The ACP eBox is a Technology Showcase Crammed Inside a Cheap Toyota

[@digitalrailroader]

The hilarious thing about the Scion xB is that it might have been targeted to young people, but it was ACTUALLY popular with elderly people because of the high seat height.

[@almagill]

I'm 60 next year and would snap one of tehse up without a second thought because.. yep, seat height. Also torquey zoomies!

[@scienceguy8]

Pretty sure the financing available for them was also a factor. Was tailored for teens and young adults on first jobs, but was excellent for seniors on fixed incomes.

[@tytotheler92]

@@scienceguy8 they were very inexpensive, around the mid to upper 14s when they were offered and you got a lot of car for the price.

[@shnma5]

Yep the ingress/egress level for this car is amazing.

[@PaulTC97]

the front reminds me of an old Lexus LS

[@Lizlodude]

Somehow that regen slider simultaneously looks perfectly in place there, and totally jank. Also that cell readout is AWESOME, who cares if nobody knew what to make of it, I wish electric cars nowadays had stuff like that lol. Also the fact that it will apparently just backfeed power through the charge lead is...terrifying. Useful, but terrifying.

[@mikosoft]

The Regen slider is actually a fader from a mixing console. As a hobby sound engineer I immediately loled when I saw that.

[@QualityDoggo]

@@mikosoft "turn up the radio" "whoa what happened to the regen?"

[@Madwonk]

"useful but terrifying" yeah I have so many uses for this, I just want to go on a drive with my enemies and have them try to plug in while in the rain. What could go wrong, you know. Exposed wires and electricity and water

[@TheYABCShadow]

With all the LCDs as gauge clusters in modern EVs I also would like a complete cell readout and customizable gauges for actual amps/watts, rpm, field strength and other cool stuff. I mean most gauges in cars are useless in most normal driving situations anyways, like oil temp or water temp, why not put the same useless geeky gauges in EVs? ...

[@mfbfreak]

YES. Give me voltage and current readouts. The exact amount of kWh i used. Standby power of all the various gubbins. The more dumbed down things get, the harder they are to understand.

[@ouch1011]

The price pretty much fully explains why the original Leaf seems pathetic compared to this thing. The Leaf was built to a price that people could actually afford, and as a result, it actually sold. This eBox, while way ahead of its time, was way too expensive and therefore didn’t sell.

[@erikziak1249]

Ahead of its time for a car. Trolleybuses with three phase AC motors were pretty well proven, together with the driving circuits. The only difference is that they do not rely on a accumulator they carry around, but they connect to 600V DC hard source of electricity. Three phase AC high power motors for vehicle propulsion driven from an DC source was already a mature, widely used technology by the time this car came out. The traction accumulator of the car is not revolutionary, it lacks any active thermal management, it just limits the current based on temperature sensors in the pack.

[@toyotaprius79]

To add - Nissan and Renault engineers (and accountants) had been known to be in a bitter feud over how the Leaf and Renault Zoe be designed, specifically over the battery. The LEAF was over 2 years early, but after 10 years we can see that the Renault Zoe has been more resilient over time.

[@Kubla84]

when the original leaf came out, the battery pack cost $18,000 dollars, I had a 2014 Leaf, now own a 2015 E-Golf

[@tomsixsix]

@@toyotaprius79 The Renault Zoe has cooling for the battery (albeit, air cooling only, but at least it has something!), and a better cell chemistry (NMC in Zoe, same as Tesla; vs LMO for Leaf). It has clearly shown itself to be a better car, with longer useful life from the small battery.

[@captlarry-3525]

What is this supposed mystery tech? The original leaf battery life sucked. That was soon cured. The next gen had 6.6Kw charging 30KwH battery, heat pump heating and cooling, heated seats and wheel, and 100 mile range. It is very much the VW bug of EV's a classic that will indure and give great service long after the self styled sophisticates that criticize are seen for the dopes they are.

[@ryanrg93]

I went to the University of Delaware and saw these cars around they were always parked and everyone said they were broken. I always wanted to see them working. Thank you for making this video, now I know they in fact do work and were a pretty cool piece of technology at the time.

