VentureBeat

John Latusek said:

If Modec are listed here, we can surely include the world’s bigges maker of all-electric roadgoing delivery vehicles - Smith EV. Around 250 of their current range were delivered in 2007, mainly to logistics companies. 1500 are scheduled for delivery in 2008, 5000 next year and at least twice that in 2010. See htt://www.smithelectricvehicles.com

John Latusek said:

Sorry - that Smith EV website address was incomplete. Should say http://www.smithelectricvehicles.com

Eric Boyd said:

If you’re interested in the Automotive X Prize cars, I’ve been doing research and putting the info up at http://xprizecars.com/
- there is already more information on the Aptera, Velozzi, and Tesla Roadster, among others.

jt said:

i haven’t heard anything about Porteon, except that they have a logo:

http://www.porteon.net/

Matt said:

How about the Twike (http://www.twike.com)? It’s a small electric or electric-hybrid (pedal power!) vehicle, made in Switzerland, I think. You can get them here, too, if you pre-order. They have fairly impressive ranges and speeds, if memory serves, and a very different control system (control stick, vaguely reminiscent of a helicopter’s.

Gubatron said:

I hate that more than 50% of those care look like Toy cars. This thing will take off when they make SUV sized electric cars, that’s what the american crowd is used to, the Electric-Suv, the electric honda civic, the electric toyota corolla, that’s what people would buy, not a moped.

Lee said:

Corrrrrection…

Wrightspeed — X-1

“Fuel type: Hybrid”, is wrong. The Wrightspeed is 100% electric.

Michael Travaline said:

You could ad another company struggling here in Canada TO HAVE IT VEHICLES ALLOW FOR URBAN TRANSPOTATION….http://www.itiselectric.com I would bring one into ONTARIO if it were allowed on City streets similar to British Columbia…

Ian Bruce said:

Hi Chris — We’re a lot further along than the original concept sketch you’ve posted above. Please have a look at some pix from the December 20th design review here:

http://flytheroadclub.com/forums/showthread.php?t=236

Cheers,
– Ian

Eddie said:

The Kurrent is no more according to EV Finder.

David Levine said:

Phoenix Motors using the Altair Nano (ALTI) Battery is the one most likely to succeed for the mass market. This Nano engineered Lithium Ion battery has a life expectency of 15-20 years- works in all kind of extreme temps and will not catch fire or explode.

Felix said:

It is wonderful to see all the electric activity,
but I think it will be a tough sell for the working class person that does drive to work with a price above $25K. I love it, all these newbies
are FORCING Detroit to do something.

jay dillon said:

What appeals to me is the 10 minute recharge time claimed for the “future” ZAP electric car (stock symbol: ZAAP). With 350 mile range, 0 to 60 in about 4.8 seconds as I recall, in-wheel electric engines using “pulsed capacitor discharge” technology (finally! this tech has been ignored in the usa since it was invented by Edwin V. Gray 1975!), and something like 600 horsepower, with 155 mph top speed, seating 5 or six adults, body by Lotus, the only thing I dont like is the price, around $65,000 or so, and its not available yet. This thing is (or will be) way overengineered, hopefully ZAP will work to fill in the gap between its current toy-type models, or retrofit some of them with some of the new tech, to increase range and top speed. Need around 80 mph top speed i think, ideally 100 mph. 10 minute recharge. High marks for nailing the top end, at least in the future..! (body by Lotus Engineering..!) Due date maybe 2010.

