Hello, I am preparing a business proposal on starting a car dealership that would sell strictly hybrid and electric cars in an effort to preserve the environment. I am not very educated in the hybrid car industry, so I’m in need of a little help.. Location would be in Vancouver, Canada because of the smog problems Vancouver has.
What major issues and opportunities would the company face when selling only cars that are environmentally friendly?
Also, what alternatives/recommendations do you have for the major issues?
This does not have to be an expert analysis, it is more of a broad business plan for a project

Thanks in advance

I can help you with electric cars suppliers, I’m selling electric cars on http://www.greenvh.com/

and you can see one here: http://www.greenvh.com/Products/123-electric-car-ts100000.aspx

best small diesel engine foe a electric car hybrid

A modern Volkswagen diesel engine is direct injected and very efficient. Why not start with the VW diesel car and modify it?

I vote electric. Any fuel can be converted into electricity, and electric motors are far more efficient than internal combustion engines, therefore an electric car is the most efficient way to utilize any fuel.
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This applies especially to the transportation of the fuel. The electric car is the only auto that refuels by wire. Sending electricity over the power grid is 95% efficient. Other fuels must be transported by truck, barge, or pipeline, all of which have much lower efficiencies.
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These efficiencies are confirmed by marketplace prices. most electric vehicles burn electricity at the rate of 1 cent per mile, far cheaper than any other fuel.
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The mass-market EV has been held back by battery technology, but research is finally giving us breakthroughs to solve this problem. Here are some electric cars in development right now. Some may be available as soon as next year:
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From Europe: The Electric Mini - does 150 mph!
http://www.treehugger.com/files/2006/08/the_hybrid_mini.php

From China: The Happy Messenger - only costs $10000, goes 150 miles per charge:
http://www.greencarcongress.com/2005/12/chinese_ev_comp.html

Also from China: the BYD car, designed to be affordable, with a 250-mile range:
http://www.edmunds.com/insideline/do/News/articleId=106930

The GEO EV, from Korea. It goes 155 miles on a three hour charge:
http://joongangdaily.joins.com/200505/18/200505182238171109900090609062.html

Also from Korea. The ENERGINE Electric-Pneumatic hybrid.
It runs on air and electricity. No gasoline:
http://www.energine.com/e_main.php

From Japan. The Subaru R1E. Charges to 90% in 5 minutes, costs under $18000:
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/8995780

Also from Japan. The Mitsubishi Colt EV, with advanced lithium-ion batteries:
http://media.mitsubishi-motors.com/pressrelease/e/corporate/detail1269.html

An imported Chinese car, hopefully to be available here in the US:
http://www.milesautomotive.com/products_xs200.html
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As for the expense, no problem. As long as you don’t need the latest technology, there are affordable electric cars around even today. Look at this guy - he makes new EVs out of old 1980’s cars. His prices start under $5000:
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http://grassrootsev.com/convert.htm
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Which ones are the best fuel-efficient car to get?

Hybrids are better on gas and pollute less, but they cost more to buy unless you keep the car a long time. Your most cost-effective solution considering both fuel efficiency and cost is a Honda Civic (non-hybrid).

One that won’t cost me an arm and a leg??

Electric can be difficult. Most/all of the major manufacturers have stopped selling and/or crushed their existing EVs. Most of the remaining EVs out there to purchase are from smaller manufacturers or conversions. Check with your local Electric Auto Association chapter - they can point you to some for sale locally.
http://www.eaaev.org/

As for a hybrid, I haven’t heard of a dealer asking for an arm and a leg, but they do ask for money/currency. As for what is too much, it depends if you are buying the vehicle new from the dealer, or used from a private sale or a used car salesperson, and how much is too much for your personal finances.

Currently available hybrids in the US (check with a dealer) and their base MSRP:
Honda Insight, $19,330
Honda Civic Hybrid, $22,150
Honda Accord Hybrid, $30,990
Toyota Prius, $21,725
Toyota Highlander Hybrid, $33,030
Toyota Camry Hybrid, $25,900
Lexus RX400H, $41,875
Lexus GS450H, $55,595
Ford Escape Hybrid, $26,215
Mercury Mariner Hybrid, $29,225
coming soon: Saturn Vue Green Line, $22,995
I don’t consider the GMC Sierra/Chevy Silverado pickups to be a hybrid, as their electrics do not provide any motive force to the truck.

