Electric Cars Create a Buzz in San Francisco

SAN FRANCISCO — Face it: Automobiles rank mighty low on the tourism food chain of this steep and gridlocked city.

The Golden Gate Bridge--absolutely. Alcatraz--sure. Flotillas of barking sea lions at Fisherman’s Wharf--OK. But a car?

Three electric autos that hit the streets this fall are becoming tourist attractions in their own right. With bright colors and a goofy shape that looks more cartoon than car, the four-seaters turn heads as they zip silently through the city.

“People just love them,” said Ian Olson, sales manager at ZAPworld, the shop that rents the cars.

When the electric cars made their debut last month, renters got free rein--a mistake, Olson said. Drivers wore out motors and ran down batteries taking the cars up San Francisco’s extreme hills. Now the company rents out the cars for use along prearranged routes that avoid steep hills and skirt streets with fast-moving traffic.

The new restrictions dissuade some renters, who want the freedom to roam when paying $35 per hour for the cars. But others accept the limitations and treat the cars as a novelty ride rather than transportation.

Julie Khahil of Thousand Oaks said a day in the rented car turned out to be a highlight of her family’s vacation.

“We were about to rent electric bicycles when we saw the car in the back of the shop,” Khahil said. “It was so cute we right away decided to rent it.”

As they headed for famous landmarks and attractions, the tourists soon found themselves at the center of attention.

“My kids had a blast,” Khahil said. “We were stopped every three seconds by people asking questions, everyone was waving and talking to us and giving us thumbs up.”

The cars’ goofy appeal is also a potential problem. Some drivers forget they are navigating city streets and take risks they might not take in a conventional car. So each rental comes with some somber warnings.

“The cars are so cute and tempting, people tend to forget they’re real vehicles and not a toy,” Olson said. “They think they’re on an amusement park ride and forget that they’re on the city streets and that they’re subject to all the laws, like any other car. I remind them it’s just like driving the family car.”

The small electric cars are getting a chance on San Francisco’s roads because of changes in federal regulations that allow the low-speed cars to travel on streets with speed limits of 35 mph and lower. Each car, registered with the state Department of Motor Vehicles, comes with seat belts, turn signals and windshield wipers. Instead of a gas gauge, there is a panel that tells drivers how much battery power is left.

You need a driver’s license to rent one, and if you run a stop sign or park illegally, you can get cited. Speeding tickets are less likely. The cars cruise at about 25 mph and can travel 30 to 40 miles per charge. Hills can be a problem, and the open-air design limits them to sunny, temperate climates.

Still, executives at the vehicle’s 2-year-old manufacturer, GEMcar, are elated by their car’s success. The souped-up golf carts zip through streets in Hawaii, Michigan, Florida, Texas, Alabama, Puerto Rico, the Bahamas and Egypt. A dealership in Huntington Beach sells the cars for about $7,000 for a two-seater and about $10,000 for a four-seater. Actress Pamela Anderson Lee owns one and takes it with her when she travels, company officials said.

“We’re looking at coming out with a version with doors,” said Rick Kasper, GEMcar’s executive vice president. “That would make the difference in states with rain and winter weather, but then you start getting into things like heaters and snow tires and air conditioning, and that presents a whole new set of design challenges.”

In the meantime, ZAPworld and its customers will make do.

“This company is dedicated to the idea of electric vehicles,” ZAPworld’s Olson said. “I mean, if electric cars can make it in San Francisco, they can make it anywhere.”