Mini E Delievery Begins, Los Angeles Sheriff's Department To Get a Fleet of Them

Peter Trepp with his Mini E.

Delivery of the 500 Mini E electric Mini Coopers have begun recently. BMW, Mini's parent company, plans to lease the electric cars in southern California and metro New York as part of a testing program. Peter Trepp of Los Angeles took delivery of the first car last month.

Also, today it was announced that the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department will be leasing 17 of the Mini E's. Fortunately for Angeleno's, the LASD won't be paying the $850 lease per car (especially since California can't afford much right now), instead they are only on the hook for $10 a month per car. Don't expect to be pulled over by one of these, LASD says they will be used in specialized units, for recruiting, volunteering, and in administrative offices.


Links: AutoblogGreen, Autoblog

Tesla Motors To Open 7 New Stores

Tesla Motors, the makers of the $101,000 Roadster electric sports car and soon to be $50,000 Model S sedan, have announced a plan to open 7 new stores throughout the United States and Europe. Tesla already has stores in Northern and Southern California, and expect them to soon be in Chicago, New York, Seattle, Miami, Washington DC, London, Monaco and Munich. Some (New York, Seattle, London, and Chicago) could open as soon as later this month. For more information, check out the links below.


Link: Tesla Motors
Source: AutoblogGreen

Recap: Subaru Launches EV Production, GM Says Volt On Track

Subaru Stella EV

Subaru, not to be out done by their Japanese competitor Mitsubishi, has launched production of their Stella EV. Although Subaru is not producing as many EV's as Mitsubishi, it is still a great start. Deliveries of the $47,600 (converted from Japanese Yen, not including tax credit from Japanese government) car will start next month in Japan. It will have a range of about 55 miles and a top speed of 62 miles per hour. As of now, it is unclear if this vehicle will see the light of day on U.S. shores.

In other news, GM has said that even though they are struggling financially, the Volt is still on schedule for a 2010 launch. From GM:

Yes. GM will continue to make a significant investment in future products and new technologies. The New GM will have a number of key vehicle launches in 2009 and 2010, including:

• Chevrolet Camaro, a dramatic, moderately priced sport coupe with highway fuel economy of up to 29 mpg
• An all-new Buick LaCrosse premium midsize sedan
• The luxury midsize Cadillac SRX crossover and CTS Sport Wagon
• The Chevy Equinox and GMC Terrain, midsize crossovers with class-leading highway fuel economy of 32 mpg
• The Chevy Cruze, GM's new global compact car
• The revolutionary Chevy Volt, an extended-range electric vehicle that can travel up to 40 miles on battery power alone

We look forward to seeing both of these vehicles soon.


AutoblogGreen: Stella EV
AutoblogGreen: GM Volt

Miles EV launches Coda Automotive To Build Electric Sedan

Miles Automotive, who we've covered in the past, has already launched a new brand. Coda Automotive will build the highway capable electric sedan that Miles had been developing over the past few years. The vehicle will be built in China, but available to the public here in America. With an expected range of 90 to 120 miles, the vehicle will have a factory direct price of $45,000, before any types of incentives.



More Pictures: AutoblogGreen

Coda Automotive

Mitsubishi Begins Production Of i MiEV, Plus New Pics

On June 4, Mitsubishi launched production of their i MiEV electric car. It has a 100 mile range, and will cost around $31,000 (after conversion from Japanese Yen, including Japanese government tax breaks).

Although the car has been confirmed for a U.S. launch, it is unclear when that will happen. The first customers will be fleets in Japan, followed by a retail launch there later this year.

Mitsubishi has released new pictures showing what the production model of the vehicle will look like, for more see the link below.


AutoblogGreen: i MiEV pictures

Zap! Unveils New Low Speed Electric Van

Zap!, the electric car maker best known for the Xebra (the three wheeled electric car), has introduced a new electric van. The Zap! Shuttle is a neighborhood electric vehicle (NEV) which means that it can only go low speeds. For $14,700 you will receive a 5 passenger van with 108 cubic feet of storage and the ability to carry up to 900 pounds. It has a six hour charge time from a standard 110 volt outlet that will take you 30 miles. The car will be on display starting Saturday at the National Automobile Dealers Association conference. Also at the conference Zap! will unveil the Alias, their highway capable electric car. More details on the Alias will be released at the conference.


Link: AutoblogGreen

Sadly Predictable: GM May Not Have Enough Money To Make Converj

The recently announced Cadillac Converj, which we covered yesterday, may never find your local dealership. With the financial mess at GM, they're is a chance that there won't be enough research and development money to go around (the Volt is getting top priority). GM's Bob Lutz has said that a final decision has not been made.


Link: AutoblogGreen

Just For Fun: Tesla Roadster Hot Wheels

The Tesla Roadster, the $109,000 all electric sports car, has been made into a Hot Wheel thanks to Mattel. AutoblogGreen was able to get two of them and they have a picture gallery. While the real one may not be in your future any time soon, these would be neat to have.


Link: AutoblogGreen

iMiEV Fleld Testing Begins in Europe

The Mitsubishi iMiEV electric car will begin field testing later this month in Europe. Up until now the media has been able to do test drives, but this is the first field tests. Out of a dozen test vehicles, five will go to England, the rest Holland, Norway and Spain. Mitsubishi has not yet decided if they will bring the car to America.


Link: AutoblogGreen

Cadillac Converj, An Upper Class Chevy Volt

The car you see above is the Cadillac Converj. It was introduced at the 2009 Detroit Auto Show and features the same platform as the Chevy Volt, but with a distinct Cadillac design. The car has the same 40 mile all electric range as the Chevy Volt, and it also has a range extending gas engine. With GM's current financial situation, it is unclear when you will find this car in your local dealership.

Link: AutoblogGreen

Electric Smart Car Coming To U.S. In 2010

SmartUSA president David Schembri spoke with AutoblogGreen at the 2009 Detroit Auto Show about the electric version of the popular Smart car. The smart ed (for electric drive) is scheduled to start limited production in the U.S. in the second half of 2010 with series production in 2012. The car is currently undergoing testing in Europe, but none in America. There have been over 20,000 gas powered smart's sold in America since their introduction about a year ago.

Link: AutoblogGreen

Five Electric Cars You Can Buy In 2009 (And a note to readers)

Note to readers: I'm very sorry I have not published an article in over a month. The holiday time has been very busy, and I just never got around to posting. I am trying to get back into the habit of posting starting with this post. To make it easier for you, you can sign up for free weekly email alerts by clicking the "Subscribe" on any page of this website. As always, I want to know what you think. Click the "Feedback" on any page of this website or just send us an email to the email address on the bottom of each page. Also, if you have an idea for an article or a page we should make, please send it through either one of those methods. Thank you for reading!

AutoblogGreen has compiled a nice list of 5 electric cars you can buy in 2009. The list includes purely electric cars only, and sadly are not practical for most people (I know I can't afford the $100,000+ Tesla Roadster, available now), but it's still a good start. Hopefully we will see the list double in 2010.

Link: AutoblogGreen