CAPE MAY — The city’s Energy Committee and Interim City Manager Bruce MacLeod test-drove electric vehicles July 24 with an eye towards buying one or more vehicles to replace gas burning cars and trucks.
Spirit Chrysler Dodge, of Swedesboro, brought four GEM (Global Electric Motorcars) vehicle on flatbed trucks to Cape May for the test drives. Why truck the electric vehicles to Cape May rather than drive them here?
The GEM vehicles have a maximum speed of 25 mph and a range of about 30 miles before needing a recharge but for a small town like Cape May, they may have uses.
This reporter test-drove the GEM eL, which seemed to have more in common with a golf cart than a car. It lacked doors, power brakes and had a manual defroster.
MacLeod said the electric vehicles could possibly be used by the city’s Construction/ Zoning Office to transport inspectors to work sites, the public works department for custodial services and the water/sewer department for light duty such as servicing of water meters.
The GEM eL has a flatbed on back, which could carry tools.
Jeff Elliot, pastor of Cape May Lutheran Church and an energy commission member, said he was interested in GEM vehicle for his own use. A drawback: Elliot lives on the other side of the Cape May Canal, while his church is in Cape May. The low speed GEM would not be allowed on the canal bridge.
Elliot said he would consider a GEM car if the law was changed prohibiting a vehicle with a top speed of 25 mph in a 40 mph zone. He said the car handled “surprisingly well,” and its zero carbon emission was important to him.
Chet Bonner, a sales representative from Spirit Chrysler Dodge, said the dealership has been selling GEM cars for about one month.
“The principle buyers have been colleges, security people and warehouse complexes though we have found inquiries are starting to come in from local people who want to use this vehicle to go around town and not have to spend what it costs for fuel today,” he said.
The GEM cars plug into a standard 110-volt outlet and cost about 50 cents per day to recharge.
GEM is under the umbrella of Chrysler Corporation, said Bonner. The vehicles are built in North Dakota.
Purchase price for a GEM ranges from $7,700 to $13,680 depending on the model and options. GEM estimated over a three-year period, the cost of driving the GEM eS would cost $4,990 while owning a gasoline powered car would cost about $13,570 over the same time period based on the GEM selling for $8,000 and the combustion engine car at $20,000.
Spirit Chrysler Business Link Manager Mikey Pilieri said the Bellmawr Police Department was using a GEM vehicle but not as a patrol car.
If GEM vehicles were allowed to exceed 25 mph, they would need additional safety equipment such as airbags, he said.
There is no sales tax charged on the purchase of GEM vehicles, said Pilieri.