Clayton Porter said:

The GEM Cars (Global Electric Motorcars, Chrysler) are far more than a golf cart. GEM is the leader in production of NEVs Worldwide with more than adequate funding. As a matter of fact they do not require funding from Chrysler as the production and sales fund the entire GEM production facility. 2008 marks their 10th year in business. These vehicle are not competing for the highways. They are produced for use in gated communities, factories, inter-city, or any roadways where the maximum speed limit is 35 MPH. They come in 7 different configuartions, 2, 4, 6 passenger and utility versions. The GEM is a total electric plug-in.
See more at http://www.gemcar.com
Thanks
Clayton

William Dryden said:

The GEM looks too much like a golf cart. Add the fact that all the accessories requred to make it an all weather vehicle means a $16k price and the Miles ZX40S looks like a better deal. The Miles ZX40S looks more like a real car, the doors lock, and it has twice the range of the GEM. http://www.milesev.com/

Chris Morrison said:

Thanks for the comments, everyone. I’ve updated a number of details and added the companies you mentioned.

sue said:

To me the only practical electric car is the ZAP. I own one of the ZAPTRUCKS you should show this one. See it at http://www.zapworld.com

MARLIP said:

Indonesian Electric Commuter Car by Marlip Indo Mandiri From Indonesian Country Develop Electric Commuter Car . The General Spesification : Power/DC Electro motor 5 to 15 HP,Energy storage Lead Acid Batteries, Range 16o km and speed 50 km/hour. Now Need Investor and some protipe Available now,Plant to be mass production on 2010. website : http://www.marlipev.blogspot.com

coffeebot said:

You should include the Tiger Star line. Trucks, the first off-road light vehicle 4WD truck, the largest pickup truck bed, the first electric van, the first hybrid van, and the First Chinese company to export jobs to the US, in Poteau Oklahoma. Kudos to Chang’an auto industry (who also make Miles ZX40ST, Zap Truck XL, and Dymac trucks.)

Gary vonBergen said:

I find that the listings and advertisements for Electric vehicles leave out one very very pertinent piece of information……RECOVERY TIME on the batteries (how long does it take to recharge the batteries and are they prone to developing a battery profile when only partially discharged and recharged.)

Ed Matula said:

Why, was eRoadsters left out of the list? It’s a limited production 3/4 scale 32 Ford Hiboy roadster built to order. We are finishing up our latest version which has a DC to AC electric drive. 40mph/50 mile range town roadster. New information comming on web site soon.

Ed Matula said:

http://www.eroadsters.com

Glenn said:

Where’s the Mitsubishi iMiev?
http://www.greencarcongress.com/2008/02/mitsubishi-moto.html

and here’s a new one from a French/Italian venture:
http://www.evworld.com/news.cfm?newsid=17010

and another, though a bit odd:
http://www.milnermotors.com/phev.htm

And for concepts, here are a few from major auto makers:
http://www.caranddriver.com/reviews/hot_lists/high_performance/concept_central/subaru_g4e_concept_auto_shows
http://www.greencarcongress.com/2008/01/chryslers-three.html#more
http://www.greencarcongress.com/2005/12/smart_shows_die.html
http://www.autoblog.com/2006/05/01/will-ford-be-first-to-market-with-plug-in-hybrids/

Awilky said:

5 Reasons to Buy an Electric Car
1. Zero Air Pollution
ZAP stands for Zero Air Pollution. We believe electricity is the fuel of the future. With electricity to power our transportation, our world can tap into renewable resources like hydroelectric, solar, wind, or geothermal power; resources that lessen our environmental footprint. Furthermore, studies show that millions of electric vehicles can recharge at night using existing surplus electrical generation; a vast, virtually untapped resource.
2. Save Gas
Gasoline is a precious natural resource and vital to the world economy. ZAP vehicles use no gasoline and require no oil changes. Using less fossil fuel can help relieve our current energy shortages while ensuring that future generations can rely on the same inexpensive, useful, petroleum products that we all take for granted.
3. Save Money
Gas keeps getting more expensive. Imagine all the money you can save by ZAPPING to work every day, rather than driving your gas vehicle. The typical electric car costs a penny per mile versus ten cents per mile with gas. Electric bikes and scooters are even less expensive. Plus, electric motors have fewer moving parts, meaning fewer trips to the mechanic. If you live close to work, you can save thousands of dollars per year by replacing your car with a ZAP bicycle.
4. Save Time
Traffic congestion and parking shortages eat away at our busy days, but a ZAP vehicle can help you save time, especially in busy urban areas. ZAP bikes and scooters slice through traffic jams and finding a place to park your ZAP neighborhood car is a snap.
5. Help the Economy
Today, the majority of USA’s foreign trade deficit is attributed to imported oil. Using a ZAP vehicle will reduce our reliance on foreign oil. Furthermore, by investing in advanced transportation technologies, the USA can take the technological lead in offering energy efficient products that emerging economies around the world can use to build their own transportation infrastructures.

