CNN did a piece on the Mini E electric car on February 2, 2009. I don’t particularly have problems with CNN reporting in general, as a lot of their fluff can be filtered out -- if you watch CNN long enough, you know. Anyway it’s an interesting piece on the Mini E because of several reasons.

Like many other news outlets, CNN does have its moment of sensationalism, just maybe more often than the rest. So if you keep this in mind while watching this news clip, you’ll see other more important things at play here. I certainly had my initial reactions. But I’ll let you watch it first then discuss on the other side.

www.youtube.com/watch?v=_tE938F511M

While the news piece on the Mini E electric car is informative for sure, it seems to have sparked many negative reactions about “moronic reporter and commentator”, “great way to promote saving the earth” (sarcastic), etc. For me my first reaction was, “Nice! Electric cars are getting national and international coverage!” Then my second reaction was (after viewing it live and then recorded version several times), “Hmm, interesting comments are made by the CNN people, like “I’m about to back up .. and it’s not working,” or, reference to driving like “a bumper car,” or, negative comments at the end about the $850 per month lease.”

So here are my thoughts. I think CNN is reporting the news like it is in this case. While this was not live, they decided to leave in the clip of the car stalling. If the car stalls, it stalls. If she had trouble driving the car the first time, then that’s probably what would happen with many other first-time drivers of the Mini E in particular, and electric cars in general. To me it was a good editing decision.

Secondly, if it feels like driving a bumper car, why try to say it in any other way? Everyone can relate to driving a bumper car, especially when she relates it to the car’s behavior in relationship to the petal action. We can all feel the effect of regenerative braking with that single statement, yet many feel that the statement does not help the car’s cause and is out of place, and I disagree. It’s time consumers understand how these things work so they can make buying decisions, and not just through shiny cool looking models on the auto show floors.

With respect to keeping an eye on the Mini E‘s remaining charge level, thus how much distance you have left to drive, she was absolutely right about not wanting to be stranded in the middle of the road which is always a serious issue. Many marketing people would just gloss over this serious issue.

CNN did also give plenty of video time for Mini USA Vice President Jim McDowell to say what he needed to say about the car and company goals. So again it was OK reporting there.

Finally, the $850 monthly lease amount. Here’s my take. Granted, the commentator was just a tad over-reacting. But my guess is it would be the exact reaction of many consumers. Forget about going green and saving the earth. People can’t pay for this now or possibly even in the near future. If I’m in a market for a new car, let’s go check out other 30 or even 40+ mpg cars that I can afford and drive today. This Mini E is not for me, and it’s not for many people.

Don’t get me wrong. I’m not picking on the Mini E. I think it’s a great concept. On the other hand I advocate that we should all do our part to promote this great solution to a world problem, but do it with at least one foot on the reality ground.

I’ve always maintained that car manufacturers are jumping on the clean driving bandwagon and bring out cars that are not necessarily ready for the consumers. See my recent post on “New Hybrid and Electric Car Choices Can Fail the Car Industry.” Many just want to ride the buzz and free press at auto shows and drive demos, etc. While it may be part of a good development process (such as getting customer feedback and measuring levels of interest), at this stage they’re all really part of the marketing machines churning out sales pitches. If it weren’t for the current economic situation I doubt if we’d see this many announcements for hybrid and electric cars.

In summary, I think this CNN piece is right-on, in that it keeps car manufacturers honest.

So what do you think of the CNN news piece? Do you have a different view on the subject? Would you prefer the news to cover green car technology differently, and what would you consider helpful for consumers to make good decisions about hybrid and electric cars? Share your thoughts with us.

CNN Test Drives a Mini E Electric Car -- Missing the Point or Just Reflecting Public Views? is a post from: CleanCarTalk

Related posts

• Nissan LEAF at San Diego Alternative Fuels Education Day 2009
• OPEC Number One Enemy of Hybrid Cars and Electric Cars
• Nissan LEAF Makes U.S. Appearance Beginning With Los Angeles Nov. 13
• REVA NXR and REVA NXG All-Electric Cars Available For Europe Reservation
• Renault Electric Cars Showing at Frankfurt Auto Show
• Nissan Adds Noise to Make Silent Electric Cars Safer to Pedestrians
• Battery Pack Balancing – The Key to Maintain Top Hybrid and Electric Car Performance
• China’s BYD Aggressive on Lithium Battery and Hybrid Bus Production
• One More Challenge For the Electric Car – Charging Station Permit and Installation
• History of the Electric Car

Over at blog.wired.com, Chuck Squatriglia wrote about the “10 Cool Cars We Want Now.” It’s really a Christmas wish list, so therefore the affordably, or even reality, factor is not important. In fact only a few cars on this list are suitable and affordable to the mass. More importantly, however, gone may be the days when only pure muscle cars make it to a list like this.