[@DUMBERTHANYOUTHINK]

I live in town. I've seen the XB's driving around. But come to think of it, its always been in the summer

[@captlarry-3525]

Now, try to find a broken Leaf ! Real engineering, by folks who know how to mass produce reliability makes all these experimental cars look stupid.

[@cybrnekomusic]

The experimental car is less reliable than the production car? Amazing. 😂 what a weird comment this is

[@AS768]

You're quite good at showing us cars we've never heard of. Great video!

[@eggbag4182]

How did you comment this thirteen hours before the video was published

[@tarstarkusz]

I think the video is corrupt, like there is a big part missing out of the advertisement for the ecoflow thing. It feels like it starting in the middle.

[@indenturedLemon]

@@eggbag4182 Patreon member probably

[@jwalster9412]

In more interested in the electric sports car they made before this one, that looks cool.

[@tarstarkusz]

@@jwalster9412 What one is that?

[@spokehedz]

Thanks EcoFlow for paying this hilarious dude to talk about cars that are somehow worse and better than my terrible car! I am absolutely not the target audience for almost any of your products, but MAN THAT LOOKS SLICK! I love the level of integration, and how everything is tucked neatly away into sensible locations where casual fingers cannot just touch the main battery positive... as I see on so many DIY projects.

[@raven4k998]

that one says hes going 60 the other says 55 what is he actually going who knows wait for the cops to catch him speeding pull him over and go you know how fast you were going sir nope no clue officer🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣

[@youruniquehandle2]

I was so confused on how the toaster and vacuum related to the eBox. It didn't even register to me that it was an ad until the timer went off and you said 'Ope, ad's done.'

[@Vanilla0729]

Me too. I was like.. Did he just accidentally edit two unrelated videos together and not notice, or is this an....yep, ad's done.

[@garousata4261]

Well iv got sponsor Block so i Skip that section entirely

[@codyhufstetler643]

That's why I'm in the comments right now

[@bournes9845]

the toaster does relate tho lol

[@ten132]

E dibba hai ye.

[@michaelh12231]

i cant stop lughing about the fact that Robbert says "im on a closed corse test track i swear" as he pulls out of an intersection and there are cars on the other side 🤣🤣

[@TacoXL]

Narc!

[@michaelh12231]

@@TacoXL im sorry but how does me thinking something if funny make me a "Narc"

[@TacoXL]

@@michaelh12231 it’s a joke about how clearly he’s not on a closed course and you’re like ‘teacher, you didn’t collect the homework!’

[@szalaigabor1714]

Interesting fact! The EU has a car with very similar charging system! It's called the Renault Zoe. The Zoe has a 43kW 3 phase charger (3x63A) and production started in 2013. Another thing: That xB inverter is very similar to a Tesla Roadster inverter! I guess AC Propulsion (aka: EV1 engineers) didn't waste their time after GM crushed the EV1s (2005).

[@dodecahedron1]

AC propulsion's founders left GM in 1992 and had no involvement with the EV1, only the impact concept car it was based on

[@justjc51]

There is a good reason why the system is very similar to the one found in the Tesla Roadster, as AC Propulsion was the company behind most of the systems that powered the first generation Tesla Roadster. The systems was developed for the AC Propulsion tZero, which is said to be the car that convinced Elon Musk that he needed to invest in EVs. Sadly the cooperation with Tesla Motors also became their downfall. The business plan for AC Propulsion was to help car manufacturers make electric versions of their cars, almost cost free using AC Propulsion technology, with the revenue coming from the manufacturers paying for the use of AC Propulsion patents. This plan showed its flaws when Tesla Motors, in order to not pay royalties on future cars, decided they could modify the technology just enough to patent it themselves. With Tesla patents often being the natural next iteration of AC Propulsion patents, and Tesla demanding free access to all patents held by anyone using a Tesla patent, the business plan suddenly became to risky for established car manufactures and that more or less killed AC Propulsion.

