EVLN(D-Chrysler sopping up the nEV market Ford dropped)
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--- {EVangel}
http://www.pensacolanewsjournal.com/news/092702/Business/ST001.shtml
PUBLISHED FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 27, 2002
Car is GEM of an energy idea
Electric vehicle said to be easy on wallet, environment
Charlotte Crane @PensacolaNewsJournal.com
Imagine a car that makes no noise, emits no fumes and costs
less than two pennies per mile to drive.
And it's low maintenance.
"All you have to do is water the batteries and plug it in,"
says Vaughn Nichols, electric transportation program manager
at Gulf Power Co.
Scott Wells, customer relations manager for Pensacola
Chrysler, looks over one of the new GEM Neighborhood
Electric Vehicle on display. A two-seater version can be
seen in the background.
Bruce Graner
@PensacolaNewsJournal.com
The car is the GEM Neighborhood Electric Vehicle, produced
by Global Electric Motorcars LLC of Fargo, N.D., now a
division of DaimlerChrysler.
The GEMs began arriving a week ago at Pensacola Chrysler-
Plymouth. Customer relations manager Scott Wells said
they're hoping the car will appeal to a wide range of
consumers - for use in business and residential communities,
on college campuses, shopping malls and military bases.
"It could be ideal for a senior citizen or someone just
going back and forth to the grocery store, and within
subdivisions," said Wells.
The GEM will go 25 miles per hour and run 35 to 40 miles
between charging, by plugging-in overnight at any household
outlet. It's legal for street use in most states, including
Florida, where it can be driven in zones limiting speed to
35 miles per hour. Cost: $6,000 to $12,000.
Nichols, who has watched the comings and goings of electric
models since they were introduced about seven years ago,
says the cost of driving a GEM compares well with a standard
auto. He figures: the GEM gets four miles per kilowatt hour,
for which Gulf Power charges about 7 cents; that's 1.75
cents per mile. If your gasoline-powered model gets 30 miles
to a gallon costing $1.50, that adds up to 5 cents a mile.
"This is the only type of electric car available in
Pensacola right now," Nichols said. Hybrid vehicles are
becoming popular, but still use gasoline.
John Frenkel Jr., general manager of the Pensacola
Interstate Fair, has a GEM on his shopping list.
"It's going to save me money if gas keeps going up. I can
fit it in the garage. But the main thing for me is the
environment. I am really concerned about the environment."
Frenkel plans to use the GEM to drive the five miles between
Marcus Pointe subdivision, where he lives, and his office at
the fairgrounds, on Mobile Highway.
Pensacola Chrysler-Plymouth will display the cars at the
fair, Oct. 17-27.
The Energy Policy Act of 1992 began pushing the idea of
finding alternative fuels, prompting automakers to develop
electric road vehicles, such as General Motors' EV-1,
introduced in 1997 but now only readily available in
California. Consumers generally weren't receptive to
electric cars' limited range.
The Neighborhood Electric Vehicle (NEV) addresses a narrower
market: for limited-distance, environmentally-friendly
transport and low-cost runabout business usage. In 1998, the
National Highway Traffic Safety Administration recognized
the NEV as a new class of motor vehicle.
"I think the NEV has a wonderful place in our little
community, because of our concern for the environment," said
Nichols.
Web: www.gemcar.com
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. http://geocities.com/brucedp
. EV List Editor & RE newswires
. (originator of the above EV ascci art)
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