Las Vegas EV pioneer linked to Pearl Harbor

The Nevada Test Site is part of an effective network of national research laboratories administered by the U.S. Department of Energy that have propelled our country to the forefront of nuclear energy utilization while also continuing to develop new resources of power.

Recently, the Atomic Testing Museum in Las Vegas honored the contributions of test site workers who have attempted to harness the huge potential energy available from the inside of atoms during both peace time and war.

Two men particularly crossed my mind as local Congresswoman Shelley Berkley praised their efforts.

My father spent 30 years as a mechanical engineer at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratories in Northern California from the 1950s to the 1980s. During that time, he made several visits to Las Vegas and the Nevada Test Site.

When my wife and I moved to Las Vegas 10 years ago, I met Al Sawyer, another Nevada Test Site veteran. Like my father, Sawyer was a professional mechanical engineer who had worked at Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratories before transferring to the Nevada Test Site during the 1960s.

While at the test site, Sawyer developed an early telerobotic system for handling nuclear waste. Both men became involved in the national atomic energy program after their service in the U.S. Navy during World War II. My father trained as a Navy pilot to be part of a massive invasion being planned by Allied forces to occupy Japan. President Harry Truman's decision to drop atomic bombs on Nagasaki and Hiroshima, though devastatingly horrific and tragic, arguably forced surrender by Japan's emperor and ended the need for a prolonged invasion that would have continued to sacrifice many more lives on both sides of the conflict.

Japanese bombers had devastated the U.S. Pacific fleet at Pearl Harbor in Hawaii on Dec. 7, 1941, and pushed the United States into an intractable international war on two fronts. Escalating tensions between the two countries were fed by Japan's aggressive expansion and war against China during the 1930s, as well as its dependence on imported crude oil and refined gasoline from the United States. The Roosevelt administration attempted to use this dependence as leverage to block Japan from occupying French Indochina after it invaded in 1940, by cutting off its U.S. supplies of crude oil. France had already been conquered by Germany and this Southeast Asian region was rich in natural resources, including oil and rubber that were now available to its Japanese ally for the war effort.

During World War II, Sawyer served as a sonar operator in a Navy submarine program that sailed out of the rebuilt Pearl Harbor Navy base. The Bowfin exhibit near the U.S.S. Arizona in Pearl Harbor today displays one of the remaining minisubs from the program that performed underwater reconnaissance within the Sea of Japan.

When both men resumed their civilian lives after the end of the war, they received their mechanical engineering degrees with help from the G.I. Bill. They also both found opportunities in government atomic energy programs that attempted to harness this incredibly destructive military power for more peaceful, constructive uses.

During 1973, the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries sought to impose trade sanctions against U.S. for its support of Israel during the Six Day War and Yom Kippur War by staging an oil embargo. The U.S. economy was turned upside down and long lines formed at gas stations as automobile owners struggled to find fuel for their cars and trucks.

In response, Sawyer decided to try to use his engineering skills to develop alternative transportation solutions. By 1979, he had partnered with Charlie Amadon, another Nevada Test Site veteran, to found Lectra Motors as an electric car manufacturing company. They rented a building that would also serve as their production plant at 5380 S. Valley View Blvd. in Las Vegas. Lectra Motors built and sold more than 1,000 electric vehicles during the next three years.

These electric cars were no golf carts, although Sawyer's design team adapted and scaled up much of the golf cart technology available at the time. Lectra Motors' cars and pickup trucks were designed to travel at speeds up to 85 miles per hour on highways using traditional cars and mechanical operating systems. The battery packs of each vehicle had a range of 40 to 60 miles, depending on driving conditions. Lectra Motors vehicles were built on converted Datsun car and truck platforms from the 1980s, including the Datsun 210 and 310 sedans, Li'l Hustler pickup truck, and the 200SX sports car. Each design was crash-tested and certified by the Department of Transportation as well as the National Highway Transportation and Safety Administration. Innovations included electric air conditioning, heating, braking and battery pack mounting technology. Production continued at a rate of 30 vehicles per month through 1981 and by 1982, the company was ready to double its production output.

However, the energy focus of the U.S. was changing. Conservation efforts in response to the country's dependence on OPEC oil had succeeded. The combined efforts of the Nixon, Ford and Carter administrations resulted in less crude oil imports than during the previous decade, as well as the development of new alternative energy resources. Unfortunately, fuel conservation efforts and automotive efficiency regulations began declining with the price of crude oil during the Reagan/Bush administrations.

After commitments had been made by Lectra Motors to purchase cars and materials to increase its production capacity, a major stockholder suddenly withdrew his support. During July 1982, Lectra Motors closed its facility on Valley View Boulevard.

Lectra Motors is no longer in business but there are still several of the company's vehicles in operation. Three are owned by members of the Las Vegas Electric Vehicle Association and have been passed around to first-time EV owners (including myself), who have received generous support regarding restoration and maintenance. At 85 years young, Sawyer continues to design technologies that enhance the efficiency of electric cars.

Postscript: Electric vehicles in Nevada lost a strong advocate during the month of November when former state Sen. Ray Shaffer of North Las Vegas passed away at age 76. He served in the state Senate from 1985 to 2003 and as Senate majority whip during the 1991 session. He also served in the U.S. Marine Corps and as a civil engineer with the North Las Vegas Planning Department. Sen. Shaffer was a member of the Electric Auto Association who sponsored state legislation to define electric cars as alternative fuel vehicles in 1995 and coordinated cooperation with the Nevada Department of Motor Vehicles.

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" newletters. Contact him at stanhanel@aol.com.