ZAP (fka ZAAP)

[WOLDUMAR]

German automobile manufacturer BMW unveiled its first ride in the electric car market, the ActiveE electric vehicle, at the New York Auto Show today.
http://venturebeat.com/2011/04/21/bmw-activee-electric-car/
The ActiveE, based on BMW’s 1-series car, is a plug-in electric car that can drive around 100 miles between charges. It isn’t going directly on the market, like the Nissan leaf or the Tesla Roadster — instead BMW will lease about 700 cars out for $500 a month over 2 years. BMW didn’t indicate how much the electric car would actually cost compared to other electric cars on the market.

BMW said the car can accelerate from 0 to 60 miles per hour in about 9 seconds. The Nissan Leaf, another plug-in electric car, can accelerate from 0 to 60 in about 7 seconds based on independent testing. BMW is typically known as manufacturer of performance cars — so it’s out of the ordinary that the company didn’t go the same route as Tesla Motors by creating an electric car with a lot of power.

The ActiveE sports a 170-horsepower engine, whereas the Tesla Roadster can generate as much as 248 horsepower off its electric engine. The Tesla Roadster can also hit 60 miles per hour in just under 4 seconds, according to the company.

The 1-series, which the ActiveE was based on, was originally designed to have a tamer price than other cars manufactured by BMW. The internal combustion engine version of the car retails anywhere from $30,000 to $40,000 — not exactly tame across the board, but it’s supposed to be a reasonably affordable luxury car. The ActiveE will carry that legacy with the 1-series chassis — a luxury electric car with a tamer price tag.

That puts it in the same field as the Nissan Leaf, which is designed to have a lower-hanging price tag that a wider swathe of drivers can reach. The Leaf retails for around $33,000 — significantly lower than many other electric cars on the market.

Drivers in New York, Los Angeles, San Francisco, San Diego, Sacramento, Boston and Connecticut that are interested in the ActiveE will have to wait until this summer to begin the reservation process.

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Not sure if this is off topic .. but looks like zap could be running out of time. IMO