Would you buy an Electric-only Car?

Toyota already had the RAV4 EV. They discontinued it, while people were still on waiting lists. At least Toyota stopped scrapping it, and had allowed people to purchase one besides leasing, rather than GM's EV1 lease-only then crush program.

and the article that you cite, is actually about Toyota researching a PHEV (plug-in hybrid electric vehicle) version of the Prius, and not an all-electric Prius.

more info:

http://pressroom.toyota.com/Releases/View?id=TYT20...

http://www.toyota.co.jp/en/news/07/0725.html

video: http://www.toyota.co.jp/en/tech/environment/phv/co...

quoting from the pressroom.toyota.com site above:

"The prototype PHEV system is designed to operate in a similar manner

to the current Prius, switching from pure-electric mode, to gas-engine

mode to a combined gas-electric mode. The big advantage is that the

PHEV's prototype battery pack is capable of storing significantly

higher levels of electricity, supplied by "plugging into the grid" for

periodic recharging sessions. With significantly more electric power

in reserve, the vehicle will be capable of operating in pure-electric

mode for longer periods of time and at much higher speeds than the

current Prius. This will result in substantial gains in fuel economy

and a major reduction in total tailpipe emissions of smog-forming

gases, over current conventional hybrid systems."

I'll note that the current 2008 US Prius MSRP is in the $21,610-$28,055 range, depending on options. It can reach and sustain speeds over 100MPH (160km/h), and can go 300-600 miles (482-965 km) between fillup at a gas/petrol station...

So, a PHEV version like in the article you cite would increase the range of the vehicle between fillups. It would operate just like the current Prius, only have more electric-only operation, and should the hybrid battery not be charged via plug it would operate like a normal Prius... Hopefully Toyota can get the pricing of such a modification to be within your listed price range, though.

There are no commercially-available plug-in hybrids on the market so far. (So you cannot plug them in, other than the same gas station pump that most other regular cars use.) Some hobbiests and aftermarket companies have been altering a few hybrids (Toyota Prius, Ford Escape Hybrid/Mercury Mariner Hybrid) to make them plug-in capable. Typically this requires adding additional hybrid batteries, besides the ability to charge off the mains.

For more information, check out http://www.calcars.org/vehicles.html

For cost reasons, unless you are a fleet owner or other high-mileage driver it probably will not be worth the cost of the PHEV conversion for you. (Conversion pricing is high due to startup costs and low volumes, besides the pricing of the needed additional battery packs.)

To note, converting to a PHEV (plug-in hybrid electric vehicle) does not reduce the vehicle's range. It gives the owner the option to recharge the (newly added larger) hybrid battery pack at night (cheap electricity and off-peak electric load which would otherwise be lost). The vehicle would run for a certain distance (longer than stock) on the stored electric power alone, and when the battery pack is depleted to a certain point the vehicle reverts back to its original hybrid self and runs on a combination of the gasoline engine (which will also recharge the battery) and the electric motor. A PHEV would add a greater all-electric range to the existing hybrid, besides the ability (but not the requirement!) to plug it into an electric source.

Anyhow, yes, if I needed a car I'd buy an electric-only car. Even more so if it met your listed requirements, and available from a large vehicle manufacturer.

check out this website http://www.teslamotors.com/ I have seen the movie you are talking about. That car was put to rest for a reason. I feel the biggest is because if there where to many electric cars around How on earth would the big oil company's keep making a big profit. I want to list another website that is very good take a look at this site. http://www.laughtergenealogy.com/bin/histprof/misc...

The electric car has been around along longer then most think. I feel electric is going to be the way to go sooner or later because gas is going to become hard to get and very costly.

GM was not the first electric car, some of the first cars ever made where Electric, as the price of fuels dropped, and the reliabilty of internal combustion engines got better more people went for the cheaper non electric vehicles.

Would I buy an electric vehicle for any price?

YES

The power they have, their reliability, their quietness, they rock!

Only I do not have a garage, where I can plug in electricity. I have a carport, maybe I can steal electricity from the landlord?

If I had the income to support the purchase of an electric vehicle, I would buy it in a heartbeat. I'm paying more in gas per semester than I am in tuition, and I'm sick of it. Furthermore, we need to do something about the current environmental conditions in this country - it's great if your truck or SUV has speed and looks big and manly, but it's really not impressive when you're paying $70+ a week in gas and summer is now starting in March and ending in November in New York State because of the increase in demand for gas-guzzling, exhaust spewing luxury trucks and SUVs. It's stupid.

I would in a heartbeat. I live in a relatively small town as most places are within an hour's walking distance and in a normal gas car the engine either doesn't get to normal operating temp by the time I park it and shut it back off or it just barely gets there which means the car is always in the warmup mode when being driven which kills the MPG.

I would definitely be interested an all electric car but the 55 mph limit would turn me away. If one were capable of sustaining 70-75 mph and still provide a 300 mile range I'd guarantee my purchase.

I would buy a electric car for all the reasons the government and car companies as well as oil companies killed it.

No not yet...The technology has,nt yet made it worth it yet...Here in the U.S. we are spread out...So we need a car that would go a great distance before recharge...How well would an electric car do in the snow?Thats a big one for me!!!

yes.

+

.It will be cheaper to run

.more friendly to the environment

.fuel prices are increasing

-

.Might not be easy to find spare part