NEVs Become A Point Of Attack On Stimulus Bill

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Numerous blogs and websites are recycling the same political spin in opposition to the stimulus bill.?? Typically the headline includes the phrase “$300 million for golf carts”. (Here is an example)?? The story then highlights NEVs from a list of electric vehicle types that would be eligible for federal funding under the bill and conflates NEVs/LSVs with golf carts.

Whether you are for or against the stimulus bill, this is another example of how various media outlets and others are blurring the line between NEVs/LSVs and golf carts.?? In the past, the blurring has had more to do with vehicle safety issues.?? In both cases, the blurring is to the detriment of NEV/LSV manufacturers.?? If this trend continues, NEV/LSV manufacturers may have to more aggressively and clearly delineate the differences between NEVs/LSVs and golf carts in order to protect the generic NEV/LSV brand and their specific brand of NEV/LSV.

BG Autmotive Looking For Manufacturing Sites

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A local news story reports that Philadelphia based BG Automotive is looking for manufacturing sites in the Boston area including Bridgewater, Taunton, Fall River and New Bedford. The facility will be for mass production of their C100 neighborhood electric vehicle and employ about 150 people per shift. The company is looking for a site for a 60,000 – 100,000 square foot facility and is currently seeking funding.

Since the vehicle’s parts are imported and most of the activity at the facility would be assembly the company expects vehicle production could begin in as little as four months once a facility is found. The chassis and body of the vehicle are imported while components like the motor, controller and batteries are manufactured in the U.S. Delivery of the first vehicle is expected to be in April or May of 2009 according to the company’s website.

Another news source also states that

The company is planning to develop six facilities in the next 24 months for a total production of about 100,000 vehicles by year-end 2010.

I thought these latter figures were quite aggressive so I placed a call with BG Automotive and was able to speak with Barry Bernstein, the founder of the company.

He confirmed that the company is looking to develop six facilities with the ability to produce around 15,000 vehicles each annually. While our estimates of the LSV market size the market at less than 10,000 vehicles a year, Bernstein noted that interest in their vehicle has been higher than expected with over 44,000 people signing up on their website. No deposit is required to sign up initially but as the actual production date moves closer a deposit is required.

Bernstein also noted that the facilities will be designed to easily switch over to highway-speed electric vehicle production which is in the company’s long term plans. Besides Massachusetts, the Philadelphia based company is also looking to place facilities close to major LSV markets including California, Georgia, Texas, Northern Florida, Pennsylvania and the Tennessee – Kentucky area. They are applying for loan guarantees and other support from both federal and state agencies but will be able to scale down their facilities if they cannot garner this support. Bernstein expects to have more information on their site selection in about two weeks.

Tanfield To Form Joint Venture For Smith Electric Vehicle Production

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Tanfield is forming a joint venture with Smith Electric Vehicles US Corporation (SEVUS) to produce electric vehicles for the North American market.?? The UK based Tanfield is the parent company of Smith Electric Vehicles.?? According to the post at greencarcongress.com

Tanfield will licence Intellectual Property Rights (IPR), brand and all existing sales and sales enquiries in North America to SEVUS, in exchange for a 49% equity stake in SEV US Corp and per-vehicle royalties. As a majority (51%)-owned US company, SEV US will be eligible for US government funding and other benefits.

Production of the vehicles is expected to begin in 2009.?? Tanfield has scaled back from their plans to develop, on their own in the US, a major production facility?? with a capacity to produce 10,000 vehicles a year.?? North America remains the largest potential market for their commercial vehicles.

Chicago To Pilot Test LSVs As Taxis

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Later this year the City of Chicago is planning to start a pilot project to test the viability of using low speed vehicles as taxicabs in certain areas of the city.

I spoke with Efrat Stein, a spokeswoman for the city’s Department of Business Affairs and Consumer Protection and she stated that the first step in the program is the passage of an LSV ordinance by the City Council.???? The ordinance, recently proposed by Mayor Daley, just made it through the Traffic Committee today and should be placed for a vote before the full council later this month.?? Stein currently sees no issues that would impede passage of the ordinance.

The city has not chosen a specific LSV for the pilot yet and will not begin the process until the ordinance passes.?? The minimum requirement is that the LSV has to have four doors and be able to seat four people. Learn more

Japanese Firm Exhibits Electric One-Seater

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Prototype T10 Minicar

Prototype T10 Minicar

Takeoka Jidosha Kogei Ltd exhibited a prototype of their upgraded electric minicar at the Interational Automotive Electronics Technology Expo in Tokyo Japan last week.?? The minicar, currently named T10, is expected to be available in Japan sometime in 2009 and will be priced above $9,520, the cost of their current model in the market, the Milieu R.