For more information on buying an Electric Car go to: http://www.zapworld.com
To view the ZAP Xebra Electric Car click here: http://www.zapworld.com/electric-vehicles/electric-cars/xebra-sedan

Awilky said:

5 Reasons to Buy an Electric Car
1. Zero Air Pollution
ZAP stands for Zero Air Pollution. We believe electricity is the fuel of the future. With electricity to power our transportation, our world can tap into renewable resources like hydroelectric, solar, wind, or geothermal power; resources that lessen our environmental footprint. Furthermore, studies show that millions of electric vehicles can recharge at night using existing surplus electrical generation; a vast, virtually untapped resource.
2. Save Gas
Gasoline is a precious natural resource and vital to the world economy. ZAP vehicles use no gasoline and require no oil changes. Using less fossil fuel can help relieve our current energy shortages while ensuring that future generations can rely on the same inexpensive, useful, petroleum products that we all take for granted.
3. Save Money
Gas keeps getting more expensive. Imagine all the money you can save by ZAPPING to work every day, rather than driving your gas vehicle. The typical electric car costs a penny per mile versus ten cents per mile with gas. Electric bikes and scooters are even less expensive. Plus, electric motors have fewer moving parts, meaning fewer trips to the mechanic. If you live close to work, you can save thousands of dollars per year by replacing your car with a ZAP bicycle.
4. Save Time
Traffic congestion and parking shortages eat away at our busy days, but a ZAP vehicle can help you save time, especially in busy urban areas. ZAP bikes and scooters slice through traffic jams and finding a place to park your ZAP neighborhood car is a snap.
5. Help the Economy
Today, the majority of USA’s foreign trade deficit is attributed to imported oil. Using a ZAP vehicle will reduce our reliance on foreign oil. Furthermore, by investing in advanced transportation technologies, the USA can take the technological lead in offering energy efficient products that emerging economies around the world can use to build their own transportation infrastructures.

For more information on buying an Electric Car go to: http://www.zapworld.com
To view the ZAP Xebra Electric Car click here: http://www.zapworld.com/electric-vehicles/electric-cars/xebra-sedan
—————–

JimTurner said:

Are these companies really sound investments? How many of these companies will survive? The big auto makers have been fine tuning prototypes in the wings for years now and will introduce them when the time seems right. They also buy models from these little companies and dissect the technology and put it into their own designs. I think the power cell technology companies are a better investment.

Todd Lanuzzi said:

The GEM’s haven’t changed much in the 10 years they’ve been around. The hard doors that are an (expensive) option are POS. they haven’t changed them since 2002. I even spoke with a call center rep that admited they sucked but gem wasn’t going to spend money on retooling them. ??? My other beef with the one i own is that although they are street legal on 35mph roads or slower they do not belong there. even on roads that are 25mph how many big cars really go 25 on the nose? Other than your grandmother… no one. Until there is a reasonable solution i’ll stick to the 4/gallon gas.

Pat Hein said:

I will gladly pay $50k for a electric vehicle since it will cost only a couple thousand more to run it a year and for repairs. With the gas prices where they are now it would cost me about 8 - 10 thousand dollars more a year to operate a gas powered truck that is gonna cost me $40,000 anyways.

What a concept a truck or car that pays for itself in less then 10 years! And a 10 minute home charger. I can charge while eating lunch or when I return to the office.

As a businessman in a service industry, it will give me a huge advantage over my competitors. In a rural area I put on alot of miles each day. And what better way to promote my electrical business then in an electric truck/suv?

