FRIEND WHO LIVES IN PALO ALTO

recently remarked that while he is

looking for a new car, he doesn't want a

Tesla (which are the wheels of choice in

his rarefied California neighbourhood).

“I’m open to buying an electric, but I am waiting for a

sports car that gets me excited. I don't want a Tesla. Too

pedestrian." Ouch. Elon Musk might be thrilled to learn

his cars are so mainstream now that someone has called

them pedestrian. This guy is one of those Silicon Valley

types who can buy whatever car he wants, so this got me

thinking about what exciting new electric wheels are in

the pipeline at the OEMs. Here are a few new models

I think could make waves on Vancouver’s rainy roads.

BMW I8

Popping open the scissor doors on an i8 never gets old, trust me.

It's almost as fun as driving one. The current model is a gas-elec-

tric hybrid, but BMW has a prototype powered by a fuel cell. This

version would have the kind of range that is only limited by where

you can fill up the fuel tank. In Vancouver, hydrogen is available at

the Shell station on Granville Street at Marine Drive. More fuelling

stations will be on-line in the next year with the second opening in

Burnaby, near BCIT.

STORY | LISA MACFARLANE

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PICTURED: BMW I8 ROADSTER HYBRID WILFRIED WULFF