The T10 is slightly longer, wider and higher than the Milieu R and is powered by four 12 volt batteries.?? The top speed is 55 km/h and the range is 50 km/hr.?? Curtis Instruments provides the controller for the vehicle.?? Learn more

EMI Introduces New UTV

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Silverback UTV from EMI

Silverback UTV from EMI

Eminent Motorsports International (EMI) has introduced the Silverback, a new UTV for 2009. Targeting the recreational market, the Silverback features a 812cc, 52hp engine which gives the Silverback a top speed of over 60 mph according to EMI. Other features include four speed manual transmission, 75 amp alternator, independent suspension, dual exhaust and four wheel disc brakes. ?? The MSRP for the Silverback is $10,999. ?? Learn More

LSVs Will Be Hurt By Proposed Changes To Plug-In Electric Vehicle Tax Credit

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The Senate Finance Committee is currently proposing changes to the plug-in electric drive motor vehicle credit by increasing the 250,000 vehicle limitation to 500,000. The bad news for LSV manufacturers and purchasers is that the changes also exclude low speed vehicles from qualifying for the credit. Instead they are creating a separate tax credit for LSVs, motorcycles and three-wheel vehicles of 10% up to $4,000. The credit will be good for vehicles sold before 2012.

Given the price ranges of current LSVs and three wheel vehicles, the changes mean a significant reduction in the tax credit for these vehicles. The original tax credit started at $2,500 and increased for vehicles with battery packs over 4KW in power. As I interpret it, a $10,000 to $15,000 LSV will now only receive a tax credit of $1,000 – $1,500, a sixty to forty percent reduction in the tax credit that would be available under the current law.

On a related note, according to people I spoke with at the Electric Drive Transportation Association, the IRS has still not ruled on the eligibility of various vehicles under the current tax credit rules .

Original story greencarcongress.com

Valmet To Manufacture Luxury Golf Car For Garia

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Valmet Automotive has won a contract to engineer and manufacture a luxury golf car for Garia A/S of Denmark.?? Production will begin in the third quarter of 2009 and the vehicle is expected to be on the market in 2009.

Garia Golf Car

Garia Golf Car

Total production is expected to be a “few thousand” per year in the next few years.?? Valmet reports that it is investing two million euros and committing 50 people to the project.?? A test fleet is already in use at a golf course in Denmark.?? The electric golf car will be introduced at PGA Las Vegas in late August and then in the Middle East.

In April of 2008 Garia, which was founded in 2005 to build high end golf cars, opened sales offices in the U.S. with plans to have 15 to 20 dealers within a year.?? The company is targeting the luxury golf car segment in Florida, Georgia, California and Arizona.

Valmet has previously produced vehicles for Porsche and recently won a contract to produce the Fisker Karma hybrid vehicle.?? Learn more

Another Sign of Electric Vehicle Popularity

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South Seattle Community College is offering a number of courses focusing on electric vehicles.?? Developed in conjunction with the Seattle Electric Vehicle Association, the courses cover topics such as electric vehicle conversion, batteries and safety.?? The conversion workshop involves the actual conversion of a vehicle to electric power.

Road Use Regulation Round Up

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Ocean City, NJ – Police urge city council to keep golf cars off city streets for safety reasons.

West Baraboo, WI – Passes ordinance allowing NEVs on low speed streets and certain crossings of state highway.

Charleston, NC – A limousine service with two Tomberlin E-merge vehicles as part of their fleet had to cease using the LSVs when the city attorneys determined the vehicles violated city code and zoning ordinance. The owner hopes the city will revisit the issue later in the year.

Wausau, WI – City amends ordinance to allow NEVs to be driven on some city streets.

Massachusetts – Legislation bans the use of NEVs on roads with speed limits above 30 mph and requires that they follow the same licensing and registration rules as cars. Additional legislation allows the Registry of Motor Vehicles to register as ???motorcycles??? three-wheeled electric vehicles that have standard safety equipment and travel no faster than 40 miles per hour. (i.e. Zap Xebra) Such vehicles could be registered at the discretion of the Registrar, and would be limited to traveling on public roads having speed limits of 40 miles per hour or less.

Pittsfield, IL – Ordinance proposed to allow the use of NEVs and golf cars to operate on city streets with speed limits of 35 mph or less and cross streets with higher speed limits.

Indiana – Legislation proposed to allow mini-trucks to be licensed and titled. Apparently the state’s motor vehicle department has been inconsistent in their approach to these vehicles. The department plans to title them as off-road vehicles, which allows owners to drive them on secondary roads in some Indiana counties.