Plug-in Cars: Where Can You Buy Them?

Thursday’s pricing announcement for the Chevrolet Spark EV likely piqued some interest on the West Coast, but chances are few others gave it much attention. GM will sell the all-electric hatchback only in California and Oregon; the automaker has announced no plans to sell it elsewhere, spokesman Kevin Kelly told us.

Where can EV fans find their cars? We tallied up the states.

No surprise: Californians get the biggest slice of the EV pie. Thank the state's zero-emissions vehicle mandate, which requires automakers to sell a certain percentage of zero-emissions vehicles, explained Ed Kim, AutoPacific's vice president of industry analysis. Nearby Washington state has adopted California's emissions requirements but not the ZEV quota, and states such as Oregon and a number along the East Coast have adopted both.

The emissions requirement should eventually align with the federal government's 2025 corporate average fuel economy requirements. But it still means "a plug-in car sold in Oregon counts towards California’s required ZEV volume for the automaker that makes that vehicle," Kim wrote in an email. "It’s not a natural consumer market for such vehicles, but rather a market legislated into existence."

Tesla Repays Government Loan

Electric carmaker Tesla Motors has repaid in full a U.S. Department of Energy loan, according to the Palo Alto, Calif.-based company.

Tesla said the $451.8 million wired today represented the balance, plus interest, of a $465 million loan awarded in 2010 under the DOE's Advanced Technology Vehicle Manufacturing Program. The program, which launched under President George W. Bush in 2007, has also benefited plug-in-vehicle development at Fisker Automotive, Ford Motor Co. and Nissan Motor Co. Tesla is the first company to repay its loan, with nine years to spare.

Cars.com Reviews the 2012 Tesla Model S

Buying the 2012 Tesla Model S is like acquiring a Picasso with the caveat that the artist will show up periodically, at inconvenient times, to make touch ups and fix problems: It's a work in progress. Cars.com reviewer Joe Wiesenfelder says much of the all-electric car's original composition is brilliant, especially its "staggeringly quick" acceleration, unparalleled range and charging speed. While convenient wireless software upgrades may spirit away many of the Model S' problems, would you pay $100,000 for a car whose "butt sensor" might kill the engine when the driver simply leans too far to the side?

2012 Tesla Model S Review

2012 Tesla Model S Charging Video

Tesla's electric Model S combines unprecedented driving range and quick charging times. Thanks to the many different plug adapters, you have flexibility over how quickly the Model S can charge, from a standard 120-volt home outlet to a variety of 240-volt plugs that can return up to 30 miles per hour of charging. Tesla's system eliminates the need for Level 2 home charging hardware, which adds cost. With advanced technology comes issues, however. Cars.com Reviewer Joe Wiesenfelder takes a look at some of the grievances that bothered him like the unique door handles, obnoxious seat-bottom weight sensors and charging port door.

Related
2012 Tesla Model S Deliveries Start Today, EPA Figures Official
Tesla Introduces Free Quick-Charge Network for Model S Owners
Tesla Model S Gets Official Price of $57,400

2012 Tesla Model S Video

The Tesla Model S is an all-new, all-electric family car available to the mainstream market. With a starting price just over $57,000, the Model S brings attractive styling, impressive driving dynamics and up to 300 miles of pure electric driving. Cars.com reviewer Joe Wiesenfelder takes a look at the outrageously quick Model S and explains some of the high-tech quirks and why he thinks key improvements need to be made to make this a true American family car.

Related
2012 Tesla Model S Deliveries Start Today, EPA Figures Official
Tesla Introduces Free Quick-Charge Network for Model S Owners
Tesla Model S Gets Official Price of $57,400

Tesla Introduces Free Quick-Charge Network for Model S Owners

Tesla on Monday introduced a handful of proprietary quick-charge stations across California, Nevada and Arizona with free charging for Model S owners that spring for the optional hardware.

The California automaker disingenuously markets the technology as "supercharging." Of the three battery strengths on the Model S — 40 kWh, 60 kWh and 85 kWh — supercharging hardware is unavailable on the 40 kWh, optional on the 60 kWh and standard with the 85 kWh.

The six stations allow Model S owners "free long-distance travel indefinitely," Tesla says. Each station will comprise a carport with multiple solar-powered chargers that gather enough electricity year-round to accommodate periodic charges by Model S owners, but The New York Times reports just two of the six are fitted with solar panels right now. The other four run off grid power.

More Tesla Models and Service Centers on the Way

We've already seen the Tesla Model S, which is on sale now, and the new midsize Tesla Model X crossover that's due out in early 2014. A compact, entry-level Tesla priced around $30,000 also should be coming in 2015. Now we're learning that the automaker also plans to build a compact crossover and a new Tesla Roadster by 2016, Tesla founder Elon Musk told Wired Magazine. That would bring the carmaker's lineup up to five vehicles from today's one.

The Roadster and the compact crossover are being designed and engineered in tandem, according to Musk, and would go on sale at the same time in 2016. Like the now-defunct Tesla Roadster, Musk says the new model will have supercar performance, but, unlike the old Roadster, it will be less expensive. A base 2011 Tesla Roadster cost $109,000.

Tesla: Sell Enough Cars by Year's End, or Else

Tesla faces a new challenge: Build 5,000 Model S sedans by Dec. 31 or risk insolvency, CEO and founder Elon Musk said at the National Clean Energy Summit, according to Left Lane News. The California electric-car maker received 10,000 orders for the plug-in, three-row car, but Left Lane News reports it must deliver 5,000 of them by year's end. Deliveries began June 22, a month ahead of schedule. The automaker plans 5,000 sales in 2012, on the way toward 20,000 in 2013.

"The challenge that Tesla faces over the next few months is scaling production enough to achieve a certain gross margin on our product so we can be cash-flow positive," Musk told the Las Vegas crowd. "If we’re unable to do that, we’ll enter the graveyard with all the other car company startups of the last 90 years.

"It will definitely be a very tough road over the next six months,” he continued. “We can’t afford to make a lot of mistakes. If we don’t make too many mistakes, then we’ll get to that period and we’ll be able to bring out larger-volume cars that are more affordable."

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Daily News Briefs: Aug. 3, 2012

Toyota is expected to retake the title of No. 1 automaker from GM for 2012, according to analysts speaking with Bloomberg News. The automaker reported selling 4.97 million vehicles in the first half of the year compared to GM's 4.67 million vehicles and VW's 4.45 million vehicles. Toyota expects to sell 9.76 million vehicles in 2012 and produce a total of 10.05 million vehicles worldwide.

In other news:

Daily News Briefs: July 12, 2012

Tesla just opened its 12th dealership, but it's closer to foot traffic than, well, car traffic. The Detroit News reports the electric-car maker's latest store opened at the Third Street Promenade, an outdoor mall in Santa Monica, Calif. The automaker, which just began production of the $57,400 Model S, is "deliberately trying to engage with people when they are not thinking about buying a car," officials said. Tesla will build just 5,000 of the Model S through the end of the year, and all have been spoken for. Next year, the automaker says it will build 20,000. Factory-owned retail stores, as opposed to independently franchised dealerships, allow for better control of the customer experience, one analyst told the Detroit News.

In other news: