VIDEO: Electric car shootout in London
We've discussed these electric cars before but now Whatcar? has gathered the NICE Mega City, the Smart ed, the Micro-Vett Fiat Doblo, and the Reva G-Wiz together for a group evaluation on the streets of London town to "...decide whether or not they do make a practical alternative to urban transport.". The first thing they discovered about the cars as they prepared for the initial shoot is that people are now extremely interested in electric vehicles as the quartet attracted "masses" of people with lots of questions.
So, how did they do? Somewhat surprisingly the G-Wiz seemed to best the Mega City as it was quicker, stronger and less expensive. The G-Wiz is set to get even better in Q4 when lithium ion batteries become an option and it's range and, no doubt its power, receive a welcome boost. The presenter, Peter Lawton, enjoyed the Smart ed saying that after driving the quadricycle entrants it "felt as safe as a tank.". This is another vehicle whose performance will greatly improve when they are produced with a lithium ion battery though the sodium-nickel chloride version is already quicker then the gas burning one. Lastly, the electric Doblo was the only vehicle already equipped with li-ion and had the best range and top speed. It also had the seating for 5 and a "boot". Although it was also the most expensive at £30,000 (nearly $60,000), it seemed the best choice for both the streets of London and those of America. Hit the jump to check all the shootout action as well as a bonus visit to a fuel price protest at the end of the clip.
[Source: WhatCar?]
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
jeffzekas 4:05PM (7/14/2008)
It's seems logical that here in the US, we should create a special category for these city cars, to exempt them from regular standards... yes, Detroit can moan, but the Big Three have gotten a free ride for years, by diluting CAFE standards-- which, when you think about it, was shooting themselves in the foot, as now, judgement day has arrived. As my daddy used to say, When you make a deal with the devil (as Detroit tacitly did, by signing-on with big oil to make gas guzzlers), eventually, you pay the price.
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MIke!!ekiM 4:14PM (7/14/2008)
- Time to buy the computer files for the EV1 and have the Government build it. After all, they couldn't have Screwed up any Worse then GM.
Mike!!ekiM 4:12PM (7/14/2008)
Wow! Those prices are high. But the Smart EV looks good.
We've got to get the most advanced batteries cost down. This may be a case for Nationalization of an Industry. Because, EV's won't go anywhere with battery prices this high. There's no better solution to transport, environment and performance then EV's.
This is too important to let Capitalist Price Gouge us on Batteries.
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stevefazek 7:19PM (7/14/2008)
Remember people You cannot Translate GBP to USD for cars that does not work.
Depending on which country it came from cars cost 50-100% more in england.
So the Smart ED would be around 25-30K
The Gwiz would cost under around 10K in this country. Most NEVs could hit 50MPH if they wernt restricted with speed.
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Mehul Kamdar 9:55PM (7/14/2008)
It would have been interesting had the new Think car been added to the mix. I suspect that it didn't make it because all the cars tested here were Right Hand Drive models. Yes, an interesting test but those prices are scary as previous poster have opined.
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