ElectriClub

Filed under: EV/Plug-in, Green Culture, Hybrid, Green Daily

The AltCar crowd around the EV1 and the Chevy Volt. Photo to Amy Williams

Many of the people in Plug in America were excited by Barack Obama's win in the US presidential election. So excited, in fact, that they applied to be part of the Presidential Inaugural Parade that will take place later this month. Well, with 1,300 other groups having the same idea, PIA's electric and plug-in hybrid (PHEV) contingent was not selected to take part in the Washington, DC event. Undeterred, PIA has announced their own "Inaugural Parade West: Plug In, America!" which will cruise through Santa Monica, CA on January 17. So far, PIA expects over thirty "EVs and PHEVs, including Teslas, numerous RAV4s (with tens of thousands of miles on each), Vectrix bikes, Chevy S10s and conversions." Chris Paine and his film crew will be on hand as part of their work on the sequel to "Who Killed The Electric Car?" As for major automaker participation, PIA said that, "We've invited GM to bring a vehicle. That will be the next news update. Or miracle? Hey, they brought a Volt to AltCarExpo...." (see above).

[Source: Plug In America]

Continue reading Plug In America will host West Coast Inauguration parade with 30+ EVs

Plug In America will host West Coast Inauguration parade with 30+ EVs originally appeared on AutoblogGreen on Mon, 05 Jan 2009 14:20:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Filed under: EV/Plug-in, Chrysler, Dodge, Detroit Auto Show

Click above for a high-res gallery of the Dodge EV

Chrysler made a really big deal about its three electric vehicle concepts that were first introduced to the public in September of last year (still not used to that, huh?) and was sure to mention at every opportunity that it planned on introducing at least one of these three vehicles, or at least a variation of the general theme, by 2010. There are quite a few skeptics - we ourselves are taking a "wait and see" attitude towards the situation - but the big loans that the automaker just got mean that it'll at least be around long enough to show the concepts at the upcoming Detroit Auto Show later this month.

Don't expect to see a lavish display like we saw last January from Chrysler, when it trotted out an entire herd of cattle through downtown Detroit for the launch of its 2009 Dodge Ram pickup. Although Chrysler's not talking about it quite yet, the fact that we've seen spy shots of an electric Dodge Roadster already, our best guess is that the Lotus-based electric sportscar is the best bet to see production.

Gallery: LA 2008: Dodge EV

[Source: Automotive News - sub. req'd]

Chrysler still bringing EV concepts to Detroit originally appeared on AutoblogGreen on Mon, 05 Jan 2009 13:32:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Filed under: EV/Plug-in, Green Culture, Green Daily, Th!nk (Think)

Click above for a gallery of the Th!nk City

Just a quick update to Saturday's post about Th!nk's ever-increasing rescue potential. We wrote that Google translated the Norwegian of the original article as, "There will be no cars on the market in January." Our friend Leif wrote in to note that "the real translation should be 'There will be some cars on the market in January.'" So, that's positive. Leif has more information over at Electric A!d (he posts there as Leif Richard), where he and other are part of "Operation Th!nk," a grassroots effort to collect money for Th!nk. The idea is to use the donations to support "the only EV-Manufacturer in the world who has an electric car that is commercial[ly] available today." Sure, there is an asterisk to note that the rich can buy a Tesla, but I'm not sure how GEM and Miles and all the others feel about being left out. The Th!nk City has more oomph than those NEVs, but they are indeed EV that are available today.

Gallery: Th!nk City

[Source: Electric A!d]

Think gets grassroots, some new electric cars should be ready in January originally appeared on AutoblogGreen on Mon, 05 Jan 2009 12:49:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Filed under: EV/Plug-in, European Union, UK

India's most famous electric car maker, Reva, is now giving prospective buyers in Europe the opportunity of turning their new REVAi into a REVA L-ion by offering a lithium-ion power source for the 2+2 city car. The modern battery gives the little EV increased performance while reducing charging time and maintenance. Numbers-wise, that means a 75-mile range with a 50 mph top speed. Acceleration times haven't been released but we expect that just the reduced weight of the cars power source alone will go a little way towards adding some pick-me-up. Equipped with a proprietary battery management system (BMS), the lithium ions should offer owners a substantially longer battery-pack lifetime and will come with a three-year warranty.

