Buying Ready-to-Run

Figure 4-1 For time and money invested, converting is the best alternative over building or buying.

A few actual figures make this easy to see. While you might spend upwards of $100,000 to obtain a new electric vehicle from Tesla and could typically spend from $20,000 to $30,000 for a new EV at an independent dealership, in only a month or two, you can be driving around in your own EV conversion for under $10,000. When you build an EV from scratch, on the other hand, your electrical components cost the same as a conversion’s, but your frame and body costs start where buying a conversion body leaves off, and you still have to do the work, pushing your time investment way up. Now you know the reason for this book.

Let’s look at the buy-build-convert alternatives more closely, then look at the whowhere-when trade-off.

Buying Ready-to-Run

Ready-to-run electric vehicles are not available today from any major automaker. Not even ten years ago the major automakers had EVs for lease and sale. Today, most automakers are making hybrids and a few have pure EVs and fuel cell vehicles in various stages of development and testing. This includes GM’s Volt, shown in Figure 4-2.

There are a few new automakers that are developing new EVs. This includes the Tesla and many new NEVs (neighborhood electric vehicles). NEVs (also called lowspeed vehicles) are a class of vehicles defined in Vehicle Motor Safety Standards Rule No. 500, which stipulates that the vehicle can be driven on roads only posted at 35 mph or less.

Another category of electric car is the city electric vehicle (such as the TH!NK). The top speed of this vehicle is about 55 mph. It can be driven on roads posted from 40 to 55 mph where a NEV cannot go. This is a popular category overseas where gasoline is very expensive. We also utilized this class of vehicle in the NYPA/TH!NK Clean Commute Program™ since the Ford TH!NK City was perfect for around-town commuting and all of the major roads in these areas did not exceed 55 mph.

Then there is the Tesla.