Plug-in electric cars generate buzz Video

Plug-in electric cars generate buzz Video Transcript

>> Hey there, I'm Kara Tsuboi at CNET.com. I'm at the plug in 2008 conference, where cool little scooters like the Zapino are on display. Let me show you what's new in the plug in electric vehicle industry. ^M00:00:13 [ music ] ^M00:00:18

>> These are city speed vehicles. We have both a truck and we also have a sedan version. These are forty mile an hour top speed, and you're looking at a range, depending on your battery, between twenty-five and forty mile range on these. It's very similar to any other vehicle. You've got your gas pedal; you also have your break pedal. It even comes with a CD player in fact.

>> And leather seats too, so it's not necessarily a cheapy cheap car.

>> This is twelve five for this vehicle.

>> Twelve thousand five hundred dollars.

>> Right. And so it gets you there with a little bit of style. Here's your gas tank here, and your plug's right there.

>> We all recognize the PG and E truck. Are you telling me it's a hybrid plug in PG and E truck?

>> Yes it is. The plug in is for operation of the aerial device.

>> You mean this crane on top?

>> That's correct. Normally, when the aerial device is in the air, the engine would have to be idling all day long.

>> How much money is that gonna save?

>> That saves about one gallon of diesel fuel per hour.

>> This is a conversion from a gasoline car to electric car.

>> How many miles can you get with this car now.

>> One charge, about a hundred twenty miles.

>> What we're developing is a network of car charging points. It's intended to go into public places like municipal parking lots, airports, apartment parking lots, employee parking lots. You pull up and park in front of the charge point, you put this little thing over here, and it tells you to go ahead and open the door and insert the plug. We open the door. We insert the plug. The door locks in place, kind of partially closed, so people can't vandalize it. If another subscriber comes up and tries to open this, it won't open. Only you can open it. ^M00:01:50 [ music ] ^M00:01:55

>> So we are sitting in an entirely electric plug in off roading vehicle, is that right?

>> Correct.

>> How does this thing work?

>> It's a forty-eight volt system, eight six-volt batteries, dual motors on the front and rear end, and all time four wheel drive. The vehicle retails around nine thousand. We sell a lot to land owners who have horses or a ranch, and they just want to ride around like you and I are, and be able to talk and not talk over a gas powered motor. We're big in the hunting industry.

>> So you can sneak up on animals because it's so quiet?

>> Yeah. But it's not necessarily hunters. It's also people that just enjoy bird watching, like to see the deer on their place.

>> And as your slogan goes, good girls love bad boys, right? So.

>> That's right.

>> I'm Kara Tsuboi, CNET.com. [ music ]