The Consumer Guide to Electric Cars
by Dave Hall
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2009 Electric Car Lineup
2009 Electric Car Lineup
 Body Style: 4-door hatchback Availability: On sale now Cost: $55,000 for the conversion, plus the cost of a customer-provided first-generation Scion xB ($13,000 -$15,000) Claimed Top Speed: 95 mph Claimed 0-60: 7 seconds Passenger Capacity: 5 Claimed Range on Full Charge: 120-150 miles Claimed Charging Time: 2 hours (250 volt), 5 hours (110 volt) Battery Type: Lithium ion Regenerative Braking: Yes Horsepower: 161 horsepower (120 kilowatts) Torque: 162 lb-ft (220 Newton-meters) This is a customer-owned Scion xB, converted to electric power. Standard equipment includes air conditioning; heat; cruise control; traction control; and power steering, brakes, windows, locks, and mirrors. Available features include leather seats, navigation, and alloy wheels. It offers regenerative braking that can be adjusted in intensity while driving via a slide switch on the dashboard. It can be charged via a household 110-volt outlet, or a 250-volt appliance outlet. The opportunity to have your first-generation Scion xB converted into an eBox will come to a close soon, and the company will start planning their next conversion. The Nissan Versa is a strong candidate for the next conversion, but don't buy a donor car without checking with AC Proplusion first. |
 Body Style: 2-door coupe Availability: 2009 Cost: under $40,000 Claimed Top Speed: 85 mph Claimed 0-60: Less than 10 seconds Passenger Capacity: 2 Claimed Range on Full Charge: 100-120 miles Claimed Charging Time: 8 hours (110 volt) Battery Type: Lithium-ion phosphate Regenerative Braking: NA Horsepower: NA Torque: 60 lb-ft The Aptera 2e is a three-wheeled vehicle that seats two adults. It comes with expected features like air conditioning and heat, which are solar-powered, and, according to Aptera, keep the car at a "welcoming temperature at all times." It has a few unique features like a vehicle diagnostics system, a driving-efficiency meter, and a rearview camera. Its most striking feature is the way it looks. It was designed to cut through the air like an airplane to reduce its drag, thus extending range. It's also designed to exceed passenger-car safety standards, even though it is registered as a motorcycle. Safety features include driver and passenger airbags and a reinforced roof, doors, front subframe, firewall, and body shell that, Aptera claims, exceed federal crush standards. Aptera says it will eventually be available in hybrid form. |
 Body Style: 2-door pickup truck Availability: Now, if you are at the beginning of the claimed waiting list Cost: $21,995 Claimed Top Speed: 55 mph Claimed 0-60: N/A Passenger Capacity: 2 Claimed Range on Full Charge: 100 miles Claimed Charging Time: NA (120 volt or 240 volt) Battery Type: Lithium ion Regenerative Braking: Yes Horsepower: 27 horsepower (20 kW), 33 horsepower (25 kW) Torque: NA A clean and cheap alternative to a large pickup truck, the Buckshot is a three-wheeled pickup-type truck with the capability to haul loads of up to 1,000 lb. It comes with a 5-speed manual transmission, a regenerative braking system, rear disc brakes, MP3/iPod-ready stereo with a wireless cell phone link, air conditioning, and heat. The Buckshot also offers many configuration options, such as a box on the back to make it a cargo van, a lockable surfboard case, and a lumber rack. The DMV classifies it as a three-wheeled motorcycle, but it is an enclosed vehicle. |
 Body Style: 2-door coupe Availability: Now for those already on the waiting list Cost: $22,995 Claimed Top Speed: 80 mph Claimed 0-60: NA Passenger Capacity: 2 Claimed Range on Full Charge: 100 miles Claimed Charging Time: 6 hours (120 volt or 240 volt) Battery Type: Lithium ion Regenerative Braking: Yes Horsepower: 27 horsepower (20 kw), 40 horsepower (30 kw) Torque: NA The Triac is a three-wheeled two-seater from Green Vehicles, a company that has two low-speed and two traffic-ready electric vehicles. It has a 5-speed manual transmission, and offers a few features that are not offered by its competitors. They include a battery maintenance system with display, an alarm, a CD player, and power windows. It is built around a structural steel cage for safety, and, like its three-wheeled competitors, it's classified by the DMV as a three-wheeled motorcycle, even though it is enclosed. |
 Body Style: 4-door sedan Availability: Early 2010 Cost: $40,000-$45,000 Claimed Top Speed: 80+ mph Claimed 0-60: N/A Passenger Capacity: 5 Claimed Range on Full Charge: 100 miles Claimed Charging Time: 4-6 hours (220 volt) Battery Type: Lithium-ion iron phosphate Regenerative Braking: Yes Horsepower: NA Torque: NA Miles, a company that already produces low-speed electric cars, is preparing an electric car that you can drive at highway speeds. Formerly known as the XS500, Miles promises the amenities found in conventional cars, such as air conditioning, power windows, seats, and sunroof, and such advanced features as a wireless cell phone link. Batteries are expected to last for approximately 100,000 miles before needing replacement. Also, it can be plugged into any standard 220-volt outlet. The basic car, without engine and transmission, is sourced from a Chinese carmaker called Hafei Automobile Group in Harbin, China. |
