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"Despite being browbeating car companies into making them, electric car dream still victim of market forces."

When Carlos Ghosn took control of Nissan, their battery technology program was essentially secret. He could have axed it then, but instead he's chosen to bet Nissan on EVs. Nobody is having to force automakers at large to build EVs — only certain automakers. Like, you know, almost all of them. But nobody is forcing them to make EVs. The Japanese were capable of meeting proposed California emissions standards without them; only US automakers were too incompetent. That, or they were too tied to Big Oil; we'll likely never know. Nobody had to force Chrysler to build GEM cars, either. (hmm, if I lived in town, I'd build an electric VW NVE to get around in it... My road is posted 45, though, IIRC.)

Chrysler has the GEM car, a neighborhood electric vehicle. My grandfather has one, road legal in areas under 45 MPH. It's not bad for driving to the local store but it really isn't much more than a nice oversized golf cart. They never really took off and here comes GM with another bright idea.

Where's the Hydrogen fuel skateboard chassis they spent billions on? Let's see some future tech that might be actually usable in the real world. No wonder GM is failing.

Electric cars have been lingering at the high point because no significant car has been rough to market. The Tesla and the Volt appear to be the firsts going there.

What about these?

MDI Enterprises S.A. - Air compressed cars
Electric Tiger Star Truck
Zenn Motor Company
Tata Motors
GM before the Volt
Zap Electric Cars
Global Electric Motors
Phoenix Motorcars
Dynasty Electric Cars
Nice Car Company
Reva
I could keep going but let me Google that for you.

We need to take the first steps if we are ever to migrate from oil to electric.

I agree.

These guys almost have me... if they can get their 4 seater version with hard-doors down to around $6k and increase the top-speed, I'll buy one. Right now, with all the options I want/need, it's closer to $10k. And batteries aren't $20k or $100-$200/month...

Even with the 30 mile limit, I'm fine for "around town" stuff.

think the magic number here isn't $5000, it's more like $20,000. You would not want such a small car with a 112 mile range to be your only car, but most households have two, and increasingly often three or even more cars.

The main obstacle to this car in this country is that Americans have become such friggen stick in the muds. We've been top dog for so many years we've gotten allergic to change.

I've been tempted by GEM in the past. If they can get that sucker down in price for a 4-seater with hard-doors and a better top speed (say, around $6k), I'd jump on it in a second.

I really don't NEED 100+ mile range. I'd be happy with the 30 mile range of the GEMs for all my local stuff.

In my city/state, we have similar incentives (close-up parking in malls, use of car-pool lanes, 'free charging' at various locations). We have next to no toll-roads/bridges in our state anyway... But this is for hybrids AND electric cars. You see far more hybrids on our roads (better bang for your buck).

They'll need to adjust the pricing more than a "bit" for the US market. I'd be happy with a 4 seater GEM if I could get one at $6k with hard-doors and a better top speed. I really don't NEED a range of 100+ miles on a single charge. I'd be happy with 30 miles for store/kids-school/local stuff.

Hell... I WORK less than 4 miles from my home -- but this is not common in SoCal.

They are pretty common on Catalina Island, too. You wont see them wizzing down Studio City or Long Beach. any time soon, though. Not 'street legal'.

The option is neat when it's available -- but it's not.

This is a good option, though -- which I've considered. Still too pricy for the options I want, but it's getting closer.

Is there a comprehensive list of reasonably available electric vehicles?

The Reva ( http://www.revaindia.com/ ) has already been mentioned elsewhere in this thread --- one which I actually considered purchasing is the Twike ( http://www.twike.com/ ) (really more of an enclosed three wheel recumbent bicycle) --- there are some others though. A quick search on Google reveals:

  - http://www.zapworld.com/
  - http://www.teslamotors.com/index.php
  - http://www.gemcar.com/
  - http://www.zenncars.com/

There was an article in the local (Harrisburg, PA) paper recently about a local who'd purchased an all-electric scooter, and another about a (school teacher?) who had refurbished an electric car from the 70s which was street-legal 'causeit was grand-fathered in.

Of all the above, the only one which seems to have full equivalency to a gasoline powered vehicle is the Tesla (which is ~$100,000 if memory serves) --- I thought about getting a Twike, but it's ~$20,000, and would've required me to rent a vehicle for vacations, or to drive our other car (an 8 year old Cavalier w/ ~130,000 miles), so got a Chevy Aveo ($9,999 when I bought it the other year).

