Palo Alto's Better Place just announced that it will be conducting a 90-day test of its lithium-ion battery switching system with Tokyo's Nihon Kotsu taxi company. The batteries can go about 100 miles before they need to be switched out. Read more in the San Jose Business Journal article: Better Place tests electric car system in Tokyo 

GE and Nissan have signed a Memorandum of Understanding to jointly research "smart charging" stations.  Both companies will be conducting research separately and collectively, using computer simulations to finetune their software charging systems. 

Nissan began accepting reservations for its eagerly anticipated Nissan Leaf today. After a federal tax credit and state rebate, the price of these cars will come out at around a cool 20k. Funny that this article cites "a shortage of public charging stations" as the sole reason for auto makers scrapping electric vehicles in the 1990s. Viewers of "Who Killed The Electric Car?" may recall it was a little more complicated than that... The first five states where the Leaf will be available are: California, Arizona, Tennessee, Oregon, and Washington. Read more about it in the San Jose Mercury News Article: Reservations for the all-electric Nissan Leaf start Tuesday By Dana Hull for the San Jose Mercury News.

The Leaf is just the first of several all-electric and plug-in hybrid vehicles about to come on the market. Others include the Fisker Karma, the Aptera 2e, the Coda sedan, Chevy's Volt and Tesla's Model S. The only all-electric "highway-capable" vehicle available today is the $109,000 Tesla Roadster. The Leaf's suggested retail price of $32,780 drops to $25,280 after a $7,500 federal income tax credit. California offers a $5,000 rebate through the state Air Resources Board, which reduces the price to $20,280. More than 112,000 people have registered on Nissan's website to receive updates about the Leaf. Tuesday, they will receive a secure e-mail with a link to make a reservation, for a $99 refundable fee. The reservation ensures consumers a place in line when the Japanese automaker begins taking firm orders in August.

Here is the text of the entire article, in case the link goes bad: http://www.mercurynews.com/breaking-news/ci_14892420?nclick_check=1 Reservations for the all-electric Nissan Leaf start Tuesday By Dana Hull dhull@mercurynews.com Americans who have been waiting for an affordable, all-electric car won't have to wait much longer. The four-door Nissan Leaf will go on sale later this year at a cost of about $20,000 after a federal tax credit and state rebate, a price low enough that auto industry analysts say it will attract consumers who have never considered driving electric vehicles before. Interest in the Leaf is so high that Nissan will begin accepting reservations Tuesday. While it will be the first affordable all-electric car to hit the market, several other models are expected to roll out within the next two years. Electric vehicles are powered by batteries instead of internal combustion engines. There are no tailpipe emissions, and the cost of the electricity to charge them is much cheaper than a tank of gasoline. "By the end of the year there will be thousands of these cars in Americans' hands, and once people have them, it's game over," said Paul Scott of the advocacy group Plug In America. "The Leaf's low price means the adoption rate of this technology is going to be dramatically faster than we had ever hoped." Some automakers rolled out limited editions of electric vehicles in the 1990s, only to scrap the models a few years later, in part because of a shortage of public charging stations. But many feel the electric car's time has arrived. Charging stations are being built, consumer interest has grown, the technology has advanced Advertisement and Nissan is putting marketing oomph behind the Leaf's rollout. The vehicle's national tour included a stop at San Jose's Santana Row in December, and slick television ads featuring the car ran throughout the Winter Olympics. Kirsten Flynn of Palo Alto drives a 1991 Volvo station wagon and is determined to make her next car an electric one. She has three teenagers and is thrilled the Leaf seats five. "For a long time, electric vehicles have been like vaporware," said Flynn, an interior designer. "But this is like a normal car that I can fit my family in. It's hard to believe it's actually happening." Alex Tang, who plans to reserve a Leaf Tuesday, said he's motivated partly by guilt. "Every time I drive a gasoline-powered car I feel guilty about the environmental impact," said Tang, 38. "I want the Leaf to succeed. During the Olympics I was like 'Wow! An actual advertisement for an EV on television!' " Tang, a software engineer, says there's a lot of "FUD" — fear, uncertainty and doubt — about EVs. A top concern is "range anxiety" because electric vehicles can travel a limited number of miles before needing to be recharged. The Leaf has a range of 100 miles. "There's this idea that you are going to get stranded in the desert, but you as a consumer just need to deal with the boundaries," Tang said. Many analysts say the limitations of electric vehicles mean the Leaf will largely appeal to two-car households who will use the electric car for short commutes and errands around town. "We as a society embrace cars because they have the ability to go from here to anywhere at a moment's notice," said Ed Kim of the consulting firm AutoPacific. "Limited range, and needing several hours to charge a vehicle, is not going to work for a lot of people." The Leaf is just the first of several all-electric and plug-in hybrid vehicles about to come on the market. Others include the Fisker Karma, the Aptera 2e, the Coda sedan, Chevy's Volt and Tesla's Model S. The only all-electric "highway-capable" vehicle available today is the $109,000 Tesla Roadster. The Leaf's suggested retail price of $32,780 drops to $25,280 after a $7,500 federal income tax credit. California offers a $5,000 rebate through the state Air Resources Board, which reduces the price to $20,280. More than 112,000 people have registered on Nissan's website to receive updates about the Leaf. Tuesday, they will receive a secure e-mail with a link to make a reservation, for a $99 refundable fee. The reservation ensures consumers a place in line when the Japanese automaker begins taking firm orders in August. Initially, the Leaf will be sold in California and four other states: Arizona, Tennessee, Oregon and Washington. The five states are part of the Department of Energy-funded EV Project, which hopes to glean how electric vehicles perform in different climates. Consumers who buy or lease a Nissan Leaf will need to purchase a "charging dock" for their home at an additional cost of $2,200. But that also qualifies for a 50 percent tax credit, dropping the cost to $1,100. "Instead of going to the gas station, you go home every night and you charge your car," said Trisha Jung, director of electric vehicle marketing for Nissan North America. "It's like charging your cell phone." Contact Dana Hull at 408-920-2706. Follow her on Twitter at Twitter.com/danahull Rollout of the Nissan Leaf Nissan will open reservations Tuesday, starting with people who have already signed up on NissanUSA.com. Consumers will be required to pay a $99 refundable reservation fee. Rollout to select markets, including California, begins in December. California buyers will be eligible for a $7,500 federal tax credit and a $5,000 state rebate.