Newport Getting a Charge Out of Ditching the SUV

In Newport Beach, home to Hummers and higher-than-high gas prices, the appeal of neighborhood electric vehicles -- the egg-shaped cars that look like they’re about to hatch -- is spreading like word of a party at Dennis Rodman’s beach house.

Residents increasingly are leaving their Excursions, Range Rovers and Navigators in the garage when they run errands around town, saving gas, money and the environment by driving the quiet, nonpolluting vehicles.

Particularly on Balboa Island, where narrow streets, tiny parking spaces and the casual beach culture make SUVs inconvenient, if not downright unhip, neighborhood electric vehicles are quietly becoming a popular second -- or fifth -- car, offering a cheap, environmentally friendly and fun alternative.

“With the price of gas, people are staying closer to home, and this makes staying closer to home more fun,” said Bob McKenzie, who owns a two-seat Ford Think -- electric blue, with open sides and bucket seats.

He had been borrowing a Think from Me and My E.V., a local dealership that sells only zero-emission vehicles. He enjoyed it so much he bought one. Also, it made more sense to use it rather than his Lexus LS430 to get around town.

His teenage children usually use a modified golf cart to tool about, he said.

Though Ford no longer makes the Think and supplies are running low, its popularity in Newport Beach has led the dealership to start a manufacturing division to build similar vehicles -- as many as 500 a year -- to meet demand.

McKenzie says his Think is perfect for going from his home in Bayside Village to Balboa Island, a nearby marina where he has a boat, to a market in the Newport Dunes RV park about a mile away, or to the beach on the peninsula.

“It’s not that far, but when you’re carrying towels, an ice chest and folding chairs, it can be,” McKenzie said.

There are no hard statistics on how many of the cars are being driven around Newport Beach, but Me and My E.V., which has been in business for three years, has sold about 600, said co-owner Christina Harer.

Their popularity was foreshadowed by golf carts, which have been common on Balboa Island for years.

Neighborhood electric vehicles were born in 1998, when the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration designated them as a new class of motor vehicle. Unlike golf carts, which they resemble, the cars must meet federal requirements, meaning a safety glass windshield, windshield wipers, headlights, taillights, turn signals, high-mounted brake lights, mirrors and seat belts.

The battery-powered cars also have more oomph than golf carts, which are restricted to streets with speed limits of 25 mph or less. Neighborhood electric vehicles are allowed to travel anywhere the speed limit is no more than 35 mph, considerably extending their range and usefulness.

“They have become the adult scooter,” said Steve Bromberg, a city councilman. On Balboa Island, “you can’t go a block without seeing these things.”

Bromberg, who lives on Balboa Island, recently bought a four-seat golf cart, but said he wishes he could have fit a Think, which is wider, in his garage.

Harer and her partner, Christopher Selter, sell vehicles with custom paint jobs, chrome wheels, stereos and tiny trunks.

Base price for a two-seat Think is about $6,000. The four-seat model can run as much as $9,000.

The cars have six 12-volt batteries under the seats, and can run about three hours, or go about 40 miles. It takes six hours to recharge.

Mary Pat and John Campbell, who live on Balboa Island, own a four-seat Global Electric Motor Car (GEM), which was made by Chrysler until the car manufacturer sold the division to a European company.

Their modifications were more subtle; they put BMW decals on the hubcaps and steering wheel.

There is definitely a “cool” factor that comes with the cars.

“People look at you and say, ‘Hey, look at that cool car.’ It’s kind of fun,” she said.

The real attraction, however, is the savings on gas and maintenance.

“When I fill my [Lexus SUV] up, it’s $55 and it just kills me,” she said. “So if I can take the GEM, it’s so much easier, cheaper, and it’s fun.”

Campbell said she loves putting daughter, Bridgette, 2, and son, Barron, 5, in the back seat, and going to the Newport Harbor Yacht Club beach, for breakfast on Harbor Island Drive and to the kids’ swimming lessons.

Recently, she and John took the GEM to a Children’s Hospital of Orange County gala at the Newport Dunes, he in a tuxedo and she in evening gown.

And parking is a snap.

“They’re great,” Bromberg said. “Especially now, when you have summer traffic and parking is incredibly crazy [on Balboa Island]. You can set these things anywhere.”