[@dwegmull]

I had the opportunity to test drive an eBox back when they were new. Tom Gage, who was CEO of ACP at the time just let me pick up one of the cars at his house and drive around the SF Bay Area for a day! At that point they had built a handful of eBoxes and had a full waiting list, so I had my name put on the "waiting list to get on the waiting list"... ACP's technology was used in the earliest Tesla Roadsters (version 1.0 and 1.5). Starting with version 2.0, Tesla used their own electronic which did not reuse part of the motor drive circuit as a charger. I never got an eBox as ACP gave up on selling cars shortly after that test drive. I did buy a Tesla Roadster (VIN 748!) Which was a version 2.0, so without the ACP electronics.

[@theBoomerDoomer]

Wow, Robert was practically in my back yard it appears! Ironically, a Chrysler assembly plant used to stand on the property he was driving around on... now part of it is a tech accelerator campus for UD... and Bloom Energy has a plant there now, too. I knew that UD was doing stuff with EVs, but wasn't really familiar with it until now. Thanks for the video!

[@TimBara]

Same here really wish I knew about this before. I still have my original 2008 xB. Who knew Aging Wheels had a DE fan club :)

[@davej652]

Darnn he was about 5 minutes away from me.

[@bwofficial1776]

UD also had four hydrogen buses but the garage burned down with them inside a few years ago. I'm sad I never got to ride in one.

[@MoneyManJM]

I was about to comment that I could almost see my house from this video. We must be in the same neighborhood.

[@johnhufnagel]

Newark, DE?

[@bairfamilyfarm1336]

Your channel is the only one that I can stand watching a sponsor in. It's been f*ckn annoying having companies push sponsorships on youtube even harder since Premium became available, it's why I got premium to begin with because Ads have gotten to the point I actively avoid products I see in ads ontop of not one single ad peaking my interest. In your case, a sponsor is like part of the video, straight to the point, and this one provided real life demonstration without taking up 3 minutes. You're more like a door-to-door salesman who know what he's doing.

[@FAB1150]

Oh, I love how prototype-y it is. I wish more cars had the option to show the low level information!

[@LadyAstolat]

I own a 2006 Scion xB! Bought it brand new with 60ish miles on it. Now it has over 206,000 miles on it and still going strong! 💪 Would love to be able to upgrade it to electric and modern accessories. I dread the day I have to put it to rest. 😭

[@Merker367]

You never have to.. why does everyone think cars have a service life? As long as you deal with any rust and don't wreck it, a car will last your whole life. Of course major parts will need servicing, but a cars body can last basically forever..

[@hotdogboyjim]

My 2005 is right at 206k as well. Starting to rust away in Michigan but one of my favorite cars I’ve ever had. Once the used market cools off, I plan on looking south to look for a better example for a summer replacement

[@marcusborderlands6177]

Swap the radio to a 11in touchscreen, it's pretty easy and very nice

[@ziggystardog]

I have the same year with a bit less mileage. It’s a manual, and I’m expecting the clutch to go before anything else. I actually like the driving position although I’ve had to replace the drivers seat once and it’s getting soft again. I hate having to practically lie down on my back to drive in the kiddie cars they make today. My girlfriend’s Prius is _SO_ uncomfortable to drive because of this.

[@Menace2DaComments]

My 09 has 197k on it. Still opens up good and can keep up with a teenagers vtec Honda

[@roberthodgins8856]

Thanks Robert. The history of e-car development is very interesting and is beginning to show that the major manufacturers had been working on it a lot longer than they let on.

[@itsnetts]

The first car was actually an electric car, by Porsche!

[@MrDuncl]

Henry Ford bought his wife an electric car because ICE cars, including his, had to be hand cranked to start them.

[@Compgeek86]

I'm 6'8", my wife had an xb when we started dating, i loved that car, it was a little awkward for me to drive, but I still think that is the most comfortable back seat for tall people that i have ever sat in

[@WayneTheBoatGuy]

Nice test track - they did a nice job making it simulate a "real" road! 😜

[@raven4k998]

yeah she slows down at the high end due to wind resistance🤪

[@tedfort1698]

You're consistently the person I get most excited to see new content from. Thanks for all you do. :-)

[@orangejjay]

Same. And it doesn't matter what it is ... they're always so fun and make my day. My kitty got out today and I haven't been able to find him yet but this video helped me feel a ton better despite what's been a less that good day.

