Talking Electric Vehicles with Doug Rosen

There is definitely a change in the air for electric vehicles. With all the buzz about the Chevy Volt and the Nissan Leaf plus the recent up-tick in oil prices the automotive public is interested in the opportunities that exist in the electric vehicle marketplace. This is evident even on EBay where recently a 2007 Miles ZX40s sold for over $11,000 — an amount that was $2,500 over the $8,500 asking price.

“This shows that there is renewed interest in the alternative vehicle space for folks who want to get in but cannot afford a 35 to 40 thousand dollar vehicle. A year ago that car would not have brought a price of half that,” commented Doug Rosen, former sales executive with MIles who is now focused on distributing electric vehicles in the Caribbean Islands.
When Rosen is asked what else he thought was happening in the marketplace he stated that in addition to some very much improved low- and mid-speed electric vehicles coming out of China there was also a new domestic trend: building affordable electric vehicles using the old VW bug chassis from the kit car industry.

The age of the electric vehicle is definitely here.  The big question is whether the general public that cannot afford a high-priced electric vehicle will be able to participate in this opportunity. What happens if (or more likely when) the current Egyptian crisis causes a disruption in the flow of oil through the Suez Canal and gas prices spike up. Are we as a nation ready for this? When this happens, any electric vehicle that works and is available at a reasonable price will be in hot demand.

The evidence of this trend already in the making was shown in the recent EBay transaction. If you were asked to wager whether fuel prices would be higher or lower in six months or next year what side would you take?

Doug Rosen can be reached at: doug@islandecar.net