Zero-emission all-electric scotter unvieled - VECTRIX

Michael Taylor - San Francisco Chronicle Auto Editor - Friday, August 10, 2007

Bay Area zero-emission advocates got their first test ride Thursday on a zippy new all-electric motor scooter that can take two commuters on a silent freeway ride that will cost them just pennies in electrical power.

The plug-in hybrid automobile crowd, in the news these days because of advances in the technology of fuel-efficient hybrids, gathered at San Francisco's Presidio to see the latest wrinkle in emission-free transportation - an electric motor scooter called the Vectrix that can whiz along at 60 miles an hour.

At $11,000, the Vectrix may be a bit pricey, but it is a first of sorts and it will probably appeal to the same high-income people who have ordered the $100,000 all-electric Tesla sports car. "We want to get to the right consumer demographics," said Jeff Morrill, Vectrix's managing director for marketing. "It's for urban commuting, and it targets environmentalists, active (electric power) enthusiasts."

One of those was Marc Geller, a San Francisco photographer who owns a rare all-electric Toyota RAV4. He said of the Vectrix: "I've ridden it and it's fantastic. It's all about the (electric) plug and environmental concerns, petroleum concerns. I think it's totally cool, compared to that noisy piece of crap."

He was referring to a loud gas-powered vehicle that sped past as a few Vectrixes quietly tooled around the Presidio's main parade ground in a public demonstration of the new electric-powered scooter.

The Vectrix is a lot like other scooters - it has the normal right-hand twist grip for power, similar to motorcycles. On a 20-minute ride, a Chronicle reporter found it was pretty good in the zippy department, quite comfortable and, yes, very quiet.

It handled well, its fit and finish seemed good, and it had a trunk under its passenger seat that was large enough to accommodate a motorcycle helmet. But overall it wasn't much different from other, much less expensive, gas-powered scooters.

The 462-pound Vectrix scooter takes two hours to recharge its batteries on 220-volt house current and three hours on a 110-volt current. Its makers say it has a top speed of 62 mph and, when traveling at a constant speed of 40 to 45 mph, has a range of about 60 miles on a charge. It is freeway legal and is sold in San Francisco by British Motor Cars.

The Vectrix looks a lot like modern scooters made by Honda and Suzuki. Its major departure is the fact that it is powered by a small electric motor affixed to the rear wheel. Otherwise it feels the same as its gas-powered brethren.

But it's the price that gets people.

"Eleven thousand dollars? It's bloody insane," said Morris Friedlander, a veteran scooter and motorcycle dealer. Friedlander, who said he last operated an East Bay dealership for about a year, said most prospective scooter buyers are looking for economical transportation.

He said a typical scooter buyer might spend $3,000 or more - sometimes up to $8,000 - for a new gasoline-powered scooter that will run circles around the Vectrix and still get 50 to 80 mpg.

After riding the Vectrix, Friedlander said, "the speed is acceptable and the weight is well balanced and the brakes worked well. The downside is that its appearance is derivative" of other motor scooters.

Greg Beemer, who commutes 55 miles roundtrip each day on his $7,000 Aprilia 500cc scooter, said he was impressed with the Vectrix.

"To begin with, it's silent," he said, "and it's inexpensive to run and to maintain." He paused for a moment, then added, "But that price. That's something they'll have to overcome."

E-mail Michael Taylor at mtaylor@sfchronicle.com.

This article appeared on page B - 1 of the San Francisco Chronicle

Austin plug-in car initiative gains speed in Congress

Doggett bill providing incentives gets committee approval
By Allison Becker - Austin American-Statesman Washington Bureau - Thursday, June 21, 2007

WASHINGTON — An Austin-based effort to popularize plug-in hybrid vehicles got a boost from Congress on Wednesday when a House committee approved a bill introduced by Rep. Lloyd Doggett, D-Austin, to provide tax incentives for buyers.

The measure would offer tax credits of $4,000 to $6,000 to purchasers of new plug-ins.
The vehicles carry batteries that can be charged in ordinary electrical outlets and gasoline engines for use when the batteries run down.

Plug-ins are set to hit the U.S. market in 2009 when GM plans to introduce a plug-in Saturn Vue.

The vehicles can go up to 40 miles before switching to gasoline-powered engines.

The legislation, which Doggett introduced March 6, was incorporated by the tax-writing Ways and Means Committee into a bill to encourage conservation and use of renewable energy. It is the first plug-in legislation to receive committee approval, by a vote of 24-16.
"Incentives can be critically important to speeding up the timetable for when plug-ins will be commercially available," said Austin Mayor Will Wynn in a statement.

Austin's Plug-in Partners initiative, a national movement backed by Austin Energy, seeks to persuade automakers to manufacture electric cars.

More than 500 consumer groups and a majority of the 50 largest cities have committed to the effort, said Roger Duncan, deputy general manager of Austin Energy.

More than 11,000 people and organizations have expressed interest in purchasing the vehicles when they reach the market, Duncan said.

Plug-in advocates say it takes less than $1 to purchase the electricity required to power a plug-in vehicle as far as it would go on a gallon of gasoline. "This bill takes decisive action to make the next generation of hybrid vehicles widely accessible to consumers," Doggett said in a statement.
"It will help us move from fossilized ideas of our energy past to the renewable promise of our energy future."

The bill would provide a $4,000 tax credit for any plug-in. The credit could be increased by up to $2,000 for a larger battery.

Plug-ins would not qualify for the $2,000 Clean Fuel Vehicle tax credit available to buyers of the Toyota Prius, Honda Insight and other vehicles that have gasoline engines and electric motors operating on generator-charged batteries.

Skeptics say plug-ins could harm the environment, arguing that sulfur dioxide and mercury emissions would increase the burden on electric power plants.

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