[@kylecoulombe2755]

@@orangejjay oh man. Hope your kitty finds its way home safe!

[@pocketrocket6494]

This channel has the same magic that Noriyaro in Japan has , Every single video I watch from beginning to end, and whenever I see it pop up on my recommendations, I watch it again

[@MarylandResident]

I've stood in this exact spot this video was filmed. Its an honor.

[@thebluexb]

No way!! I've heard rumors about these but have never seen a full walkaround of one of these, cool!

[@briandowling8372]

Wow, this is crazy. The Renault Zoe from 2012 onwards does similar with the charging. Most can charge up to 22kW on AC but early models (and a select few later models) can do 43kW AC charging. I've one of these. It works well but not too many charge points around that will go up to 43kW here. Thankfully 22kW is plentiful.

[@maxmustermann5932]

These figures are three-phase as far as i know. Not too uncommon in European households though. While charging with only single phase the power will be only a third.

[@briandowling8372]

@@maxmustermann5932 yes, 3 phase. 11kW is more like home levels although 3 phase isn't common in my country outside of commercial/industrial.

[@swecreations]

Hi, I have one of those too, btw, have you tried tuning the speaker sound settings on the touch screen, did it today and made them sound way better. Treble was set way too high on it.

[@briandowling8372]

@@swecreations one of the first things I changed was the audio settings. I have spacialisation off, arkamys off, treble +1 and bass 0. I think the arkamys causes a lot of issues with the sound. If you turn it off and turn the volume up it's better.

[@nosrepa]

First Alec makes a video on typewriters, which Tom Hanks collects, then Robert releases a video on the eBox, which the first person to buy one was Tom Hanks. I'm on to you two.

[@sebastiant5695]

Very interesting. The first Electric Mini from BMW in 2009 had the same golden box from AC propulsion in the engine bay. That thing was so much fun to drive, but no wonder 150KW

[@TheDrunkardHu]

I've always admired the old toaster. Gotta get one eventually. 4:27 LOL!

[@nerdyrcdriver]

I have a 2006 scion xB with 334,000 miles on the original manual transmission and engine. It is a $600 beater but I love it. I almost hit a deer with it and I actually thought I was gonna cry if I wrecked the car.

[@gideon7212]

I'd actually love that car. Powerful enough to hoon around in, all the knobs to tweak, small enough to be easier to handle, and fairly practical.

[@greglenihan]

I had a Scion xB for a decade and absolutely loved it. I sold it a year ago and then this year bought a 2013 Nissan Leaf... In blue... I absolutely love this channel, but this video stung. Having said that, the only thing I disagree with is that the Leaf is ugly. It's quirky and weird, but not ugly.

[@jamesh5460]

This channel should have ten million subs! LOL! Well done, entertaining, and educational. Keep the uploads coming, love it!

[@rustbeltrobclassic2512]

This thing is honestly amazing.. kinda want another XB now that i know that this is an option.. I am thinking as much of the Tesla plaid as possible should be swapped.. Edit: So my 2006 White Base XB with a manual was 13,665 Out the door.. and i drove it for 3 years, and traded it in for 14,196, yes i made money on it.. That said.. 55K LMAO.. Now i know why i have never seen one.. in 2006 for 55K you could have a GWagon..

[@Sofaoffiziell]

Honestly, I hate advertisement on KZbin. But I really need to say, that your examples show creativity and effort. Keep up the great work!

[@themonlight13]

I would have wished he said that theres an ad comming... I watched most of it because i tought it was part of the video. I do get the point of making a sponsored part but please at least inform us that theres one following. I already watched 2*6 second and 2* 30 seconds unskipable ads from YT up until this point, i dont need any more ads im not interested in.

