On Jan. 27, on Filbert Street near 34th Street, between Urban Eatery and Drexel University Westphal College of Media Arts & Design Building, a note was left on a small, green, three-wheeled vehicle requesting the owner reach out for an interview.
We have all seen the small, lime-green machine, but very few know about the driver behind the fascinating “car.” Luckily, the note slipped under the vehicle’s singular windshield wiper convinced the driver, Jennifer Hamilton, MD, Ph.D., to sit down for a phone interview.
She shared that this was not the first expression of interest in her car as she has experienced “25 years of notes” left on the windshield. In her words, her vehicle is “not a car for shy people who want to stay shy.”
Hamilton even noted that people in other cars would take pictures of her driving it on the highway. It is possible for it to drive on the highway, with a reported top speed of up to 100 mph, although Hamilton shared that she gets unnerved driving faster than 85.
Hamilton began teaching at Drexel in 2007. She currently teaches family medicine and is the Associate Dean for Medical Simulation. She has a background in engineering prior to her MD, and she shared that it may have contributed to her interest in such an unusual vehicle.
The green machine, as some may know it, is a 2000 Corbin Sparrow. It is entirely electric and has only three wheels. Due to the lack of a fourth wheel, it is technically considered a motorcycle by the state of Pennsylvania. While the state does not require owners to have a motorcycle license to drive this particular vehicle, likely because it is an electric vehicle, Hamilton does have one.
Mike Corbin, the creator of the Corbin Sparrow, has conceived many concept vehicles, some of which were produced under Corbin Motors, the company he founded in January 1996. Corbin Motors manufactured 300 Sparrows before filing for bankruptcy in March 2003.
Hamilton purchased the Sparrow right off the line in 2000 for “about as much as Harley,” or about $11,000. She also shared that you can find Sparrows on eBay for less than the original price. She was drawn to the vehicle as she felt the need to get away from gasoline engines due to rising concerns about global warming from fossil fuel emissions.
Hamilton’s family had made the decision that if they ever found an electric vehicle they could afford, they would buy one. She saw the Sparrow in a motorcycle magazine and ordered one when it was put into production.
The Sparrow was designed for city commuting, which is perfect for Hamilton’s commute from Manayunk. Due to the limited battery capacity of the time, the vehicle had to be small. That meant avoiding many of the required safety features of the time, such as bumpers and crumple zones, which could only be done if it was legally considered a motorcycle. This is why the three-wheel design was chosen.
Due to it being an electric vehicle, the maintenance is relatively low. Hamilton has had the tires replaced twice but shared that it was a struggle. Most automobile shops that replace tires utilize lifts that could not accommodate the Sparrow’s small size. The three-wheel setup makes the situation even more complicated. Hamilton has found that replacing the tires herself was the ideal solution.
The only other main maintenance item for the Sparrow is replacing the batteries. Hamilton shared that the original lead-acid batteries were swapped three times before they considered switching to newer battery technology.
“We were brutal on them,” Hamilton said, describing how she would run out of the lead-acid batteries’ 35 to 45-mile range commuting to work and charging it throughout the day to get her home. After the third swap, they changed to lithium-ion batteries, which have survived the past 10 years.
The new batteries also extended the Sparrow’s range out to around 80 miles, although Hamilton still adheres to the 30-40 mile range to be more kind to her batteries and extend their longevity.
Her maintenance makes sense as she has no intention of getting a different vehicle anytime soon: the Sparrow is “still doing the job that [she] got it for.” She is also satisfied with the experience she has with the Sparrow.
“It’s not a luxury car,” Hamilton stated as she described its comfort features as the “standard amenities from 2000.”
The Sparrow is a single-seater with a stereo and heat, but it lacks Bluetooth or air conditioning. However, she does note that she can open both windows and “hold hands over the roof,” indicating that there is plenty of airflow in the hotter months.
The lack of cargo space, although there is some behind the seat, is what relegates the Sparrow to mainly a commuter. Hamilton shares that while she may take it to the grocery store, “it’s not the car [she] would take to Costco.”
Hamilton did reveal that the weirdest cargo she has transported in the vehicle was a 50-pound bag of turkey chow and Greek takeout.
Even if Hamilton wanted to get a newer vehicle, there are limited options. While some companies are attempting to take similar concepts to market, such as Electra Meccanica or what was formerly Corbin Motors but is now known as Myers EV, there is currently no available alternative to the Corbin Sparrow on the market.
So, unless there is snow or ice on the ground — which the Sparrow tends to struggle with — the little green machine will still be a subtle staple of Drexel’s campus for the foreseeable future.