Electric Vehicle Makers Try to Temper Expectations Ahead of California Rule

California took the pulse of the zero-emissions vehicle industry this week and found plug-in electric vehicle manufacturers worried about charging infrastructure and public expectations.

The California Air Resources Board is hearing from fuel cell and EV manufacturers in preparation for releasing regulations for its Zero-Emissions Vehicle Program. Targets for 2015 and thereafter are due out by Nov. 10, with final targets due by early next year.

In its fifth major revision of the program since 1990, it voted last year to reduce the 2014 sales target from 25,000 to 7,500 vehicles.

A philosophical difference emerged between conventional car manufacturers and electric-only car companies.

Nissan, which is shooting for a 100-mile range for its Leaf EV, is playing down its perks. When asked to compare gasoline-powered and EV batteries, a company executive said not to expect comparable performance.

"Since the battery's not part of the emissions, it's not required to last 10 years and 150,000 miles," said Brian Verprauskus, senior manager of corporate planning for Nissan North America. "The issue's going to be the degradation. If the customer is OK with reduced range after 10 years, it'll definitely last that long, but after 10 years, we think there'll be more advanced batteries and the customer's going to want to swap it out with a next-generation battery."

Tesla Motors, on the other hand, is emphasizing the ways EVs differ from conventional cars. "We're trying to market cars based on the new attributes of EVs themselves," said J.B. Straubel, Tesla's chief technical officer. "It's an offensive technology shift. We can offer some new competitive advantages to customers."

EV manufacturers said the installation of charging infrastructure remained the biggest bottleneck to widespread implementation. BMW, which ran into charging issues with its MINI E pilot program, said the industry needed to agree on a standard for in-home charging infrastructure.

"The lack of information and experience on how these wallboxes worked really slowed us down," said Rich Steinberg, manager of BMW's MINI E program. In particular, the Underwriters Laboratories certification process took much longer than expected, he said.

Informing the public of any issues is also key, he said. After MINI E lessees took to the Internet to criticize the charger installation process, BMW started sending weekly e-mails to defuse rumors. One that the company sought to debunk was that leased EVs would be destroyed after the pilot program.

"This won't be a case of crushing cars," Steinberg said. "There will be some autopsies done on certain cars, but we do have concrete plans to keep these cars in continuous service." That could take the form of extending the lease or releasing the cars in other areas of the world, he said.

Verprauskus said Nissan would appreciate a streamlined permit process for EV equipment, including online permitting and possibly allowing installers to certify themselves. He also requested incentives for consumers, such as tax deductions, subsidized charger installations and high-occupancy vehicle lane access.

The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act already includes $7,500 tax credits for the manufacturers of the first 200,000 EVs and $2,000 credits for individuals who purchase and install chargers.

Posted by

Scott Doggett September 24, 2009, 10:39 AM

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