Array of plug-in vehicles electrifies Southern Nevada
December 14, 2012 - 2:06 am
The electrification of the automotive industry swept through Southern Nevada like a rolling wave last January .
General Motors' Chevrolet Volt, a plug-in hybrid electric car, was showcased at local dealerships, including Findlay Chevrolet, Ed Bozarth Chevrolet, Fairway Chevrolet and Henderson Chevrolet.
At the same time, the all-electric Nissan Leaf was being sold at Desert Nissan, United Nissan, Planet Nissan and Henderson Nissan. Gaudin Motorworks established a new Fisker Automotive dealership next to its Porsche and Jaguar centers in order to promote the Karma plug-in hybrid electric sports car. During the summer, Courtesy Mitsubishi Henderson began selling the all-electric Mitsubishi i-MiEV at its dealership.
The Toyota Prius family gave birth to a new plug-in hybrid that appeared at Findlay Toyota, Fletcher Jones Toyota, Desert Toyota Scion and Centennial Hills Toyota.
Tesla Motors emerged as a presence in Southern Nevada by delivering all-electric Roadster sports cars during 2011 and its new Model S sedans to local customers in October 2012. Tesla also installed strategic public charging stations in Barstow, Calif., to encourage road trips between Los Angeles and Las Vegas. The new Tesla Supercharger stations, partially powered by solar cell arrays, can recharge a Tesla Model S battery pack in less than an hour for a 250-mile range. Motor Trend magazine editors Frank Markus and Edward Loh both drove the Model S on the L.A.-to-Las Vegas route to test its range and performance in the hot Mojave Desert. They later joined fellow Motor Trend contributors to vote the Model S Car of the Year.
Most of the local dealerships selling plug-in electric cars also began installing electric vehicle supply equipment on their lots in order to provide free electricity to any customers who needed a refueling stop while driving their electric cars around town. Additionally, Ed Bozarth Chevrolet and Fairway Chevrolet installed solar cell arrays at their locations to generate homegrown American electrons for their charging stations.
MGM Resorts International, Las Vegas Sands Corp., The Cosmopolitan of Las Vegas, Rampart Casino at the Resort at Summerlin and Element Hotel all hosted public charging stations for their customers during 2012.
Clark County, as well as the cities of Las Vegas and North Las Vegas, offered charging stations at their public buildings. These included the Clark County Government Center, Las Vegas City Hall, Stupak Community Center and North Las Vegas City Hall. The cities of Henderson and Boulder City are also planning electric vehicle supply equipment installations at their government properties during 2013.
More installations are under way at three other Las Vegas community centers, including Mirabelli, Veterans Memorial and Centennial Hills. The city's Development Services Center soon will have Level 2 plugs available at its public parking lot. In addition, the City Council of Las Vegas passed an ordinance during 2011 that now allows drivers of plug-in electric cars to use metered parking sites in the downtown area at no cost. A plug-in electric car owner pays a one-time fee of $10 to the parking department for an inspection of the vehicle's plug-in port to qualify for a parking decal.
The efforts of these business and government partnerships have now resulted in 10 recharging sites along Las Vegas Boulevard, from The Shoppes at Mandalay Place along the southern part of the Strip, to downtown Las Vegas, to North Las Vegas City Hall. Most sites have multiple plugs or outlets. There are actually 30 electrical sources available along this busy tourist corridor for plug-in electric cars.
In other parts of the Las Vegas Valley, there are another 30 charging stations at strategic locations. Most of the stations are rated at Level 2, meaning they can provide power at 240 volts and electrical current at about 30 amperes. This allows the car's onboard electronics to recharge its battery pack twice as fast, compared to using the standard Level 1 cord set that is normally sold with the vehicle.
During 2013, automobile manufacturers will unveil more plug-in electric car product lines. Ford will introduce the Energi line of plug-in hybrid vehicles, including new versions of the C-Max Energi and Ford Fusion Energi. GM will produce an upscale version of the Chevrolet Volt, configured as the Cadillac ELR. The Ford Focus Electric and the Toyota RAV4 EV are already selling in California. Also look for the Chevrolet Spark Electric, Honda Fit EV, Fiat 500e and Volkswagen eGolf by the fourth quarter of next year. The Tesla Model X and the Fisker Atlantic are due to arrive by the summer of 2014.
For more information, including a Google map of statewide electric vehicle supply equipment sites, visit the websites of the Nevada Electric Vehicle Accelerator task force at www.nevadaeva.org and the Las Vegas Electric Vehicle Association at www.lveva.org.
Stan Hanel has worked in the electronics industry for more than 30 years and is a long-time member of the Electric Auto Association and the Las Vegas Electric Vehicle Association. Hanel writes and edits for EAA's "Current Events" and LVEVA's "Watts Happening" newsletters. Contact him at stanhanel@aol.com.