Im ordering a Phoenix today. They appear to have all the goodies of any other modern truck / SUV minus the convenient refilling stations in each and every town.

Todays Lithium batteries dont have a memory like Nicads. The Phoenix claims a battery life of 250k miles i think and many others claim 100k. Some people fight change even when they are the only ones left in the cave i swear.

1 said:

Electric cars don’t need gears like gas cars. Electric motors produce full torque from 0 rpm right through to their
maximum RPM. This
is what makes them fast.

Muvy said:

I appreciate your taking the effort.

However you did forget to mention a more practical option than electric cars, namely: electric motorcycles.

David Jeffrey said:

I see alot of comments about the benefits that an electric car brings for the environment. I think its important to note that these cars would cause alot of pollution. With the majority of our electricity coming from coal, these electric cars far from ecologically friendly. They are really only a band aid solution. Thats the reason why the original electric cars were taken off the market. Until we have renewable sources of electricity these cars are just as bad as gas powered vehicles. Might as well wait for hydrogen powered vehicles. Ill take gasoline emissions over coal ones.

Yutube said:

As a businessman in a service industry, it will give me a huge advantage over my competitors. In a rural area I put on alot of miles each day. And what better way to promote my electrical business then in an electric truck/suv?

mike said:

Forget ZAP. They’re simply scammers scavenging on the dreams of people looking for a better answer. The recent edition of WIRED magazine exposed them for the total frauds they are.

Dan said:

@ David Jeffrey - actually when you do well to wheel analysis of the different types of vehicles (meaning the CO2 emissions from manufacturing through the CO2 emissions of the lifetime operations of the vehicles) Electric Vehicles and Plug In hybrids are still far more efficient than entirely gas based alternatives. There is some great information and charts here.

http://greenhome.huddler.com/wiki/are-alternative-fuel-vehicles-really-green

And it’s a wiki if you’re so inclined to participate…the site has tons of information and pics of Teslas, Fiskers, Volts, etc.

Bob Smith said:

So… to sum it all up… freeway legal/capable electric cars currently available in the US for under $25k? Zero.

NEV is not legal (nor appropriate) for my commute on 45mph roads. Have driven the Zap Xebra and it’s promising but scary cheap feeling. Myers Sparrow remake is ridiculously overpriced (though their suspension and electronics improvements are great having driven both). The rest are all pipe-dreams or expensive one-offs.

The Reva has the most promise (and is actually making a dent in London) but is just simply not available here.

You might was to add AC Propulsion. Even though they’ll likely never make a production tzero, their eBox Scion conversions are interesting.

Derek said:

In Montana and Washington, you can adjust the speed limiter on your Zenn to go up to 35 mph. So its top speed isn’t really 25 mph.

Jeff said:

Most of these are expensive pieces of junk. I would buy one if the product was same as a gas product.

Frank said:

Is there some sort of unwritten rule that all electric cars have to be god-awful ugly? The only ones with any style are overpriced to a fault. In fact, it appears that the manufactures are going out of their way to make these cars ugly and top heavy. What gives?

I only thing I can think of is that they are letting the mechanical engineers do the design of the cars. Engineers have no style, just look how they dress. Hire some people with at least a little imagination to design the outside of these vehicles please……..I can spot an electric from a mile away just because of their ugliness.

Ellen said:

I would think again about putting ZAP! on there. The company has a history of writing press releases about products it’s releasing and then never delivers. For example, it announced the arrival of Worldcar in 2003, Smart ForTwo in 2004, Obvio and Xebra in 2005, Xebra Truck in 2006, ZAP Truck XL and ZAP-X in 2007, and in Alias in the January of this year. Of those cars, only the Xebra and Xebra truck ever made it to market. You also don’t have the range of the Xebra listed, but according to Ehab Youssef, a dealer for ZAP, the car barely makes it to 35 mph and has a range less than 20 miles. Doesn’t sound like it’s going to be taking over the road anytime soon. And those dealers across the country you mention, well they’re fling a class action lawsuit against the company.