[@ixionn563]

I like the way he does ads, barely breaks the flow of the video at all. They're actually entertaining and don't feel like forced talking points. A lot of people pitch a fit about it, but I don't get why people think they just deserve content for free. If the advertisements weren't in and around these videos, the creators would not be able to make enough money to produce more content. It's like a minute of your time for the other 15 or so minutes you've essentially gotten for free. I don't think anyone even considers that it probably took AW multiple days of filming, editing, brainstorming to create each and every one of his videos. Not trying to shame people who hate ads either, I think we all do. I'm just saying this because I think more people should think about this stuff, the money has to come from somewhere in order for us to get this content.

[@Tylerson]

University of Delaware getting a shout out is always neat! I live right near UD, cool to know you were around here. :D

[@slipsstreams]

I love the way you make videos! Always excited to see Under Dunn and Aging Wheels videos!

[@ndc5544p]

Fun fact: the Renault Zoe which shares the Leaf platform could charge with 64A per phase. That's up to 43kW AC! Nowadays the new Renault Zoes still charge with up to 22kW AC, they changed to in-house motors from the first cars which had motors from Continental. It uses the same system in which it use the motor as an AC/DC converter.

[@negil]

When I was younger the Scion xB was legitimately one of my favourite cars. So I guess it did appeal to some youths, although I was far too young to own one at the time, and the first gen wasn't sold in Canada, making it nearly impossible for me to own even if I wanted to now

[@Menace2DaComments]

Don’t Canada have a 15 year import law? If so, in a year or two you can get it. Americans have a 25 year law, so we can’t even get a R34 skyline sedan yet.

[@negil]

@@Menace2DaComments I'm not 100% on the laws with imports, I think with American cars, as long as they pass an inspection they're good (it's likely different with foreign imports), since I have seen the odd first gen xB around here and there basically since they were new

[@purpleunicorn87]

My xB is one of my most treasured possessions, by a long shot. Would do anything to keep it running forever

[@h8GW]

What an amazing power bank with a neat secondary drive option!

[@TerrybleGamer]

For almost all my subscriptions I watch whole batches of videos and then nothing for a long time. This channel, on the other hand, is always an instant click to fully watch and enjoy. Thanks Aging Wheels.

[@HunterPhillips166]

8:17 "now back to the scion Xbox that's not what it was called" got me dying 😂🤣

[@mnick23]

I actually own one of these to my wife's dismay. You got more than 100K people to watch a video about a car with only about 25 built. Pretty impressive. And you got almost everything right! A few corrections/additions: the speedometer issue is common across all eBoxes and it's explained in the manual. Trust the digital display. Charging can only go to 70A, not 80A, so you can only charge at 17kW. The V2Load Voltage is limited to about 220V no matter what the display is set to. But V2G can go to 240V. The manual says 35kWh for the battery capacity, but there must be some buffer. I only could ever charge about 28kWh or so when new. The original connector was a ITT CANNON MS3108E28-22S, I think it was used for ship to shore for helicopters.

[@Garvey64LIVE64]

I'm literally about to go to the college that has these. for computer engineering. I cannot believe they have these

[@QuibizOwl]

I wish all electric car would have mains outlets in them. Imagine being somewhere with no outlet close by and just being able to run ur powertools from the like 50kwh inside ur car. That would be awesome

[@shauntoochaos235]

while it's impressive that it can charge so quickly from AC its likely not practical for a regular vehicle (probably very useful for fleets though) to be able to pull 80 amps you would need a 100 amp circuit with Awg #4 wiring. the inverter is a very nice feature that should be standard with all vehicles these days, though I hope with more safety feature than don't touch it.

[@ZGryphon]

Wait, OK, so... when it goes into "power output" mode, it literally just... reverses the flow through the charging cable? Wow. Between that and the gauge cluster you need at least a bit of electrical training to understand, that tells me ACP had _zero_ personnel who were anything other than engineers. No UX designers, no one with any knowledge of marketability, no liability lawyers, not even anyone who _knew_ a liability lawyer.

[@Lolwutfordawin]

It is the exact sort of thing I would love to own - as an engineer. Wouldn't let my mom drive it unsupervised though!