William

Hey now, don't give him crap. He just doesn't know how to use google to actually look up the thing he is ranting about. Heck, the very first search page turns up Tesla Motors, the REVA, and freakin' Global Electric Motorcars, which is a Chrysler company, or even the upcoming Chevy Volt.

Maybe he thinks those electric cars suck (it's ok, a lot of other people think that too - but the Roadster and the Volt look pretty cool to me), he'd rather have a electric Civic or something like that. It's too bad there is a conspiracy to keep people from converting their existing cars to electricity. Oh, wait, no there isn't.

Google is the friend of the ranter... it keeps you from looking retarded.

A buddy of mine was loaned one last winter and we went for a spin. I think it was a GEM brand. I think this was an early model, very sparse interior. No insulation (had heavy jacket on - december in vermont) and not lockable, but very functional and fun to drive. Would probably handle most "around town" driving just fine.

Here's a link to the PDF spec sheet. Note that the regen braking isn't mentioned in the "brakes" section, but rather in the "controller" section. I suppose it's appropriate to put there, but ends up being somewhat misleading.

And here's an unsolicited link to the NHSTA's ruling on Neighborhood Electric Vehicles. It's worth a read just for some insight into the bureaucracy that's involved with manufacturing a "Low Speed Vehicle." Yuck.

Ironically, the Wikipedia Blobject article says it "needs to be cleaned up to conform to a higher standard of quality. This article has been tagged since April 2005" - you'd think that all those "hip" Blogject'ers would have made this entry super cool and happening.

Concrete Cam is up and running.

buy a GEM car. You can carpool too.

Yes, unfortunately I missed out on this. An EV1 would have been right up my alley. I keep telling myself I should get a Gem, but they do have some mobility limits that would make the transition currently impossible. *sigh*

the sparrow was pretty cool, that's a shame. from what i understand one of the partners wanted lots of $$ so they tanked after his demands could not be met.

there was a past story here on slashdot about electric cars in washington state (you can now use them) so electric cars are finally getting a chance in some areas. here's the gem car, this looks a little too "golf-carty" for me, but when other models come out i might consider one.

http://www.gemcar.com/

on a side note, fuel cells are interesting, but you're still tied to infrastructure that requires you to "fuel" up somewhere. with electric vehicles you plug in. sure, this isn't good for people who move, store and sell gas or hydrogen, but it's better for consumers (that's opinion so far). i'm kinda concerned about fuel cell laptops and other fuel cell powered devices, right now i just plug in, i'd rather not be tied to getting cartridges like a printer, or razors for razor blades-- although, companies who make laptops would certainly love to sell more things to me than just a laptop. right now, i buy one and the sales cycle is pretty much over. we'll see i'm sure others here have other thoughts (and opposite ones at that). currently, i use a segway ht to get around, it costs less than a few dollars worth of electricity per month and i'm pretty pleased with it so far. this week i reached 850 miles. hopefully, this weekend i'm installing my solar array, so i'll be totally off the grid.

cheers,
pt

For our next vehicle, my wife and I are considering the Ford Escape Hybrid. Overly-wrought flash page without much detailed info, but they basically say it will be an gas/electric combo SUV that gets ~40mpg and they will have a 4wd option, which is something that we actually need and use regularly as an avid skiers and hikers. We need the cargo space for my two large dogs, which rule out existing hybrid solutions; We currently drive a Ford Explorer and await a more fuel-efficient yet not entirely anemic solution.

Also, we drive an all-electric vehicle which though outside of the poster's requirements, may warrant consideration for anyone doing short-haul driving in sub-35 mph zones: the line of vehicles from GEM

We have been driving one for about 3 months now and use it for commuting to our offices and to downtown Portland. Neither commute requires us to exceed 25mph.

It has more pick-up than you might think. In the rain, the vehicle does a pretty good job of keeping water off you (my model doesn't have doors). There are doors available, similar to what you would see on a Jeep CJ, as an aftermarket accessory. It is an ideal neighborhood car.