Also available now is an off-board charger, one that requires 3-phase power, that can give you a 90 percent charge in an hour. That's substantially less than the 6 hours it takes to fill up from an ordinary socket. The current lead acid batteries take 8 hours to charge completely. If you already own the REVAi model, which is itself an upgraded version of the not-so-crashworthy original, you will be able to purchase a lithium ion kit a little later on in the year. Get all the niggling details in the press release after the break. Thanks to Jeff for the tip!

Gallery: Reva G-Wiz

[Source: g-wiz owners club]

Continue reading Reva Electric Car Company offering lithium ion option

Reva Electric Car Company offering lithium ion option originally appeared on AutoblogGreen on Sun, 04 Jan 2009 20:01:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Filed under: EV/Plug-in

To those of who grew up in northern climes during the last four decades and spent any significant amount of time on the ice, or for anyone who watched Hockey Night in Canada, the Zamboni is a familiar sight. Every hour during open skating sessions or in between periods of a hockey game, the Zamboni would roll out and scrape the shavings off the ice and then lay down a film of water to fill in the ruts in the ice. In the smaller local rinks, you'd also be familiar with the smell of the exhaust fumes from the tractor-like machines. Some rinks have also had incidents with people being sickened by carbon monoxide fumes.

The city of Toronto is now moving to replace traditional Zambonis with new electrically-driven units produced in Finland. At $160,000 each, the IceCats aren't going to replace Zambonis overnight. So far there are only four IceCats in Canada, including Toronto's first unit. Ironically, Toronto has chosen to use its first IceCat at the Nathan Philips Square outdoor rink in front of City Hall rather than at one of the many indoor rinks where it might do the most good. But then it wouldn't get as much attention or do as much for the city's image.

UPDATE: ABG reader Gary writes in: Although the machine was previewed at an outdoor rink, Nathan Phillips Square, it is actually in use, and has been since April 2008, at Centennial Recreation Center in Scarborough on the Ice Galaxy Figure Skating pad. The City of Toronto has two (2) of these machines - the second unit being placed at Bill Bolton Arena.

[Source: Wired via Autoblog]

Classic Zambonis may give way to electric IceCats in Toronto originally appeared on AutoblogGreen on Sun, 04 Jan 2009 14:02:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Filed under: EV/Plug-in, Ford, USA

The temporary home of many one-of-a-kind cars, eBay has been giving shelter to this factory-converted 1982 Ford Exp EV for some time now. Currently having one bid of $8,000, it's reserve unmet and only hours to go before the auction ends, we thought we'd give our readers a heads-up on this rare opportunity to own a piece of EV history. This Exp, along with 3 others, was built by EVA in Cleveland on a Ford-supplied glider using Soleq components and boasts (though not loudly) a big ol' honkin' 34 hp General Electric shunt-wound DC motor and regenerative brakes.

Said to be capable of 70 mph, the Batterymobile.com-emblazoned coupe has only 7,857 miles on the odometer and though its aged batteries may only be good for a 20-mile range, a fresh set of lead-acids could carry you 65 miles. No word whether its internet domain is included in the deal. Feel free to peruse the gallery below for more pics. Thanks to Terry for the tip!

Gallery: 1982 Ford Exp EV

[Source: eBay]

eBay Find of the Day: 1982 Ford Escort Exp EV originally appeared on AutoblogGreen on Sun, 04 Jan 2009 11:48:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Filed under: EV/Plug-in, Automotive X-Prize

Click above for a gallery of TriTrack renderings

The stated goal of the Automotive X-Prize is to spur the "design [of] viable, clean and super-efficient cars that people want to buy." That's going to take innovation, which is a great thing, though these concepts still need to be realistic. We're not counting anybody out, but a company called Roane Inventions may be stretching a bit with its TriTrack. The vehicle, which we first met in October, has a couple of different modes in theory, but for the purposes of the X-Prize's $10 million prize, the TriTrack will function as a three-wheeled electric vehicle with an 81.5 horsepower motor.