[@agingwheels]

You got it! Like I said, zero mass market appeal at all

[@Br3ttM]

Outputting power through that cable would be like using a backup generator for your house. There are special safe plugs, but some people just have a double male cable connecting it to the house, and they don't have any special wiring in their house to prevent backflowing into the grid, and need to remember to do it.

[@NEEDbacon]

When you mentioned how the heater would draw a lot of power, I just thought about the Electrk Uncar's solution of a hair dryer. Honestly , the AC at least seems like an easy fix if it's using standard XB parts.

[@BrandEver117]

I think that's pretty much the same as the Bolt's max regen. Very fun for sporty driving on windy roads

[@agingwheels]

I got it up to over 60kw of regen later on

[@pashko90]

@@agingwheels This is neet!

[@legomasterj]

This car is absolutely nuts, I didn't know anything like this was possible in 2008!

[@_Photons]

I absolutely loved Scion, I briefly had an FRS and then had a 2010 tC i drove for 10 years and put 398,478 miles on, it was such a good car.

[@curtismmichaels]

When you opened that box under the hood I half expected to see vacuum tubes.

[@TheAruruu]

This is gonna sound kinda weird, but I really enjoy the sound of your voice. You've got the perfect mix of professor, nerdy geek, and salesman. Your enthusiasm really brings it all together to make it easy to tell how much you enjoy this sort of thing, and how happy you are to be able to share whatever information you are sharing at the time with the world. I hope you keep making these kinds of videos about weird niche cars for years to come. (Maybe see if you can find some of the electric cars that predate internal combustion engines? So many people don't know that we had electric cars before we had IC cars)

[@Happymali10]

13:25 Side note: A "cruise control" that is set by putting a dial/lever to a certain speed is a system used by A LOT of trains/locomotives.

[@urbanweekendwarrior7238]

it's nice of you to bring your special friend along, he finds the most peculiar things along side the road

[@paladinbirdy6032]

I gotta say, you totally sold me on that Ecoflow system and I didn't even realize you were doing an ad bit at first.

[@coastaku1954]

It's just so cool seeing your own name in the list of patrons, it's the little things that get me~

[@CurlyWolf_]

My 2005 Scion Xb manual transmission was my favorite car I've ever owned. I've not owned a lot of cars but I still loved it so much.

[@ScarlettStunningSpace]

Would've been nice to have that Ecoflow when I was off grid in a cabin, would've been so much easier than 12 deep cycle batteries and separate charge controllers and a crappy inverter that would turn off when the voltage spiked

[@Ballslack-b5g]

“If I was alive enough to realize how dead I am, I would be very unhappy” -Aging Wheels 2022

[@FieroFats]

You know, if you plug the adapter into the male end of the plug BEFORE you turn on the high voltage output it is a LOT SAFER! 😝

[@vernepeterson7352]

Hey! We still have our 2006 XB and it runs beautifully. It's fast off the line. It's comfortable. I can throw 2x4s in it with the doors closed. I can carry 4x8 sheet materials on it's roof rack, thanks to it's boxiness. And it's still incredibly reliable and has low cost maintenance.

[@markwiley6812]

Maybe a video on the inverter / controller would be interesting. I’m sure you would do a great job explaining how the UPS mode works. It would dovetail nicely into the product ad for this video. P.S. My kids love both of your channels…they are one of their favorite for the child(s) to watch with the Dad. P.S.S One of those Univ of Delaware cars converted over to your go-cart project would be “much dangerous” as possible.

[@ssupertutorial]

The Renault Zoe has a 43kw ac charger (super good in Italy where you can find 3 phase in every industrial business)

[@jg_fisher]

I can't believe it, I just saw one of these in the wild (Northern California) YESTERDAY. I didn't even go searching for this video, somehow the algorithm got me from Alec to your DC charging video to the Escape to a mystery I didn't realize i was wondering about!

[@Ethix_se]

Love the videos about these unusual electric cars, the Electrek Uncar hair dryer scene is for sure my favourite 😅 But my old Nissan Leaf is probably a little offended after this one 🙃 Waiting for my bZ4x now, also a look that some might have a hard time with I guess 😅First time I saw the front i didn't like it but kinda grown on me and did look better in person with the right color. Looking forward to your future videos.

