air and Cruise for the longer trips. It is 
> a bit
> of a stiff ride but they have come a long way. The soft top does have it's
> downfalls with security though.
> 
> The only thing I enjoy birding more from is my Harley :-) ......
> 
> Blaine Seeliger
> Avocet13@cs.com
> 
> In a message dated 3/7/03 9:46:34 AM Pacific Standard Time, 
> mikee@cadence.com
> writes:
> 
> << I've had the pleasure of driving my sister's gas/electric hybrid Toyota
> Prius this past week. Its so cool that I just had to tell somebody about it.
> 
> 
> 
> Birding features:
> 
> 1. 40-50 mpg. Save money on long bird chasing drives.
> 
> 2. To my knowledge it's the only car you can get in MN which meets the
> California SULEV standard (super ultra low emission). Minimize adding to
> greenhouse gases which has the potential for dangerous changes in habitat,
> food sources, migration patterns, etc.
> 
> 3. Large windows, front and back for viewing and for holding most large
> scope window mounts.
> 
> 4. Now, for the coolest birding feature: when you pull over and stop 
> at side
> of the road, the gas engine automatically shuts off-no noise, smells, or
> vibration to disrupt your viewing. Then, when you want to pull ahead a 
> little
> for a different viewing angle, the electric motor silently moves the car-no
> ignition noise to scare those skittish shorebirds. Only when you push 
> harder
> on the accelerator does the gas engine automatically start up for more 
> power.
> As long as you move under 20 mph (depending terrain) and don't 
> accelerate too
> much, the gas engine stays off. You can run on just the electric motor for
> quite awhile with no engine noise to interfere with hearing what's singing
> along the roadside.
> 
> 
> 
> Mike Engh
> 
> Wayzata
> _______________________________________________
> mou-net mailing list
> mou-net@cbs.umn.edu
> http://cbs.umn.edu/mailman/listinfo/mou-net