The entire concept is much larger, though, and would include a smaller battery and motor assembly that would power the car to a monorail track, where the battery would be left behind. After the destination is reached, a fresh battery pack would be reinserted into the TriTrack shell to get the driver where they needed to go. Ambitious? Definitely, and we're not so sure it's a great idea. Check out the galleries below and read this to get a better idea of how it's all supposed to work.

Gallery: TriTrack Auto X-Prize contender

Gallery: Austin Alt Car: TriTrack

[Source: TriTrack via Wired]

More on the TriTrack, an Auto X-Prize contender, sort of originally appeared on AutoblogGreen on Sat, 03 Jan 2009 20:11:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Filed under: EV/Plug-in, Lotus, Tesla Motors, AutoblogGreen Exclusive

Click above for high-res image gallery of Jason's Tesla Roadster

Following the report on Friday that Lotus was planning to introduce an electric car of its own, we contacted Tesla Motors CEO Elon Musk for a comment. Tesla and Lotus collaborated on development of the Roadster and Lotus builds the rolling chassis at its Hethel factory. The FT story did not come as a surprise to Musk. Lotus apparently let Tesla know of its plans in advance and Tesla is hoping to sell some powertrain components to Lotus for the new car.

Tesla already has one powertrain supply deal with a company that has not been disclosed yet. Musk hopes that customer will be willing to make a public announcement in the next month or two. That customer is widely believed to be Daimler and the powertrain is destined for the second-generation Smart ED. Musk will be in Detroit the week after next to deliver a keynote about working with automakers to supply powertrain systems, components and software.

With the current financial situation being what it is, Musk also wants to play nice with Detroit as evidenced by the following comment, "I've made some comments about Silicon Valley being a lot more competitive on the world stage than Detroit, which few would disagree with and I think is a fair criticism, but that has been misinterpreted as anti-Detroit. The right move here for Detroit is to harness Silicon Valley innovation and work with companies like Tesla. It is ironic that our first major automotive partner is not American."

Gallery: Jason Calacanis' Tesla Roadster

Gallery: Trying out Jason's Tesla Roadster

Photos copyright (C)2008 Drew Phillips, Sam Abuelsamid, Sebastian Blanco / Weblogs, Inc.

Continue reading Tesla CEO comments on Lotus EV report

Tesla CEO comments on Lotus EV report originally appeared on AutoblogGreen on Sat, 03 Jan 2009 15:40:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Filed under: EV/Plug-in, Th!nk (Think)

Having gone through the automotive equivalent of a near-death experience, we are happy to report that Th!nk is registering vital signs again and that the halted production of its sub-compact City is set to resume, sort of. The company is still on life support and the factory in Aurskog will be completing vehicles and making some parts for future cars rather than resuming a regular production schedule. The head of the "debt committee", Jo Rodin, said (in Google-translated English), "There will be no cars on the market in January."

According to the Norwegian news sources, short-term financing should be in place by Tuesday or Wednesday that would allow for a couple months of breathing room and help the troubled automaker to reach agreements with current creditors and hopefully attract some new investment. Although the amount of debt owed by the company wasn't stated, it is said to need at least $29 million to keep going. We hope Th!nk manages pull a Lazarus since its demise would not only make for a gloomy Norway-hosted EVS24 in May but also prove problematic for American battery supplier, Ener1. To help boost spirits in the meantime, we offer up an entertaining bit of bonus video (after the jump) of an original Ford Th!nk making a spirited pass through some cones. Thanks to Sindre for the tip!