Larry said:

I think the Indian air car has the most potential. With all battery cars you have a massive, expensive and heavy battery bank. The air powered car has an on board compressor and carbon fiber tanks and they sell a compressor for the home.
It can be charged up in a few minutes at home and you never have to worry about running out of power and getting stuck away from home without a plug. If you run out of air just run the battery powered compressor much like a hybrid for enough power to get back home. Its light weight and decent specs fall at the top end of the electrics and its cheaper. I have seen a crash test and it held up better than some full size cars.

Dave said:

How in the heck did you miss Venture Vehicles?
You really need to check out http://www.flytheroad.com for some great information. This new car is going to be fabulous!
100MPG in the hybrid version…

Austin said:

It’s a shame not to see Subaru’s R1e on the list - they’re planning to bring it to the US in 2009.

The Minimalist said:

Does anyone know what happened to Electrocar form Sebastopol CA?

Chris Morrison said:

Thanks again for all the comments. I’ve updated to reflect the more recent news articles on Zap and Spark. Note that the lack of big car manufacturers is intentional; this is an article about startups.

Kieran Mullen said:

Grammar check please “We didn’t included” =”We didn’t include”

Of course one should never use contractions, but that it another issue.

KieranMullen
http://360Oregon.com

patrick said:

The last entry’s photo appears to be an Ariel Atom.

Allannde said:

I bought a Zap because it was available not because it was ideal. I have had few problems and great dealer support. Will I get a better EV when they are available? Sure, but that could be a while. In the mean time. I am having a ball.

CFA Level 1 said:

They could of at least made the cars more stylish

zor said:

Your comment about ZAP is totally unfounded. It was clearly a one sided hit piece. Who else has delivered over 700 city speed vehicles? Who else has a dealer network of over 50 outlets? Who else has delivered over 100,000 EV’s? Most of the ZAP dealers believe that the XEBRA is the most practical electric car for the money. Check out any of their dealers, such as Foreign Affairs in Florida, Midwest EV in Kansas, or their other dealers across the country.

oh… if you are considering getting an EV or becoming a EV dealer, you should first visit ZAP, and see for yourself why this is the EV of choice.

Jimmy hilshire said:

These car companies will all fail miserably b/c of the price. it’s ridiculously expensive! People want an affordable car (cheap) alternative to current gas guzzling vehicles. People want to feel like they’re beating the “man” and big oil, spending 40k for a rinky dink little overpriced Ford Fiesta is lucicrous. These car companies should join forces and stop being small inept companies who can’t compete with the big oil babies. After seeing this list, the first thing I thought of was Linux. It’s like 100+ different distributions, every one of them wanting the same result, being an alternative choice.

David Bevans said:

I am one of the men “taken” by Spark-EV. We (Electric Transportation of Arkansas) gave this Michael Papp thousands for nothing! This man has no manufacturing facilities. He is not building a Comet, he is not crash testing them in his basement. And he will not deliver on any order you place with him. He is scamming people from his house. We have had the pleasure of visiting his home twice now and have not seen any electric car production going on.

One car company not listed above is Cruise Car. We are a dealer for them and are happy with their products.

Zap has a good song and dance, but they are in it for the money, from dealers or the public, dosen’t matter they just want money! And have only their best interest in mind.

Birch Weimer said:

I read a few months ago about a company, I think in Canada building electric cars. The had made a deal with a new Texax company coming out with a new type of electric storage: a capacitor of some sort. It supposably is to revolutionize the battery industry for EVs. Have you any comments on this.
Birch Weimer.

Environment Quiz said:

I wonder why the American Electric Vehicle got canned, there had to have been some sort of downside? I might still by one.

b n said:

Until the EV manufacturers drop the prices down to the 10k range, only a small portion of drivers will be helping the enviroment. Why make cars for a select few and not the masses? By selling millions more vehicles (at a lower price point) will yield more revenue versus selling only a few thousand (paying 4x as much) to a select few that can afford them.