By By TRICIA PETERS / Niles Daily Star
NILES – Have you seen a yellow vehicle driving around town lately and wondered what on earth it is?
That would be Art Schmaltz of Niles in his electric one-person car.
On July 23, after waiting more than two months for it to be delivered, his purchase arrived.
The one-person vehicle is called the NmG. It stands for, you guessed it, 'no more gas,' and can travel up to 70 miles per hour and operates entirely on a 156-volt DC electric motor. No need for gas, just plug it in for four to five hours and it gets 30 miles per charge.
After seeing it in a magazine, Schmaltz needed little convincing to buy one. "No gas? That looks pretty good, so I called up the dealer and said, 'I want to order one of those yellow ones.'"
Actually classified as a motorcycle, the NmG can accelerate from 0 to 30 miles per hour in 3.5 seconds and 0 to 60 miles per hour in 12.5 seconds. In fact, Schmaltz still has a tire mark on his driveway from when he was getting used to handling his new vehicle.
"It handles so good, it just takes off," he said.
The NmG operates with zero emissions and uses less than half the energy of today's most efficient hybrid vehicles. There is storage room behind the driver's seat that will fit a full grocery cart of bags. It even has a radio/CD player and comes in 14 different colors.
Schmaltz purchased the vehicle from Myers Motors in Tallmadge, Ohio, for a cost of approximately $25,000. It may seem expensive, but when averaging out the cost to fill up the gas tank these days, it may pay for itself very quickly.
Of course, there are obvious disadvantages as well. It would be impractical to take on long trips because it would require recharging every 30 miles. Second, driving in snow would prove very challenging if not impossible. Finding someone to do any necessary repairs could also be a problem. According to Schmaltz, Myers Motors will be letting him know where he can take it locally in the event it needs service.
Schmaltz says that he has been getting a lot of attention when he takes it for a spin. "People smile, wave, honk, ask tons of questions. I've probably had six or eight different people even take pictures of it." Schmaltz loves the interest people are taking in his car, but he loves not paying $3 for a gallon of gas even more.