Suburb-friendly electric cars dominate Auto Show
Electric cars are the big attraction at the 2011 Chicago Auto Show opening today, but suburban drivers with long commutes might think the electric option isn't feasible.
While a few electrics are mainly marketed to city drivers, the Chevrolet Volt claims to answer suburbia's concerns about electric cars' driving range.
Multiple Volts are on display at the auto show, dozens of representatives are there to answer questions and a special Volt test track lined with grass, flower beds and trees is clearly designed with a suburban driver's eyes in mind.
“It's the only electric car that can be your only car,” Chevrolet marketing Vice President Rick Scheidt boldly remarked during Wednesday's media preview.
Automakers also are touting the Nissan Leaf, Mitsubishi i and Ford Focus, but no other electric car in the McCormick Place exhibition hall has the kind of space devoted to it that the Volt does.
There's not really another electric car at the show quite like the Volt, either, with its gasoline backup engine that eases anxiety about losing power in mid-commute.
“The car is designed for 80 percent of the population,” said JT Pearson, sales manager of Zeigler Chevrolet in Schaumburg, where they've begun keeping a list of people interested in a Volt when they become available for sale later this year. “The statistics are out there that the vast majority of people commute less than 20 miles to work each day.”
That's important because Chevy officials say a full charge of the Volt's electric battery lasts 35 to 40 miles. However, unlike other electric cars that run out of battery power after 80 to 100 miles, the Volt's gasoline engine charges the electric motor and can give the motorist another 340 miles.
“It's like two cars in one,” said Britta Gross, director of electric infrastructure at General Motors.
The Volt's not the cheapest electric, with a starting cost of $41,000. Other brands are already priced several thousand dollars lower or expected to hit that mark when they go to market. Owners of all the electric cars are eligible for a $7,500 income tax credit.
While shorter-range electric cars like the Leaf and the Focus emit no carbon dioxide, the Volt's emissions are similar to a standard vehicle when its gasoline engine kicks in.
The Volt has an eye-popping Environmental Protection Agency fuel economy rating of 93 miles per gallon for the first 35 miles. After that, mileage drops to about 37 miles per gallon, according to government testing. Of course, a full tank of gas will last much longer for drivers who mainly use the Volt for daily commutes.
The Volt, Motor Trend magazine's car of the year, is different from the popular hybrid Toyota Prius that starts at a retail price of about $24,000. Unlike the Prius, the Volt's gas engine is just a generator to make electricity to power the car. The Prius' gas engine actually powers the car at higher speeds.
Gross points to amenities included in the Volt sticker price, which include five years of free OnStar service, touch-screen displays, 30 gigabytes of music memory storage, USB ports and a DVD player. Currently, the car is only available for sale in six states and Illinois isn't expected to receive shipments at dealerships until late summer or early fall, Gross said.
The electric Ford Focus is expected at dealerships this year as well, offering an all-electric range of 80 to 100 miles between charges.
“We're expecting to meet customers needs who have no need for gas,” said Dave Finnegan, a Ford marketing manager.
Finnegan wouldn't limit the car's use to urban drivers, like representatives at Nissan and Mitsubishi who are specifically marketing their electric vehicles to city dwellers.
All the electric cars come with an attachment that allows owners to plug the vehicles directly into a standard 120-volt power outlet to charge, which takes about 10 hours for a Volt. But the auto companies are also pushing a 240-volt charging station that can be installed in garages that reduces that charging time to three or four hours.
Commercial power stations would have even higher voltage capabilities that could fully charge electric vehicles in less than an hour, industry officials said. Chicago recently signed a deal with a California company to install a limited number of charging stations throughout the city. Some private garages in the city have a few spots set aside with charging stations for electric cars, but in the suburbs, they're few and far between. In Hanover Park, Suburban Tire Auto Center has three such charging depots.
Gross said the limited numbers in the suburbs is why Chevy is in talks with retailers like Best Buy to outfit parking lots with charging stations.
“Where are all those stores like that at? In the suburbs,” she said.
Gross said Chevy expects the Volt to be the belle of the ball at this auto show.
“We've had people at other shows waiting hours to get into it for test drives,” she said.
Chicago Auto Show
<b>When:</b> 10 a.m. to 10 p.m. Friday, Feb. 11, through Sunday, Feb. 20. Closes at 8 p.m. on the final day.
<b>Where:</b> McCormick Place, 2301 S. Martin Luther King Drive, Chicago.
<b>Tickets:</b> $11 for adults, $7 for people 62 and older and kids ages 7 through 12. Younger kids admitted free with an adult. Tickets available at the door, at www.drivechicago.com or at participating BP gas stations and auto dealerships.
<b>Exhibits</b>: Nearly 1,000 vehicles and activities. See chicagoautoshow.com for details.