Last year, my husband spent $3500 to keep his 2003 Subaru running. In the last two months, he patched two flat tires rather than buy a new set for $1000. A 2010 Subaru Forester costs $10,499, which we don’t have. What to do? We aim to live within our financial and ecological means—and he needs a vehicle that can hold long tree-pruning poles. In this context, I read engineers’ reports related to electric vehicles.