Electric cars are a hot trend today if you live in congested areas of the country, sit in rush hour traffic or spend a lot time idling, then an electric car may be a solution to your gasoline usage.
The three hottest cars that are getting the most buzz are: The Chevrolet Volt, a plug car with a small gasoline engine. This is the only plug-in electric and gas car produced today.
The Nissan Leaf, which just won world car of the year, and it’s also the first all electric mass produced vehicle. Lastly, the Mitsubishi Miev which is also an all electric vehicle.
Other manufacturers have jumped in to the market as well: the Wheego Life, the full-speed electric car; the Coda sedan sold in California; Mini Cooper E, Ford Focus electric, Toyota Prius Ev, Fisker Karma, Tesla and Smart 4-2 Ev electric.
Before you purchase an electric car, you will need to locate charging stations which can be installed in your home and will be available in parking garages and public locations.
The secret to electric cars is the battery. Cold weather can really shorten the life on these cars, so consider your climate, daily driving mileage and where you will plug in the vehicle before you make the picture.
Driving an electric car is something you have to get used to, they do have get up and go and can be fun to drive.
The one thing for sure is that driving one makes you and the car the center of attention and you will be happy to know that electric vehicles produce “zero emissions”.
However, electric cars are limited as to the distance that can be driven before the complete failure of the battery; average range is only about 100 miles.
Courtesy of YNN/Time Warner Cable
Aired: 5/24/2011
