Comment Log Display

To Mary Nichols and fellow members of CARB:

Am resending this comment to the ARB in the ZEV proposals of 2008,
but much of it still applies.  Regarding the disclosure of ZEV
Credit data and automakers construing it as a "trade secret",
there is one thing that has not been mentioned.

As the government provided millions of dollars to automakers to
develop BEV's in the 1990's, it is not unfathomable that the
general public should be able to see how this money was (and is
being) spent.  Was it used purely for BEV development?  As some
automakers currently claim, they used their BEV development
experience of the last decade, to create today's Hybrid Electric
vehicles, or AT PZEV's.  Therefore, that money has, if somewhat
indirectly, allowed automakers to capitalize on the sale of the
current (and future) crop of Hybrid Electric vehicles.

Also, the comparison by ARB of releasing the ZEV Credit data, to
that of releasing our own tax records is not quite the same.  If
the government allocated large sums of monies to automakers to
spur BEV development, we as the general public should be able to
see how it was (and is being) spent.  Is a certain automaker
building just a handful of Fuel Cell vehicles, that ordinary
citizens will not be able to afford to buy or operate for 10 to 20
years from now, in order to get the most ZEV credits in the
Alternative Path?  Or is that same automaker truly committed to
helping the environment by making real BEV's now, that we can buy
now?

It was done 10 years ago, and technology moves on.  I hear quotes
in the media from the same schlep who always says, "Battery
technology isn't there yet."  Well, battery technology was there
with the Toyota RAV4EV, with its 125 mile range with NiMH
bateries.  These same vehicles are still going strong, in both the
hands private citizens, and in that of large fleets (Southern CA
Edison), with many over 100,000 miles and still with around a 100
mile range between charges.

Imagine what we can do today, with those same old Panasonic EV-95
NiMH batteries used in the Toyota RAV4EV, or -gasp- the advanced
high power Li-Ion Nanophosphate batteries being made by A123 and
used by plug-in Prius conversion shops.  These same A123 Li-Ion
batteries are also under consideration for use in the proposed
Chevy Volt, as well as the Saturn Green Line Vue plug-in hybrid
SUV.  Or the Li-Ti batteries from Altairnano being used in Phoenix
Motorcars BEV's, which normally charge in 5 to 6 hours, but may be
possible to recharge safely in 10 minutes, if you park in an
electrical utility sub-station.

Make the right choices!
Regards,
+ Skip Acquaro