Warranties on the hybrid system/battery depend on manufacturer, but start at 8 years/80,000 miles in the US. If you get an AT-PZEV model in a CA-emissions state, the hybrid battery pack warranty is 10 years/150,000 miles.

If you purchase new, in the US you can get a federal income tax credit of up to $3500 (depending on model).
http://www.irs.gov/newsroom/article/0,,id=157557,00.html

Some states also offer state income tax credits, deductions, or reduced sales tax, single-occupant HOV lane usage, or reduced tolls, for hybrids.

If you’re looking to save some money, try and find an older used hybrid for sale. No tax incentives in the US for used, but you don’t have to worry about a depreciation hit and the excise taxes and insurance should be lower on the older vehicle.

I like Scott Adams’ answer in the DNRC newsletter (first link below).

I also like the sexified Toyota Volta. It’s a straight up supercar (and coincedentally a hybrid) that will probably never see the light of day (second link).

All available power sources were experimented with. The also tried steam.

Gas prices are going up, but so are electric rates in the Chicago area. Is there actually a cost savings in driving a hybrid? Clearly there is an environmental saving, but the vehicle cost is higher. If the fuel source costs less, we might consider buying one.

The present generation of hybrids don’t plug in at all, so there is no effect on your electric bill. The next generation of hybrids will be full electric cars, using the gas engine just to charge the batteries. Those vehicles will plug in, and use electricity from your home to power most of your driving. Yes, your electric bill will go up - but your gasoline bill will go down a lot further.
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I drive an all-electric car. It gets about 4 miles to the kilowatt-hour. I use a split rate from my electric company, so that when I charge overnight, it costs me just 3 cents per kilowatt-hour. That’s less than a PENNY per mile!
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More info on electric cars: http://squidoo.com/cheap-electric-car

Ok, so I’ve been doing research and I can’t find much information about this topic. Dealers say "of corse it’s safe" but that doesn’t explain how or why the safety works. I know they have measures to deal with the high voltage and current - supposedly the cables are bright orange to indicate they shouldn’t be cut through.

My concern is if there’s a fire or other disaster, maybe after a collision. I know with Lithium based batteries used in electronics (laptop-computers, iPods, phones, etc) if they are heated beyond a certain point, they go into thermal runaway and can cause multiple explosions, and severe injury to anyone nearby.

What stops a Hybrid’s battery pack from going into Thermal Runaway?

Nano-Li batterires designed for vehicles are designed to fail safe
see the video of the killacycle crash http://www.killacycle.com

The batteries are nomally placed under the floor between the front & back wheels to inprove the weight distribution, see Tango handling http://www.commutercars.com but this also gives a lot of protection in a crash (the Tango meets F1 standards)

PS Existing hybrids use NiMH batteries

…..or even cars for that matter. Is a diesel/electric hybrid even possible?

Manufacturers really can make anything they want since they have the R&D and know-how on these products. building a diesel hybrid is as simple as replacing the petrol engine in the prius with a diesel one. However, There is a lot of politics involved in this. America as a country, gets the lowest price per gallon than any other country in the world from a customer standpoint. That is because they are the largest customer and can get away with better discounts/bargains than others. However, to remain the biggest consumer, they cannot allow the common man to have vehicles that suddenly start using only half the amount of oil that they now do. It would hurt the oil companies too much. Even the ones producing and operating inside America.
This is not such a big deal in countries like india and european ones since they do not get such great prices per barrell anyway. So they have no choice but to choose alternatives to petrol like Diesel, as they already have.
This is only one explanation to your question. There are theories about greater pollution being caused by using diesel etc that also play their part.
Also, a diesel engine is supposed to cost more in maintenance since the whole process is dirtier than a petrol engine. Carbon formation and engine sludge problems are greater in diesel engines than petrol. However, these are not problems that cannot be fixed by some R&D.
Hope that answers your question.