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To: Bill Jackson who wrote (88)	12/10/1997 2:17:00 PM
From: nic	Read Replies (2) \| Respond to of 407

Bill, are there any publicly traded companies in the flywheel arena? - nic

To: Bill Jackson who wrote (88)	12/10/1997 9:40:00 PM
From: Zeuspaul	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 407

I do not believe that electric cars can replace a substantial portion of todays cars. If one can even consider a battery electric car in my situation it speaks well for the technology. I work with 20 people. Three others are at the high end of the commute distances. If you look at the other end of the spectrum the situation is quite different. Three people live less that five miles to work and do most of their shopping locally. The technology exists today to satisfy most of their transportation needs with a battery electric car. They would need an alternate car for out of town trips but most people have several cars anyway, so what is one more? There are several other applications for EV's today. Fleets that operate close to a home base such as postal vehicles are prime candidates. Retired people that don't travel a lot could also benefit. There are distinct advantages to a battery car. The maintenance will be far less. The Toyota mechanic wants $1500 for a valve job to clean up my car. He says the EGR valve stuck causing the problem. The car has only 80,000 miles. That money would go a long way towards a new set of batteries. The lure of the EV is freedom from costly repairs and maintenance and freedom from gas stations and a long life vehicle and a VERY clean and VERY quite vehicle. It would clearly be the vehicle of choice if battery technology were to advance significantlly. It can be the vehicle of choice now for some situations. A hybrid vehicle looks like a battery car to me with a battery that needs a boost. If one were to own a hybrid car and lived close to work and the mall, would the auxillary power be used? Short trips for engines produce the most pollution. Most likely in this situation the vehicle would run on the battery. As time passes and the future batteries deliver more juice the auxillary power will be used less. The evolution would be towards the elimination of the complexities associated with the hybrid,ICE,and toward the EV. The time frame is a question.