Each one of these cool cars has something real cool about them. But from a clean car perspective, it boils down to this. Of the ten on this list, only 3 can be considered traditional “dream” or “exotic” cars (Audi R8 V12 TDI concept, BMW M1 Hommage, Ferrari Millechili). The rest do not have the elitist badge and are really produced with the aim for the eventual mass market.

So this list has some serious clean, hybrid cars on it. I guess this is a new trend where we’ll see more hybrid/plug-in/alternative -fuel cars on the same list as what used to be considered dream, muscle and exotic cars. Time has changed.

Enjoy the photos. Copy courtesy blog.wired.com.

Audi R8 V12 TDI concept – This diesel demon gets 24 mpg and meets the ultra-stringent EU emissions rules coming in 2014. But the best thing about the R8 TDI is it does zero to 60 in 4 seconds, hits 186 mph and produces glorious quantities of tire-shredding, neck-snapping torque when you stomp it. Photo by Audi.

BMW M1 Hommage – BMW marked the 30th anniversary of the legendary M1 with a sexy prototype that masterfully updates Giorgetto Giugiaro’s original design. The Hommage doesn’t actually run (hence the Photoshop job above) and some say it looks like the new Camaro, but at least it doesn’t have a Bangle butt. Photo by BMW.

Citroen C-Metisse concept – Maybe it’s the absinthe, but no one designs cars quite like the French. Take the C-Metisse that appeared at the Paris Auto Show in 2006. It’s a diesel. It’s a hybrid. And it’s got four scissor doors. The only thing that could make it any cooler is hydropneumatic suspension. Photo by Citroen.

Ferrari Millechili – Millechili is Italian for 1,000 kilos, which is what the next pavement-peeler from Maranello will weigh. That’s less than a Mazda Miata, and it shows Ferrari is serious about improving fuel economy by reducing weight. The next-gen Enzo won’t be named Millechili, but with 600 horsepower, it will again mean Ferrari is Italian for awesome. Photo by Ferrari.

Fiat 500 – This beautiful update of the iconic microcar isn’t a concept, but it may as well be because we can’t get it here in America. Too bad, because the 500 is everything you want in a city car — stylish, efficient (how’s 45 mpg sound?) and a blast to drive. We hear it’s even reliable, so Fiat no longer means “Fix it again, Tony.” Photo by Fiat.

Ford Verve Concept – Ford builds some great fuel-sippers that are sold only in Europe, and the company raided its European stable to design the Verve. The sedan arrives in 2010, but we really want the hatchback concept (shown here at the Detroit auto show) because it’s a small car that doesn’t look cute or cheap or both. Besides, the world needs more purple cars. Photo by Ford.

Honda CR-Z concept – Someone has finally designed a sexy, affordable hybrid. Honda says it absolutely, positively will build the sweet gas-electric sports car it’s been showing off for about a year now, but so far it hasn’t said when. No matter — the fact it’s coming is enough to make us finally forgive Honda for killing the CRX. Photo by Honda.

Mini-E – The all-electric runabout that debuted at the L.A. Auto Show is the ultimate city car, and we wish BMW would build more than 500 of them. BMW says the limited run is a field-test for the new technology, but we suspect the company discovered only 500 people can meet the leasing requirements and afford the $850 monthly lease. Photo by Jim Merithew / wired.com

Tesla Motors Model S – Yes, Tesla is laying off employees and cutting expenses and its plans for the Model S aren’t going anywhere without $350 million from Uncle Sam. But that doesn’t make the idea of a $58,000 all-electric sedan any less seductive, even if the company ought to be focusing its attention on ramping up production of the Roadster. Photo by Tesla Motors.

Toyota Prius Plug-In Hybrid – A growing cottage industry is busy converting Prius hybrids to plug-ins capable of 100 mpg. Heck — three ecogeeks did the job in the L.A. Convention Center parking lot. Yet an automaker synonymous with hybrids says it won’t have a plug-in Prius until 2010 and even then will offer them only to fleets. What gives? Hurry up already! Photo by Toyota.

End of Year Wish List: 10 Cool Cars We Want Now is a post from: CleanCarTalk

Related posts

• Nissan LEAF at San Diego Alternative Fuels Education Day 2009
• OPEC Number One Enemy of Hybrid Cars and Electric Cars
• Nissan LEAF Makes U.S. Appearance Beginning With Los Angeles Nov. 13
• REVA NXR and REVA NXG All-Electric Cars Available For Europe Reservation
• Renault Electric Cars Showing at Frankfurt Auto Show
• Nissan Adds Noise to Make Silent Electric Cars Safer to Pedestrians
• Battery Pack Balancing – The Key to Maintain Top Hybrid and Electric Car Performance
• China’s BYD Aggressive on Lithium Battery and Hybrid Bus Production
• First Automobile Works – Aggressive Electric and Hybrid Vehicles Manufacturer to China’s Market
• One More Challenge For the Electric Car – Charging Station Permit and Installation