[@aminorjourney]

Love this. Kinda jealous you got to play with it! Good job!

[@Incognitus-Umbra]

I'm a tad jelly of his Polestar and your Lightning

[@bryanttaylor4300]

I'm always impressed with your ability to to teach me about cars i never heard of. Cool ride Great video

[@SlicerVorzakh]

5:58 and the Scion xB looks like a princess

[@squawksmcgee2083]

I love the scion and I had no idea this existed! Awesome video as always man

[@geoffcoburn5162]

Yay Delaware! Also, I was a contractor in one of the AutoPort Inc warehouses prepping vehicles for export, didn't know they were doing the electric conversions on these around the same time I was there.

[@ladyhawken]

I know next to nothing about cars, but I have to watch each and everyone of your videos the moment they come out. They make me laugh so hard 😀 I love and adore your sense of humor ❤

[@K3NnY_G]

I have a Toyota Echo, love it; always considered EV converting it as it was one of the platforms early adopters went to. Being the first gen XB is the exact same as the first gen Vitz/Echo I'm not surprised someone set into one of these at the time.

[@TheIggy1718]

As a U of D native it was a awesome to see this. Love the videos.

[@J.R.in_WV]

The “locked in second gear” part really isn’t ideal, it’s a shame they couldn’t do something with the final drive ring and pinion ratio to be able to lock it in 4th and send power straight through the trans….the torque multiplication given by locking it in second is probably nice on takeoff but that is asking a LOT of a lower gear in a transmission designed to go behind an engine that made like 75ft-lbs of torque just off idle. The parasitic losses from friction you get when sending all the power through two gears mounted on two separate shafts vs it running straight through by having the input and output shaft directly coupled in 4th / direct gear has to cut down on battery life and will cause the transmission to wear out significantly faster than it would normally….helical gears are constantly pushing each other apart and this puts stress on the bearings supporting the main and counter shafts in the transmission which as they wear will allow the gears to start to “walk” apart and cause noise and abnormal wear of the gear teeth.

[@derekchristenson5711]

That's neat! A friend of mine bought an xB in 2005 (IIRC) for his first new car (after a used Nissan Truck -- the actual model name). He was in the target market, and he picked it because it was very affordable, pretty fuel efficient for a shoebox on wheels, and it had room for his mountain bike in the back. Add to that, it could seat himself and three passengers, getting them where they needed to go, if not exactly "in style". As he put it "This car doesn't haul ass, but it does haul asses!" (passengers) I will always think of it as the ugliest model of Scion, but he liked it, and the large, white speedometer was a nice touch.

[@tome8373]

Glad to see more quirky cars on you channel man. Keep it up.

[@thedreadedgman]

wow this thing is amazing, as a Toyota bB owner, and enjoyer and a technical user I love it

[@reub-topia2656]

I have a 2010 Scion xB, that I bought new, and I love it. Runs great (with regular maintenance) and is pushing 200k miles. I would buy another if I could, but I would have loved to see a couple upgrades, like leather interior, sunroof, and a hybrid option. Sad that Toyota discontinued the Scion line.

[@DoubleCTech]

That’s an impressive electric car. Also I had a 2012 Leaf, I got it used, but the best range I could ever get was ~65 miles in summer or like ~40 miles in the winter if I was lucky. I loved the car but the range was unacceptable. Also I personally loved how it looked.

[@pashko90]

Same thing, love look 1 and 2 gen leaf, 3rd looks boring as every other nissan on the road.

[@Wordsnwood]

@8:16 Comedy Gold.

[@The96xjjeep]

Glad to see you making videos again. Hope the break and friends helped.

[@michaelmalone7789]

My first (& last) brand new car was a Scion tC in 2005, & I'm still disappointed I didn't go for the xB, love boxy cars & get nostalgic whenever I still see one of these on the road!

[@KCTalksEV]

The Ecoflow kit looks the business I must admit! Any chance of a UK release?

