Archive for August, 2009

Atlanta Business Chronicle
By Urvaksh Karkaria
August 14, 2009

Wheego Electric Cars Inc. has raised $1.2 million as it readies itstwo-seater electric car to hit the streets next month.

The Atlanta-based startup, spun out from Ruff & Tuff Electric Vehicles(RTEV) in 2009, will initially sell the Whip as a low-speed or medium-speed vehicle.

As a low-speed/medium-speed vehicle, the Whip will be permitted to drive on streets with a maximum speed of 35 mph. Its sealed lead acid battery has enough juice to keep it moving about 40 miles on a single charge.

Once the Whip passes federal crash-testing requirements, it will be marketed as a full-speed vehicle – capable of zipping around at up to 65 mph. The full-speed version will have an lithium-ion battery – capable of reaching about 90 miles on a single charge – and a more powerful motor.

Electric cars play well with urbanites, who often have to maneuver in tight parking spaces. The fuel-free vehicles, once a niche marketed toenvironmentalists, is gaining broader appeal in the midst of a globalrecession and volatile gas prices.

The low-speed Whip is expected to retail for about $18,500, while thefull-speed version will go for about $28,500. Federal tax credits, however, will significantly reduce the sticker price.

Wheego, which raised the $1.2 million from existing investors, hopes toraise an additional $3 million to $5 million over the next two years to help pay for the Whip’s crash-testing process and to develop new vehicles, CEO Mike McQuary said.

“Crash testing is the big wild card,” he said. “You’re not sure how many iterations you have to do.”

Wheego has also applied for a roughly $10 million federal loan, said McQuary, a serial entrepreneur best know for helping launch Internet service provider MindSpring Enterprises Inc. In 1999, MindSpring merged with EarthLink Inc.

The full-speed version of the Whip is expected to hit the market by the middle of next year.

McQuary expects to sell about a 1,000 units of the low-speed version of the Whip in the first year and about 5,000 units of the full-speed version in the first year.

The Whip is being assembled at a plant in Ontario, Calif. Wheego plans to open additional assembly plants on the East Coast and the Midwest in the next two years, McQuary said.

The body panels and chassis are made in China, the guts of the car – including engine and drivetrain – is U.S.-made, while the battery is manufactured in Canada.

In addition to traditional auto dealerships, the Whip will sell via electriccar dealerships that have sprung up in about a dozen cities in the United States and carry models of electric cars not affiliated with major manufacturers.

Wheego expects to have an up to 50 dealer nationwide network by the time the full-speed Whip hits the road.

Developing a dealer network won’t be too expensive or time-consuming McQuary said.

“A lot of car dealers, given the duress that the auto industry has been under, have been looking for new opportunities,” he said. “Dealers have been very open.”

Inland SoCal (The Biz Press)
By Chris H. Sieroty
August 9, 2009

As local auto dealerships continue to close their doors because of declining sales brought about by the recession, Wheego Electric Cars is looking to acquire select dealerships for The Whip, its new plug-in,
electric low-speed vehicle manufactured in Ontario.

Company executives will embark on a nationwide tour beginning Aug. 18 to promote the launch of their new product.

The company has scheduled stops in 40 cities, including Ontario and Palm springs in September, according to Jeff Boyd, president of Atlanta-based Wheego.

Over the past 18 months, 15 dealerships have closed in the two-county region.

“We already have approximately 15 dealers committed to the Wheego brand around the country,” he said. “We are reviewing applications from several dealers in Southern California right now.”

Boyd admitted that it will cost his company a “substantial amount” to establish a dealer network, but the budget was “confidential.” He also declined to identify any potential dealerships in Riverside or San
Bernardino counties.

“The reaction from dealers who have driven the car is that it’s the best electric car in its class,” he said. “I believe that every dealer who sees the car will want to secure a Wheego franchise in their area, and
we plan to make it easy for them to do so. Dealers need product, and dealers want to go green.”

Boyd said potential dealers have understood that “we have cars to sell today” and they don’t have to wait until 2012 to receive an order of electric cars.

Both Tesla Motors and Fisker Automotive have established dealer networks to sell their electric vehicles.

Based in Irvine, Fisker has begun production of its 2010 Fisker Karma, a four-door, four-seat sedan that is the world’s first luxury plug-in hybrid car.

The emission-free Karma can travel up to 50 miles on a full charge from any 110-, 220- or 240-volt electric outlet. A total range of up to 300 miles is estimated in Sport Mode, which utilizes a gasoline engine to turn a generator that powers two electric motors.

With a starting price of $87,900, about 1,000 orders have been placed for the luxury plug-in hybrid, according to the company. Fisker, which was formed in September 2007 as a joint venture partnership with Quantum Technologies, anticipates its initial production to be 15,000 vehicles annually.

So far, Fisker has a nationwide network of 45 premium-brand retailers, including Serra Automotive in Pasadena, “but nothing in Riverside or San Bernardino as of now,” said Russell Datz, vice president of sales and marketing. Other Southern California locations include Marvin K. Brown Auto Center in San Diego, Shelly Automotive Group in Irvine and Sullivan Luxury Cars LLC, with locations in Beverly Hills and Santa Monica.

Datz said there are always challenges to establishing a dealership network for a new vehicle, especially a high-end, luxury brand.

“The Fisker Karma looks like a traditional luxury sedan which has helped us tremendously in terms of interest from potential dealers,” he said. “But it’s a new vehicle, and it’s unproven in the marketplace, which carries some risk for potential dealers.”

