1. Follow us (@CODAautomotive) on Twitter

2. Tweet your own Earth Day pledge, and be sure to include @codaauto

3. Pick up your t-shirt and sign CODA’s pledge wall at the Santa Monica Earth Day on the Promenade event between 10 am and 7 pm this Saturday.

Event Details:  CODA Automotive will be on Santa Monica’s Third Street Promenade (booth #3, entrance off of Wilshire Blvd) from 10 am to 7 pm this Saturday showing the CODA, the all-electric car from the all-electric car company.

The fear that China is going to “beat” America is a growing concern that seems to cross all industries.  Green technology is no exception.  So it’s no surprise that when President Obama and President Hu Jintao announced the launch of the U.S.-China Electric Vehicles Initiative, those engaging in China fear mongering didn’t report about this collaborative partnership that aims to “reduce oil dependence, cut greenhouse gas emissions and promote economic growth” through various joint activities including:  standards development, demonstrations, a technical roadmap, and public education.

The reality is that we’re addicted to oil, blue skies are hidden behind a film of gray-brown smog, and health issues caused by air pollution are soaring.  We shouldn’t fear that China will “win,” we should fear that we all will lose because we’ve created an environment that is unlivable for future generations.  Consider:

- Together, the U.S. and China posses ~37 billion barrels of oil, less than 3% of the world’s total proven oil reserves, but guzzle nearly 28,000,000 barrels of oil per day, ~33% of the total barrels of oil consumed globally per day.

- Together, the U.S. and China are the two largest producers of carbon emissions, contributing nearly half of the world’s total CO₂ emissions.

As one of the two countries that have played the largest role in accelerating global climate change and environmental degradation, it is our responsibility to find ways to work with China to reverse the collision course we’re on.  The U.S.-China Electric Vehicle Initiative is a momentous step in the right direction for both countries and shows a willingness on both sides to cooperate.

David Sandalow, Assistant Secretary of Energy for Policy and International Affairs, put the issue of U.S.-China collaboration into perspective in Thomas Friedman’s “The New Sputnik” opinion piece when he said, “If they [China] invest in 21st-century technologies and we invest in 20th-century technologies, they’ll win … If we both invest in 21st-century technologies, challenging each other, we all win.”

U.S.-based companies need to partner in mutually beneficial ways with China to develop and bring to market green technologies.  We’re already doing this.  Our focus is on building jobs and an industrial base in both the U.S. and China to speed up the adoption of electric cars.  We think that’s the real win-win.

So, we’re embracing the idea of global collaboration, not competition, at the very core of our business model.  In fact, Kevin Czinger, President and CEO of CODA, participated as one of the U.S. delegates in the U.S.-China Electric Vehicles Forum in September to discuss CODA’s “Invented in America, Built Globally” model.  CODA is existing proof that the U.S. and China are both serious about cutting carbon emissions, and can work together to do it.

In the article, veteran auto industry analyst Maryann Keller said in response to DOE’s announcement, “We’re pouring $1 billion into two companies without a future.  The economics of the industry favors large companies.”

The idea that smaller companies can’t be successful and therefore won’t lead the revolution in alternative transportation is what we take issue with.  Within the past year, two of the three big, domestic auto companies went into bankruptcy and dealer sales tanked.  If that doesn’t say the auto industry needs a fresh breath of air from smaller players with disruptive models that aren’t confined by the bureaucracy of large corporations, then we don’t know what does.

Between rising carbon emission-related environmental degradation, Americans’ anti-oil sentiments, and the lack of alternative options, the market desperately needs innovative, nimble companies, like CODA Automotive, that can move quickly to shift expectations and get electric cars on the market that meet drivers’ needs and are better to the environment.

It’s hard for us to believe that one of the industry giants will do this – especially considering their businesses were founded on and  are still concretely rooted in the production of internal combustion, gas guzzling vehicles.

The Lux report claims a much slower growth rate for plug-in vehicles over the next decade than industry expectations, with an estimated 3-8% market share of global new-car sales by 2020.  The study cites the leveling off of oil prices and a slow decline of battery prices to keep the cost of electric cars high.

We think the study neglects two very important influencers that will factor into people’s purchasing decisions: 1) lower total cost of ownership and 2) people’s desire to do right by the environment.

Total Cost of Ownership Factor

While the cost of electric car batteries may be high right now, commercialization of battery systems and increased production will bring the per kilowatt hour price down, which in turn will lower the cost of electric cars.  Even the Lux report estimates that battery prices could go down by 30-40% by 2020, which could lead to significant reductions in EV price points.  Beyond the battery, driving an electric car over a gas car would save people thousands of dollars in operating and maintenance costs each year.  Below is a comparison of potential savings between a gas car and the CODA electric car:

Assumptions:

• Price per gallon – $3
• Annual miles driven – 15,000
• Conventional mileage – 21 mpg
• Watt-hours per mile of battery – 300
• Mileage per kilowatt hour – 4 miles
• Electricity cost per kilowatt hour – $0.07

Environmental Factor

The Lux report completely ignores consumer’s increasing desire for products that help them reduce their carbon footprint.  In 2007, the Alliance for Climate Change and Roper Reports found that only 28% of Americans are environmentally uninterested.  Of those that are interested in protecting the environment, 13% can be categorized as “selfless greens” – meaning, they are willing to change their behaviors and sacrifice for the environment.  That’s about 40 million Americans who probably dislike “big oil” and would actively try to change their lifestyle to protect the environment.

Saving money and the environment?  We think the Lux report underestimates how much demand there will be for electric cars once Americans understand the economics and environmental rewards.

Why wait for the perfect solution when a good solution with the room to grow into the perfect solution is already here?

The Reuters story quotes Jared Cohon, the chair of a National Research Council report dubbed “Hidden Costs of Energy: Unpriced Consequences of Energy Production and Use,” as saying, “For electric vehicles to become a major green alternative, the power fuel mix has to move away from coal, or cleaner coal technologies have to be developed.”

We don’t dispute that the use of cleaner technologies is better, but what is missing from Reuters’ assessment is the fact that this ball is already rolling.  In California, for instance, only about 18% of the total electricity system power comes from coal plants and nearly 82% comes from a combination of large hydro, natural gas, nuclear, and renewable sources.  Today, coal-fired plants contribute less than 50% of the Nation’s electric power.

Even if the fuel production process for a gas car versus an electric car (refinement of gasoline and production of electricity) are net neutral in terms of total carbon emissions produced, we think driving an electric car is still a better option.   The total greenhouse gases created from charging and driving a battery electric car are less than those created from fueling and driving a gas engine car because electric motors are inherently much more efficient than internal combustion engines.  You see, the CODA electric motor is about 95% efficient while the typical internal combustion engine is about 20% efficient.   With only 20% efficiency, most of the gasoline burned in an internal combustion engine vehicle is emitted from the tailpipe rather than used as propulsion energy.  Less efficiency means more pollution.

So, while there is room to improve the level of upstream greenhouse gas emissions created when generating electricity, electric vehicles are still the cleaner solution.