[Source: E24 / YouTube]

Continue reading Th!nk to begin building cars again, sort of

Th!nk to begin building cars again, sort of originally appeared on AutoblogGreen on Sat, 03 Jan 2009 13:23:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Filed under: EV/Plug-in, Hybrid

Lithium ion battery maker EnerDel wants to tap into some of the $25 billion that Congress set aside to help fund advanced vehicle manufacturing in the 2007 energy bill. EnerDel has applied for low interest loans totaling $480 million to help fund the construction of manufacturing capacity for batteries. Automotive scale battery manufacturing is limited today, particularly in the US. Right now EnerDel is the only US company making automotive lithium batteries at facilities in Indianapolis and Noblesville, Indiana. The money would allow EnerDel to double the size of an existing factory to 600,000 packs a year and build a new factory capable of building another 1.2 million packs annually. The first packs are destined for the troubled Tn!nk company, something that Ener1 Chairman and CEO Charles Gassenheimer told AutoblogGreen is not a problem.

Gallery: EDTA 2008: Ener1 Th!nk City

[Source: Ener1]

Continue reading EnerDel has applied for $480 million in federal loans to crank up battery production

EnerDel has applied for $480 million in federal loans to crank up battery production originally appeared on AutoblogGreen on Fri, 02 Jan 2009 17:34:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Filed under: Emerging Technologies, EV/Plug-in

Panasonic is a growing player in the electric car business, as the recent purchase of battery-maker Sanyo and its partnership with Toyota. It also at one time had big plans for 2009. The electronics giant's latest EV move is developing a network that allows home appliances to check on the status of your electric car. Details are pretty much nonexistent at this point. TMC says the prototype system can use the electric cables already in your wall to send information. NetworkWorld says the EV communication system is one of three that will be part the HD-PLC (High-Definition Powerline Communications) display during CES in Vegas later this month. Right now, I'm unconvinced that getting my microwave to beep when my electric car is done charging is all that awesome.

[Source: TMC via EVWorld, NetworkWorld]

Panasonic working on a home network for electric cars originally appeared on AutoblogGreen on Fri, 02 Jan 2009 16:45:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Filed under: EV/Plug-in, Hybrid, Toyota

Dr. John Patten of Western Michigan University recently installed one of HyMotion's L5 plug-in conversion kits in his Toyota Prius as part of his work in educating people on alternative energy. The HyMotion kit is the first commercially available system that allows Priuses to become plug-in hybrids. Half of the total cost was paid for by the university with the rest coming from a Michigan Community Energy Project grant. Patten will conduct seminars and demonstrations at events around the state to help make people aware that the technology for plug-in hybrids is available. Patten also had a wind turbine installed at the school's College of Engineering and Applied Sciences to be used as part of his research into alternative and renewable energy. A student will also be working with the professor on analyzing energy data with the now pluggable-Prius.

Hopefully, Patten will also explain to people the limitations of such conversions. Unlike the Chevy Volt, say, the electric drive system in the Prius is not designed to provide full range electric operation. Anyone who has tried driving current hybrids in electric mode will be fully aware of the very light foot required to keep the engine from starting. A conversion like this will not yield a car that you can just unplug and driving normally without the engine for 30-40 miles. Nonetheless, this $10,000 kit can yield significant improvements in mileage. Learn more here.

[Source: Kalamazoo Gazette]

Michigan engineering professor installs HyMotion PHEV kit in his Prius originally appeared on AutoblogGreen on Fri, 02 Jan 2009 15:57:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Filed under: EV/Plug-in, Hybrid, Lotus

After the engineering side of Lotus has spent over a decade working on electric vehicle technology, the production side finally looks ready to take advantage of it. Lotus CEO Michael Kimberley recently told the Financial Times, "Don't be surprised to see an electric Lotus shortly," which could appear as a concept car at the Geneva Motor Show in March.

The first electric Lotus is expected to be a range extended EV with a smaller battery to provide some plug-in range and an internal combustion engine to stretch the driving distance out to 300-400 miles. That would put Lotus in direct competition with the Fisker Karma. It's not known what vehicle layout Lotus will use, but given its limited resources, the new Evora is likely to be the donor platform. That will likely mean a mid-mounted battery pack with an engine directly behind.

