New ZAP dealer expects to place 2,000-car order

The latest dealer signed to electric car maker ZAP (BULLETIN BOARD: ZAAP) says it expects to sell 2,000 of the company's vehicles in the early phase of its marketing.

Seeking to invest in environmentally-friendly technologies, a trust fund based in Atlanta, Georgia is setting up a dealership with ZAP and has placed an initial order for 40 electric cars and trucks from the California electric car pioneer.

The trust fund's as-yet unnamed dealership is to distribute the XEBRA (pronounced "zebra") electric car and truck in the Atlanta area. James Tucker, executive trustee representing the trust fund, said he already has orders and strong interest for the XEBRA.

"We figured, why give all the money to the oil companies?" said Tucker. "We have interest from all over the Atlanta area - from city fleets, planned communities, law enforcement, major corporations, colleges - we expect orders for 2,000 ZAP vehicles in the initial phase of our marketing."

ZAP positions the XEBRA as a city car, an all-electric design for city-speed driving and priced around $10,000 that comes in a 4-door sedan or pickup truck with a convertible dump/flat bed. It plugs into a standard 110-volt outlet for a full charge in up to six hours and a 50 percent charge in 1.5 hours, and also has an optional solar charging panel. Fueling is estimated to cost 1-3 cents per mile, or about one-fifth that of gas vehicles.

ZAP is recruiting auto dealers across the country. It currently has 22 dealers.

ZAP has been a leader in advanced transportation technologies since 1994. ZAP is developing a high-performance crossover SUV electric car concept called ZAP-X engineered by Lotus Engineering.

Read all of the Cleantech Group's latest coverage of ZAP here.

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