Electric Pickups: If Others Can Do It at a Lower Cost, Why Can’t Ford?

Your coverage on Ford Motor Co.’s plans to sell an electric version of its popular Ranger pickup truck (“Ford to Build Electric Ranger for California,” June 13) unfortunately clearly illustrated the concerted effort the oil industry and the auto makers are engaged in to thwart the widespread sale of the use of electric-powered vehicles.

The article states that the price of the electric Ranger will be three times higher than traditional gasoline-powered trucks. What’s driving the high cost? Why would Ford build a truck and price it at $30,000, an “unrealistically high” price, according to electric vehicle proponents? Is Ford reluctant to give consumers more choice? Or is it simply protecting the gasoline-driven economy that ties in inexorably to Detroit?

If a start-up company in Burbank has been selling converted Rangers at a price 30% lower, why isn’t Ford able to do the same? Wouldn’t it seem to be a better business strategy for Ford to concentrate its efforts on building and selling gliders--cars without engines--if the resellers that complete the cars with batteries can put them on the market at a much lower price?

Ford, GM and Chrysler should be challenged to build and sell high-quality, reasonably priced electric vehicles and should not allow special interests to prevent them from helping provide a solution to cleaner air and a stronger economy for California.

JULIE HORAN

Californians for Jobs

and Clean Air

Sacramento