Lotus Engineering consults with many automakers around the world on a wide variety of projects, most of which we never hear about. However, in the past two years, the company has been prominently involved with both Chrysler and Tesla Motors. Lotus developed the chassis of the Tesla Roadster as an evolution of its own Elise and manufactures rolling chassis for the California Company. Lotus also built the battery-powered Dodge EV based on its Europa sports car. What impact this new car will have on either of those projects is not clear right now. However, building its own EVs without a middle man would likely give Lotus a big financial advantage over Tesla.

Gallery: LA 2008: Dodge EV

[Source: Financial Times]

Lotus set to challenge Tesla and Fisker with extended range EV originally appeared on AutoblogGreen on Fri, 02 Jan 2009 12:02:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Filed under: EV/Plug-in, Mitsubishi, Green Daily, Japan

Mitsubishi didn't need a survey to find out if Lawson likes the iMiEV. The Japanese convenience store chain has ordered 150 of the electric jelly beans to replace some of its commercial vehicles starting in the summer. The Yomiuri Shimbun reports that this might be the first step in Lawson's electric shift: all 1,500 Lawson vehicles will probably go electric "in the future." An even bigger deal is that Lawson is considering installing electric vehicle chargers in its parking lots. There are about 8,000 Lawsons in Japan, and the availability of public charging stations could quickly become a non-starter with that kind of infrastructure. Lawson's "corporate social responsibility" platform includes carbon-reducing efforts and collecting donations for a tree planting campaign.

Gallery: Mitsubishi i MiEV - LIVE

[Source: Yomiuri Shimbun via EVWorld]

Japanese convenience store chain orders 150 Mitsubishi electric cars, could install 8,000 chargers originally appeared on AutoblogGreen on Fri, 02 Jan 2009 11:16:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Filed under: EV/Plug-in, AutoblogGreen Exclusive, Green Daily

click above to enlarge

The years may roll on by, but some things stay the same. A perfect example is an article from the February 1967 issue of Popular Mechanics that reader Jay sent in. As you can read in the scan of the article above, BMW - that stands for Boulevard Machine Works not the Bavarians) - was secretive about its battery technology but claimed a 75-mile range from a 4-8 hour recharge from a standard wall outlet. It was a very small car (see this scan), and that's also something we see in today's EVs.

We can't find much more on this particular BMW vehicle, but Econogics says that, "Beginning in 1949, this firm produced electric mini-cars and golf-carts. In 1966 they built a larger roadster, which probably operated on 48 volts worth of lead-acid golf-cart batteries powering 2 motors, for which they claimed a maximum speed of 70 mph." Thanks to Jay for the tip and pics!

Gallery: 1967 Popular Mechanics electric car article

For the New Year, a look back at a 1967 electric vehicle from BMW (that's Boulevard Machine Works) originally appeared on AutoblogGreen on Thu, 01 Jan 2009 17:15:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Filed under: EV/Plug-in, Hybrid, Detroit Auto Show, Fisker

Click above to enlarge the Fisker Sunset concept

Something new from Fisker? Color us intrigued, especially after taking a gander at the lone teaser shot that's been released. We already know that the production version of the Karma plug-in hybrid sedan will be debuting at the Detroit Auto Show, and now word comes that the budding automaker will have something else on hand to display called the Sunset. At this point, details are sketchy at best, but we're hoping that this is another extended-range electric-vehicle like its slightly older sibling. Could Fisker be having twins?

One possible hint that the Sunset may use a similar drivetrain is that the exhaust tips exit just behind the front wheels, just like they do on the Karma. We also don't see a B pillar behind the driver's seat, so we are left wondering if this could be a convertible. If so, the Sunset name would seem rather appropriate, don't you think?

