More About PEV's (Plug-in Electric Vehicles)

Nissan was at the Square today, (by the Marriott Center City), and was offering demonstration rides in their Electric Vehicle, The Leaf.  It is not a Hybred, this car is 100% Electric.  It is about the size of a Toyota Prius, and handles pretty much the same.  Being Electric, the gear shift is kind of funny, push down and over as opposed to actually meshing gears. 

The demonstration and test rides were part of a campaign by Duke-Energy and Charlotte Center City Partners to demonstrate the practicality of PEV's.  This particular model gets about 100 miles on a charge, or about the same as 7 round trips from downtown to SouthPark.  Based on gas prices at $3.50 a gallon, and a car getting about 25 miles per gallon, 100 miles would cost your about $14 in fuel with an internal combustion engine.The same trip in an Electronic Vehicle would cost about $3.30, for a savings of $10.70 for every 100 miles you drive.  If you drive 10,000 miles per year, the difference would be $1,070 - Every Year!

To be sure, a charging station in a condominium for your personal use would have an initial cost of around $1,200, but that would be a 1 time cost.  Additionally, there are Federal Tax Credits available, so the costs would be somewhat mitigated. 

The Nissan Leaf I drove has a MSRP of $32,000, so they are not cheap.  But the interior creature comforts are not lacking and the sound system is good.  So, PEV's are coming.  There will be early adaptors and later comers on, but it is enevitable that this is the future we have in store.