First let me say I enjoy your podcast very much- but no average American families boast two Lexus and then wants to add a $100,000+ sports car (Tesla) and maybe a $12,000 to $15,000 scooter and oh yeah another $80,000+ four door sports car (Fisker Karma). I envy your income but not your social awareness. Just an Idea but it might be more practicle and even more environmental just to get the Karma and trade the two Lexus in for a Lexus suv hybrid (Rx 400h awd).

yes... You are correct. That did not come across the right way. I am aware that we have more disposable income than the average family. The tesla is actually a business car.

More on this.... (I was at the movies when I responded)

The "average" comment was directed toward the fact that we are a married couple with two kids. I guess the word "typical" would have been more appropriate. The "typical" was said to describe our needs as a family (ie taking kids to soccer, driving to school, dad going to work, mom running errands, etc).

Hope that clears it up. I did not mean to come across as a ignorant rich jerk who thinks everyone is as well off financially.

Bo,

Personally I see nothing wrong with the way you described yourself as an 'average' family in the podcast. I don't think it came across as if you were assuming that a Tesla was within anyone's financial grasp.

That said, I have to take exception to you saying that you can't make do without and SUV. I'm not particularly opposed to SUVs but I have a good friend who has two two teenage kids, a wife and a dog and they get by with a single VW Jetta just fine. Fitting your family into a smaller sedan (espetially one with a hatch back) is really not that hard or cruel unless they are morbidly obese.

As for myself I grew up in Poland where we had no car until I was about 16 and we managed just fine. When a country has decent public transport (hint: the US does not) you can get by with no car and even be healthier for it. I think beside electrifying cars, America would do well to modernize its railway system. Trains are a good way of moving people around and can be extremely comfortable if you ride in one that was made in the last 50 years as opposed to the junk that Amtrak oversees. The USA has trains that Bolivia would be embarrassed by.

No, we are not morbidly obese :) But we did have a 110 lb yellow lab. The four of us, plus the dog, and the luggage, would never fit in a Jetta -- not here or in Poland. The only alternative is a mini van, which I have no problem with, but my better half dispises (perhaps because of the soccer-mom stigma associated with the car).

send the dog to the kennel for a couple of weeks - problem solved :-)

As for the luggage, roof racks work a treat. They ain't pretty but the work.

However, I do understand the appeal of a large vehicle if you can afford one. As long as it's not something obnoxious and needlessly wasteful like Chevvy Suburban or the early Hummer I have no problem with them.