UPDATE: Fisker sent us the following information about the Sunset: Similar architecture; identical powertrain to Karma. Looks phenomenal. It will blow your top! Also, official name of car is Fisker Karma S. S does stand for Sunset, but we're going with Karma S nomenclature.

[Source: Fisker]

Fisker set to debut new Karma S "Sunset" concept in Detroit originally appeared on AutoblogGreen on Tue, 30 Dec 2008 20:17:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Filed under: EV/Plug-in

We all know that electric vehicles are nothing new. Battery-powered vehicles began appearing not long after Karl Benz drove out of the garage in his first MotorWagen in the mid-1880s. The crew over at Hemmings Auto Blogs stumbled across this example in an issue of "The Canadian Magazine" from 1903. Apparently this electric drag was used to ferry sight-seeing tourists around Toronto around the turn of the last century. No other details are known but this vehicle probably didn't go very fast - probably a very good thing considering the rather high center of gravity and absence of any visible structure to keep the passengers within the vehicle. It was the style of EVs back then, as you can see in the gallery below.

Gallery: LA 2007: Lohner-Porsche

[Source: Hemmings Auto Blogs]

An electric tourist wagon prowled Toronto in 1903 originally appeared on AutoblogGreen on Tue, 30 Dec 2008 19:56:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Filed under: EV/Plug-in, Hybrid, China

The Chinese Government has created a National High Technology Research and Development Program, dubbed the "863 Program," and one of the first funding recipients is China BAK Battery Corp. China BAK will be getting a grant of up $3.1 million, initially, from the federal government and more from local governments. The money will be used to fund R&D and commercialization efforts on China BAK's lithium phosphate battery technology. The hope is to get manufacturing of high-power batteries for electric and hybrid vehicles going as soon as possible. The company is already one of the largest producers of lithium ion cells for electronics applications.

[Source: China BAK Battery Inc.]

Continue reading China BAK Battery selected to receive government grants for R&D, manufacturing

China BAK Battery selected to receive government grants for R&D, manufacturing originally appeared on AutoblogGreen on Tue, 30 Dec 2008 19:07:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Filed under: EV/Plug-in, Hybrid, Chevrolet, Green Daily

The Chevy Volt is very likely the car we've written about the most here on AutoblogGreen (with the Tesla Roadster up there as well). Turns out, in what might still be the Volt's engine's future hometown - Flint, Michigan - the local love isn't quite with GM's halo car. According to a year-end ranking of the Flint Journal's top stories, the Volt engine deal and subsequent delay and then possible revival came in at number five. The Volt news was beaten to the number four spot by a story on a University of Michigan-Flint residence hall. Other things that Flint residents clicked on more than the Volt story were Obama's victory, GM's overall troubles and development in downtown Flint. Guess not everyone is watching the Volt's progress as closely as we are.

[Source: Flint Journal]

University dorm story more important in Flint than hometown Chevy Volt story originally appeared on AutoblogGreen on Tue, 30 Dec 2008 11:02:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Filed under: EV/Plug-in, Tesla Motors, Green Daily

Photo by El Informador Digital. Licensed under Creative Commons license 2.0.

If you like your electric car, you have at least one thing in common with Leonardo DiCaprio. Leo is out doing interviews about his new movie (Revolutionary Road, if you don't know) and told the Daily Mail that his new Tesla Roadster is "an unbelievable drive," adding: "It's scarily fast and it all happens with the flip of a switch, unlike a piston-driven engine that needs to build up momentum." Well, duh.

With his new zero-emission electric car, Leo can continue to work his green hipster cred and eat it, too. When he's not out driving, he said he'd rather work on getting governments "to implement environmental policy" than tell people to put in better light bulbs or drive a hybrid. Well, sure, if you're trading in a Prius for a Roadster, who needs hybrid technology?

Gallery: 2009 Tesla Roadster v1.5

[Source: Daily Mail via Ecorazzi]

Leo likes his Roadster originally appeared on AutoblogGreen on Mon, 29 Dec 2008 17:02:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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