Eco friendly - Rocklin

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6/5/08 | 143=20 views |

Eco friendly

Electric vehicles now available = in Rocklin=20

By Toby Lewis, The Placer Herald =

With gasoline prices continuing to hit record = highs, the=20 possibility of electric vehicles sharing the roads of = Rocklin=20 is no longer in the distant future.

Miki DeZorzi, a Rocklin entrepreneur and mother of = two,=20 unveiled the Zap Xebra at the grand opening of her new = business, Electric Car Living, in Rocklin last week. =

The Xebra (pronounced =E2=80=9Czebra=E2=80=9D) is a = three-wheeled electric=20 vehicle that can travel on city streets at speeds up = to 40 MPH=20 and is designed to be a gas-free alternative for city = driving.=20

Rocklin City Councilmember Kathy Lund attended the = event=20 and said she was very excited to see a business like = this in=20 the city.

=E2=80=9CI think pretty soon she will be over there = on Granite=20 Drive with the other car dealers,=E2=80=9D Lund said. = =E2=80=9CWe want to be=20 an environmentally friendly city and I think that = giving=20 people options is a good way to do it.=E2=80=9D

For now, Electric Car Living is located on Five = Star=20 Boulevard in Rocklin and features the Xebra four-door = sedan=20 and pickup truck, which normally retail for around = $12,500.=20

=E2=80=9CMiki is doing a special because she is a = new dealership=20 and she wants to encourage as many people to come in = and get=20 in electric vehicles as soon as possible,=E2=80=9D = said Zap=20 representative Dave Fields.

DeZorzi said she is retailing the Xebra for an = out-the-door=20 cost of less than $11,000.

Last year, the Rocklin City Council passed a = resolution to=20 make city streets more accommodating for Neighborhood = Electric=20 Vehicles (NEVs) which can only travel at speeds no = greater=20 than 25 MPH.

=E2=80=9CThe unique thing about these electric cars = is that they go=20 40 miles per hour,=E2=80=9D DeZorzi said. =E2=80=9CA = lot of the NEVs and=20 low-speed vehicles come ala cart, where as for a = pretty=20 reasonable price you get everything. I think a lot of=20 businesses that do local deliveries are going to catch = on to=20 this.=E2=80=9D

DeZorzi said she gave up a career in corporate = marketing=20 because she wanted to be able to spend more time at = home with=20 her children.

After spending some time in a declining real estate = market=20 and still wanting to make ends meet, she decided to = begin the=20 current enterprise after purchasing Golf Carts of = Lincoln last=20 year.

=E2=80=9CWe are starting to become more = environmentally conscious=20 as a family,=E2=80=9D said DeZorzi=E2=80=99s husband = Chris. =E2=80=9CI think that was=20 a big part of the decision to move away from just golf = carts=20 to something a little bigger.=E2=80=9D

Both the Zap sedan and pickup feature manual = windows as=20 well as a CD player and electric heater. The pickup = truck also=20 boasts leather seats.

The pickup truck is made from a steel frame while = the sedan=20 is made of fiberglass, Fields said.

Both vehicles require only a motorcycle license = since they=20 only have three wheels, DeZorzi said.

=E2=80=9CYour insurance is lower than a car and you = can go on any=20 city road that you can keep up with traffic,=E2=80=9D = she said. =E2=80=9CIt=E2=80=99s=20 the safest motorcycle you will ever ride in.=E2=80=9D =

For more information about Zap electric vehicles, = visit=20 www.zapworld.com.

For more information about Electric Car Living in = Rocklin,=20 visit www.electriccarliving.com or call 645-1250.

Toby=20 Lewis/The Placer Herald

Miki DeZorzi = stands next=20 to one of the Zap Xebra electric vehicles = which=20 can travel at city speeds up to 40=20 MPH.

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