Here are answers to some of the common questions we get, often in traffic.
Q. What the hell is that?
A. A GEM electric car, manufactured by Global Electric Motors, a division of DaimlerChrysler Corporation. The specific model I have is the GEM E825 Utility Vehicle (Short Box).
Q. Is it street legal?
It is on streets with a speed limit of 35mph or below.
Q. How fast does it go?
A. 25 mph.
Q. How far can you drive it?
It varies based on the terrain you are driving it on and the ambient temperatures, but I have driven it over 15 miles on a charge. The stated range is 35 miles.
Q. How do you charge it?
It charges on household current.
Q. Stats?
A. From the GEM website
Curb Weight: 1160 lb. with batteries
GVW: 1850 lb. (Gross Vehicle Weight)
Width: 55 inches
Wheelbase: 71.1 inches
Length: 116 inches
Height: 69.5 inches
Turning Radius: 13 feet 7 inches
Q. Is it fun?
A. You betcha.

For our next vehicle, my wife and I are considering the Ford Escape Hybrid. Overly-wrought flash page without much detailed info, but they basically say it will be an gas/electric combo SUV that gets ~40mpg and they will have a 4wd option, which is something that we actually need and use regularly as an avid skiers and hikers. We need the cargo space for my two large dogs, which rule out existing hybrid solutions; We currently drive a Ford Explorer and await a more fuel-efficient yet not entirely anemic solution.

Also, we drive an all-electric vehicle which though outside of the poster's requirements, may warrant consideration for anyone doing short-haul driving in sub-35 mph zones: the line of vehicles from GEM

We have been driving one for about 3 months now and use it for commuting to our offices and to downtown Portland. Neither commute requires us to exceed 25mph.

It has more pick-up than you might think. In the rain, the vehicle does a pretty good job of keeping water off you (my model doesn't have doors). There are doors available, similar to what you would see on a Jeep CJ, as an aftermarket accessory. It is an ideal neighborhood car.

Here are answers to some of the common questions we get, often in traffic.
Q. What the hell is that?
A. A GEM electric car, manufactured by Global Electric Motors, a division of DaimlerChrysler Corporation. The specific model I have is the GEM E825 Utility Vehicle (Short Box).
Q. Is it street legal?
It is on streets with a speed limit of 35mph or below.
Q. How fast does it go?
A. 25 mph.
Q. How far can you drive it?
It varies based on the terrain you are driving it on and the ambient temperatures, but I have driven it over 15 miles on a charge. The stated range is 35 miles.
Q. How do you charge it?
It charges on household current.
Q. Stats?
A. From the GEM website
Curb Weight: 1160 lb. with batteries
GVW: 1850 lb. (Gross Vehicle Weight)
Width: 55 inches
Wheelbase: 71.1 inches
Length: 116 inches
Height: 69.5 inches
Turning Radius: 13 feet 7 inches
Q. Is it fun?
A. You betcha.

For our next vehicle, my wife and I are considering the Ford Escape Hybrid. Overly-wrought flash page without much detailed info, but they basically say it will be an gas/electric combo SUV that gets ~40mpg and they will have a 4wd option, which is something that we actually need and use regularly as an avid skiers and hikers. We need the cargo space for my two large dogs, which rule out existing hybrid solutions; We currently drive a Ford Explorer and await a more fuel-efficient yet not entirely anemic solution.

Also, we drive an all-electric vehicle which though outside of the poster's requirements, may warrant consideration for anyone doing short-haul driving in sub-35 mph zones: the line of vehicles from GEM

We have been driving one for about 3 months now and use it for commuting to our offices and to downtown Portland. Neither commute requires us to exceed 25mph.

It has more pick-up than you might think. In the rain, the vehicle does a pretty good job of keeping water off you (my model doesn't have doors). There are doors available, similar to what you would see on a Jeep CJ, as an aftermarket accessory. It is an ideal neighborhood car.

Here are answers to some of the common questions we get, often in traffic.
Q. What the hell is that?
A. A GEM electric car, manufactured by Global Electric Motors, a division of DaimlerChrysler Corporation. The specific model I have is the GEM E825 Utility Vehicle (Short Box).
Q. Is it street legal?
It is on streets with a speed limit of 35mph or below.
Q. How fast does it go?
A. 25 mph.
Q. How far can you drive it?
It varies based on the terrain you are driving it on and the ambient temperatures, but I have driven it over 15 miles on a charge. The stated range is 35 miles.
Q. How do you charge it?
It charges on household current.
Q. Stats?
A. From the GEM website
Curb Weight: 1160 lb. with batteries
GVW: 1850 lb. (Gross Vehicle Weight)
Width: 55 inches
Wheelbase: 71.1 inches
Length: 116 inches
Height: 69.5 inches
Turning Radius: 13 feet 7 inches
Q. Is it fun?
A. You betcha.