 Body Style: 4-door SUV or 4-door pickup Availability: 25-mph models now for fleets, highway-speed models in 2010 for the public Cost: $47,500 for the SUT, $50,000 for the SUV Claimed Top Speed: 95 mph Claimed 0-60: Less than 10 seconds Passenger Capacity: 4 Claimed Range on Full Charge: 100+ miles per charge Claimed Charging Time: 10 minutes (480 volts), 5-6 hours (220 volts) Battery Type: Lithium titanate Regenerative Braking: Yes Horsepower: 268 horsepower (200 kW) Torque: 590 lb-ft (800 Nm) These electric trucks look like regular trucks: no radical, futuristic styling here. One looks like a 4-door compact pickup truck, and the other like a compact SUV. According to Phoenix, they offer all the standard amenities of regular cars, including power steering, brakes, windows, locks, and mirrors; rear-obstacle detection; rain-sensing wipers and lights; dual-front and curtain-side airbags; height-adjustable seatbelt anchors; steering wheel-mounted audio controls; heated front seats; and the ability to haul 1,000 lb of stuff and people. They are based on the Actyon Sports SUT and Actyon SUV from Korean carmaker SsangYong. Given the right power source, Phoenix claims that either vehicle can be charged via a standard 220-volt outlet, which takes five to six hours. They can also be rapid charged, in which the batteries will be totally filled in 10 minutes. Granted, it draws 250kW, which, according to the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers, Inc, is "five times as much as the average office building consumes at its peak." According to Phoenix's website, rapid charging "requires industrial power and expensive equipment to move the power quick enough to accomplish a 10-minute rapid charge." Right now, fleet buyers can get a maximum-25-mph Phoenix, but rapid charging is not available yet. The company is promising it will be ready by 2010. |
 Body Style: 4-door sedan Availability: Production begins late-2011 Cost: $57,400 Claimed Top Speed: NA Claimed 0-60: Under 6 seconds for premium model, 6.7 for standard Passenger Capacity: 5, plus 2 child seats Claimed Range on Full Charge: 300 miles Claimed Charging Time: NA Battery Type: Lithium ion Regenerative Braking: NA Horsepower: NA Torque: NA Tesla's second model, called "Whitestar" by some, "Model S" by others, will be delivered to customers in late 2011. The luxury 4-door electric car costs less than the maker's Lotus Elise-based Roadster (the company's first car) and will be produced in greater numbers. During his testimony to the Senate Committee on Environment and Public Works about jobs created in the fight against global warming, Tesla Motors' Chairman Elon Musk spoke briefly about Tesla's plans to produce more practical, less expensive electric cars. The company started out building an expensive supercar because any new technology is costly to produce. "Tesla's strategy is to enter at the high end of the market, where customers are prepared to pay a premium," Musk said, "and then drive down market as fast as possible to higher unit volume and lower prices with each successive model." |
 Body Style: 2-door coupe Availability: 2008 in the UK, 2009 in the U.S. Cost (projected): $35,000 or less depending on battery arrangement (see below) Claimed Top Speed: 65 mph Claimed 0-60: 6.5 seconds Passenger Capacity: 2 in front, 2 child seats in rear Claimed Range on Full Charge: 110 miles Claimed Charging Time: 8-10 hours (110 volt or 220 volt) Battery Type: Sodium or two different lithium-ion systems Regenerative Braking: Yes Horsepower: 40 horsepower (30 kW) Torque: NA Th!nk has been around for 17 years, and its car, the city, is now in its fifth design generation. It seats two adults in the front seat, has two children's seats in the back, and has features you would expect to find in any car, like air conditioning; heat; CD/MP3 player radio; wireless cell-phone link; airbags; ABS; and power steering, brakes, windows, locks, and mirrors. In development is a GPS/GPRS system that displays the state of the vehicle, monitors the battery, and lets the owner know when the car needs service, via email or text message. It will also automatically summon help if an airbag is deployed. Ford bought this electric car company in 1999, spent $150 million on its development, and then sold it a few years later. As such, the Th!nk meets all U.S. and European safety requirements. The company has a solution to the shortcomings of battery technology: lease the batteries. The program works like this: The owner pays a monthly battery lease fee, and, when the battery cannot hold a decent charge any longer, the company will exchange the battery for a new one, under the terms of the lease. |
 Body Style: 4-door sedan, 2-door pickup truck Availability: Now Cost: $11,700 (sedan), $12,500 (truck) Claimed Top Speed: 40 mph Claimed 0-60: N/A Passenger Capacity: 4 (sedan), 2 (truck) Claimed Range on Full Charge: 25 miles Claimed Charging Time: Under 6 hours (110 volt) Battery Type: Lead acid Regenerative Braking: No Horsepower: NA Torque: NA The three-wheeled electric vehicles marketed by Zap represent two of the four traffic-ready electric vehicles that you can buy right now. While technically classified by the Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV) as three-wheeled motorcycles, they provide a good transportation alternative for those who don't need to go above 40 mph, and travel less than 25 miles. The battery can be charged via a standard household 110-volt outlet. These vehicles are best suited for city use, given their top speed and range. They can be topped off anytime (opportunity charged) when near a power outlet, or the available roof-mounted solar panel can trickle charge the battery whenever it sits in the sun. |
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