Bongo Fury

Imagine all the batteries laid out flat, low down in a Bongo for low CoG then all that instant torque

My wife has an electric tricycle which I have modified to 48v 750w and the torque and acceleration is fantastic, the motor is inside the front wheel so it wheelspins from a standstill if not careful

Last year I was importing a Toyota Alphard Hybrid (interestingly some of my posts got moderated / deleted as the so - so importer could be identified from the blurbs I had posted) ..

I did quite a bit of research (mainly ... was I making the right decision) .. but it really did tick 99% of the right boxes for me ..

For a two ton motor with a diddy 2.4 16v DOHC VVTi 4WD engine /CVT box / 1.5Kw NiMH batteries .. 'on paper' the performance figures .. particularly around town .. where quite impressive .. more than keeping up and beating most 'normal' motors ..

Toyota quotes 48mpg ( Uuummm ????) .. couple that with the LPG conversion that I had provisionally booked it in for .. performance and economy in a giant of a motor ..!!

rustyp wrote:My wife has an electric tricycle which I have modified to 48v 750w and the torque and acceleration is fantastic, the motor is inside the front wheel so it wheelspins from a standstill if not careful

Get three more and replace the Bongo's wheels. Can't be that difficult

Did you get the Toyota? What was the outcome?

Long story .. search / look at some of my last year posts ..

In a nut shell .. last August on an Alphard site I mentioned I was interested in an Alphard .. Importer contacts me to say he as an Hybrid in Japan .. he sends me the auction sheet and dockside pics:

After some deliberation / re search (and constast emails from the importer) the condition / price was to good to miss so on Sept 4 I sent him a deposit ...

Then not one word .. until Early November some one on another site mentioned he had seen London pictures of 'my Alphard' and it was a cracker .. so I contacted the importer to query why him ..and not me .. he then sent me the pictures ..

Fully valeted it looked stunning .. far better than than the Japanese dock side pics: .. then once again no communication .. so a week or so later I asked what's what .. reply .. waiting on DVLA / registration etc:

Then a week or so later ... an eMail to say .. the NiMH battery pack (around 65kg) the converter and power cables had been robbed ( yes .. right ??) and the Alphard was a write off .. I even said if his insurance gets it back A1 I would still have it .. Nothing ...

I got my deposit back in December ...

My honest opinion .. I reckon the Hybrid was worth two - three grand plus to my agreed OTR price with him .. he had / used my £500 deposit as part of his business funding .. when the Alphard landed in the UK .. he realised he had under sold / priced it .. in my mind that Alphard is still on the road ... somewhere ..!!

In February I bought a 3.0 24v quad cam V6 Alphard (Lexus RX300 engine) even had it LPGd .. I have driven it .... about one hundred yards .. still on my drive as I still use the Bongo..!!

Alphard Hybrid power flow / drive screen ..(pic: fom 'My' robbed Hybrid)



My replacement 3.0 V6 (a Toyota factory made Welcab version the equivalent of our aftermarket WAV)