HDNet's 'Dan Rather Reports' Kicks the Tires on the Electric Car

HDNet's 'Dan Rather Reports' Kicks the Tires on the Electric Car

Once a dream of the future, these cars are suddenly very real, but are they viable? Tuesday, September 8 at 8:00 p.m. ET

DALLAS, Sept. 8 /PRNewswire/ -- Tonight's "Dan Rather Reports" examines the coming revolution in transportation--the electric car. While hybrids like the Toyota Prius have sold well, electric car makers - many of them Silicon Valley startups - are rolling out cars with zero emissions, and six- figure sticker prices. The first all-electric to be introduced was the Tesla Roadster.

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In tonight's episode, Rather test-drives the new 2010 Tesla Roadster Sport on the busy streets of Manhattan. This two-seater accelerates from 0-60 in 3.9 seconds and retails for around $125,000.

Tesla, has just received a 465 million dollar loan from the U.S. Government and plans to use the money to build a larger, seven-person Tesla "S" sedan, which will have a 300 mile range, go from 0-60 in 5.6 seconds and will retail at around $50,000.

Diarmuid O'Connell, vice president for Tesla Motors sees a future in which you no longer stop to "gas up," but to "plug in and charge up." He is already in discussions with many different interested parties. "Convenience stores, 7-Eleven's," O'Connell tells Rather. "Any place where people would reasonably stop to take a break or to grab a meal or to overnight."

One writer who thinks electric cars are coming fast is Dan Neil, Pulitzer Prize winning automotive writer for the Los Angeles Times. "Really, the transformation and the American rolling stock will be breathtaking, I predict," says Neil. "We're going to see millions of electric vehicles on the road very, very soon."

The report concludes with a round table discussion on the future viability of these fascinating electric vehicles and how soon they may actually become the car of choice for American drivers.

Joining Rather in the discussion are Jim Motavalli and Matt DeBord. Motavalli is an environmental writer, speaker and author. He is also a regular contributor to the New York Times Automobile section and Wheels blog, among numerous other publications. Matt DeBord also writes about automobiles and sustainability for national newspapers such as the Washington Post and the Los Angeles Times. And, he's a regular contributor to Slates: The Big Money, where he writes the Shifting Gears blog.

"Dan Rather Reports: Electric Cars" premieres on HDNet on Tuesday, September 8 at 8:00 p.m. ET with an encore presentation at 11:00 p.m. ET to accommodate west coast prime time.

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Profile: International Entertainment