Plug It In, Drive It Off

IN THEORY, AN ELECTRIC CAR IS AN IDEA OF BLINDing brilliance. Since such cars are powered by batteries, not internal combustion engines, there are no noxious emissions and no need for gasoline. Gas stations soon disappear, as do refineries and their occasional unhappy by-products, oil spills and groundwater pollution. Electric cars are easy on the ears since they make virtually no noise. Refueling? Drive up to a handy 220-volt electrical outlet, plug in and charge up.

Auto-industry critics have long complained that manufacturers, slavishly wedded to the status quo, have never given electric cars a chance. No longer. Chrysler says it will start rolling out electric-powered minivans this fall. Anyone wishing to own the first on the block must be prepared to shell out as much as $125,000, but utility companies are expected to buy the entire production run of 50.

The van on display at the New York Auto Show has a range of 100 miles per charge and can go from 0 to 60 in 25 seconds. With a top speed of 65 m.p.h., it can hold its own on the freeway. It is much more than a “glorified golf cart,” as Chrysler chairman Lee Iacocca points out, adding, “You can get a speeding ticket in this van.”

Until battery technology improves dramatically, however, electric cars will continue to occupy the smallest of market niches. So Chrysler, Ford and GM are pooling their resources with government approval in a $260 million research effort to achieve a battery breakthrough. Some of the impetus comes from a deadline set by California: as of 2003, the state will require 10% of the new cars sold there each year to be emission-free.

Ford did its share to reduce smog in the Golden State as it unveiled two models that will exceed the first stage of the state’s stringent new clean-air code. By improving the catalytic converters in their subcompacts, Ford beat the clock on the tougher standards by four years. Research also continues on vehicles fueled by natural gas and flexible mixtures of up to 85% methanol and gasoline. As a result, car buyers are soon going to face choices much more complicated than merely deciding whether to buy their favorite sedan in green or red.