[@fisqual]

I have a regular xB and it's the best economy daily driver ever and also quite possibly the most reliable car ever to exist, the original AC even still works! It gives me lots of time to... Ignore working on my project cars. But at least it's not taking any time that I might actually spend on them... ...I like the weird driving position and I've always described it to others that it's like driving at a kitchen table. lol But seriously, 335k miles and it's never stranded me. Sure it's needed an alternator, a couple water pumps, a clutch and most recently a starter, but of course that's expected for anything with so many miles.

[@geoffgranger718]

The "ding. Oh, ads done" got a loud LOL out of me. The product from ecoflow makes me want an RV or something that can use this solution. Looks very interesting.

[@calandryll]

I remember when they brought these in to help travel between the marine campus and main campus. Let's just say no one was really driving them between campuses.

[@Mountain-Man-3000]

This thing is awesome. Love that it's not dumbed down and you have to understand how it works to really use it.

[@bellasclips5652]

so glad to see a vid on these! i'm a big fan of the xbs, i own a xb2 myself, and i love all the wacky rebadges of the xbs! i've known about the ebox for awhile and would love to own one someday

[@andrewrobotbuilder]

This is an insane practical tech demo. A little refinement and it would have taken off like the sleeper it is

[@samusaran7317]

Not flashy enough for most people

[@twocvbloke]

I guess that the "UPS mode" thing is pretty much the jumpleads of the future when energy costs have skyrocketed past anything sensible and people keep hypermiling and not winning... :P

[@GuitarGuyAl]

Honestly my '06 xb has been one of the best vehicles I've owned. What it lacks in 'get up and go' and looks, it makes up for it by being comfortable, spacious, and reliable. Worst problem I've had with it so far are the wheel bearings and I've put almost 100k miles on it since I bought it.

[@hman5599]

I own one of these. I believe I am the 3rd owner. I love it. It's my daily driver; I don't know of any other that is but I"d like to. I've had it for 5 years and put about 55000 miles on it since I've had it.(It now has about 110 000miles but I don't know the mileage when it was converted.) I still get 100-125 miles per charge. If you are at all mechanical or even a bit handy you can do a lot with this vehicle. This thing was way ahead of it's time and if I could get another I would. If anyone knows of one for sale I am interested.

[@dwaynezilla]

I don't know how you find these things but I am glad you do! Just like that Electreck Uncar. I really like the fact that you can use this thing as an inverter using what's already there. The build looks very interesting!

[@elontusk5553]

I have a pre facelift Model S with dual chargers that can charge at 22 kW. Ofc it needs its own 100A breaker and an 80A EVSE. Super cool about the V2G. The dead man plug is pretty stupid though.

[@naberville3305]

I keep seeing ads for zap zebras for sale. For very cheap usually. Like 500-1500$. I think that'd be a perfect project to put some of your extra batteries into.

[@AiOinc1]

I bet it wouldn't be hard to put the shifter and clutch back in this thing and that sounds to me pretty awesome

[@Logan_Bones]

This is nostalgic when my grandma was around she used to own a brown one XB long ago. Aside from being a POS, it was cool because when the light shined on the paint it looked green. Back then I was big enough to fill the entire backseat touching my head and feet on the door cards.

[@MrBblhed]

You must explore the Solectria the Geo Metro conversion bone by a company in Mass. They were also way ahead of their time and interesting cars as well.

[@blautens]

xB's rule, electric or ICE. Would love to have a clean one as a daily or spare. I don't ever recall them being near 10k when new, though. The last ones were 17k to 20k sticker.

[@tamegaming1768]

I had the regular gas version of the xB as one of my first cars, and funny you hate the seating position cause it was one of my favorite parts. I loved everything about that car, and I'll buy another one day.

[@JessicaFEREM]

I think that the cruise control knob could be helpful *after* you engage cruise control, since you don't have to reset it with the gas pedal once in cruise control, you just twist the knob a little.

[@darksquirel]

@9:58 is that Saturn converted to an EV as well? Looks like it is plugged in there. If so I think that's pretty cool because Saturns are pretty closely related to GM EV1s.

[@pashko90]

Good catch, i catually did not notice that. Wouild be great to see a review on it!