Datz said the company was successful in signing dealership agreements thanks to Vic Doolan, Fisker’s director of retail development.

“He was instrumental in bringing on dealerships,” he said. “Vic has had years of experience as president of BMW North America and Volvo Cars North America. He’s been our biggest asset and has used a lifetime of relationships to establish relationships with dealers.”

Priced at less than $19,000, The Whip has a range of 50 miles on a full charge and offers a full-size interior with air conditioning and heater, front wheel drive with four-wheel disc brakes, and a stereo system. The cars are 118.5 inches long, 63.2 inches wide and 62 inches tall with a top speed of 20 mph to 25 mph and are limited to streets with 35 mph or lower speed limits.

Boyd said with a well-established electricity infrastructure nationwide, consumers should have no problems recharging their electric vehicles.

“The Whip requires a 110- or 120-volt charging from any standard electrical outlet,” he said. “Most people will drive The Whip during the day and recharge it at night when they get home just as they do with
their cell phones.”

There is also a 10 percent federal tax credit on the purchase price of the car as a low-speed vehicle this year. When The Whip is eventually certified and sold as a full-speed car, the federal tax credit will be
$7,500, the company said in a statement.

“We don’t believe we have any competition for a car-chassis-based low-speed vehicle or medium-speed vehicle,” Boyd said. “We also think we’ll be first to market with a highway-speed vehicle next year.”

The company expects to sell 500 to 1,000 electric cars per year. Wheego expects to sell a similar number of highway-speed electric vehicles when they are introduced next year. The numbers seem achievable considering that 77,000 low-speed electric vehicles have been sold nationwide in the last 10 years, according to the company.

Wheego Electric Cars is the second electric automobile company to produce vehicles in Ontario. Phoenix Motorcars Inc. established its Ontario manufacturing facility and design center in 2002. Messages left with Phoenix spokesman Bryon Bliss were not returned.

Phoenix produces zero-emission, freeway-speed all-electric vehicles that use lithium titanate batteries, which eliminate toxic vehicle emissions, according to information posted on the company’s Web site. The company plans on introducing two models next year priced around $50,000 — a four-door electric sport utility truck and a four-door sport utility vehicle.

The company’s marketing strategy targets fleet operators in California, particularly electric utility companies, universities, and municipal and state fleet operators. California represents a $10 billion market with 225,000 new passenger cars and light-duty trucks sold as fleet vehicles annually, according to information posted on the company’s Web site.

“We chose Ontario to produce The Whip because of (local) engineering expertise and it’s close to the port of Long Beach,” Boyd said. “It also is located in the heart of a large potential market in California for
electric cars.”

CEO Mike McQuary said the company assembles the electric car at a facility in Ontario from components sourced from suppliers around the world.

“We consider The Whip an American-made car,” he said in a statement. “It is made with American technology and ingenuity, and more than half of the cost of the car is from North American parts suppliers.”

BLORGE
By Susan Wilson
July 29, 2009

Wheego Electric Cars manufactures Low Speed Vehicles (LSVs), also known as Neighborhood Electric Vehicles (NEVs).  LSVs and NEVs have a top speed of 20-25 mph and are limited to streets with 35 mph or lower speed limits.  While the rest of the country may see the elimination of car dealerships as an unemployment disaster, Wheego sees them as opportunities.

Wheego only makes what it labels as LSVs.  The cars are 118.5 inches long, 63.2 inches wide and 62 inches tall.  Top speed for the cars is 25 mph using a brushless AC 41 motor with nominal horsepower 10/peak horsepower of 40.  These cars have a range of 50 miles and come with heat and air conditioning, power doors and windows, and electric outside mirrors.  Color choices for the car are white, black, red, blue, and silver.

The company sees a major opportunity in these economically troubled times.  As GM and Chrysler close dealerships, Wheego wants these dealerships for it’s own cars.  Wheego considers its cars the perfect product for these dealerships to preserve local employment and keep local economies from falling into further trouble.

All of that sounds great except for a few minor problems.  Wheego only has one car model and Wheego cars can’t be driven on roads with speed limits higher than 35 mph.  So any main through fares that have speed limits of 45 to 55 mph would be off limits.  In many areas, the only way to “get there from here” is on roads that are banned to the little cars.

Then there is the matter of the size.  Although the Wheego is slightly larger than the Smart fortwo, 79.74 inches long wheelbase versus 73.5 inches long wheelbase, 63.2 inches wide versus 61.38 inches, and 62 inches high versus 60.71 inches, the Wheego would still be a tight fit for more than two people so this car would not work as a family vehicle for anyone with kids.

Dealerships that used to house a variety of car models from GM or Chrysler, are going to be too big for the little Wheego.  Of course you could house the entirety of your car inventory within the building, but that doesn’t necessarily help with sales.  GM and Chrysler sold cars to various size families and to meet different needs.  Wheegos will only be attractive to certain customers for a specific purpose.

Wheegos are great for inner city commuting back and forth to work and maybe for a small shopping spree or a date.  However, for people who want a car that can provide room for kids or adult carpools, day trips out of the city, or large shopping expeditions, this is not the car for them.

Communities that are facing hardships because of dealer closings may be happy to have those dealerships convert to selling Wheegos, but only if they understand the limitations of the car.  Otherwise, retrofitting dealership buildings for other uses and retraining employees might be better options.