Electric Cars Arrive in Detroit

A new age for America's car industry dawned in the Motor City when the first customer in Detroit took possession of their Chevy Volt electric car. In many ways, Detroit has pinned much of its hope for the future on the success of electric cars. The Volt will be built locally at General Motors's Detroit-Hamtramck plant. The upcoming electric version of the Ford Focus will be built at Ford's Michigan Assembly Plant in Wayne, Michigan.

Beyond the obvious advantages - lower fuel costs, reducing America's reliance on fossil fuels, less of an impact on the environment - here are some important things to know about owning and driving an electric car in the Detroit area.

Charging stations

Electric car charging stations are starting to appear around the Detroit area. Many of these are free and open to the public.

DTE Energy has a charging station open 24 hours at its headquarters in downtown Detroit.

The GM Renaissance Center has a charging station for electric cars on the third level of the Miller parking garage.

In Dearborn, an electric car charging station was installed at the Dearborn Town Center based on Ford's commitment to electric cars.

"Dearborn is committed to green initiatives," says Mayor Jack O'Reilly. "We just absolutely redesigned it after hearing (Ford Chairman) Alan Mulally make that comment. That was just a commitment to say, 'Well, if that's where Ford's going, that's where Dearborn's going.'"

In the Detroit suburbs of Warren and Allen Park, charging stations have been installed at the Meijer stores, part of a growing trend of retail locations preparing for customers with electric cars.

"This is a very exciting step for Meijer as we continue to look for ways to expand our sustainability initiatives," says Julie Croll, senior vice president of properties. "Whether we are providing our customers with reusable bags, placing rooftop wind turbines on stores or offering charging stations for the electric vehicles, we are committed to searching for innovative ways to be green."

Federal tax credit

Buyers of the Nissan Leaf or other lesser-known all-electric cars qualify for a $7,500 income tax credit from the federal government. Unlike deductions, a tax credit is a direct reduction in the amount of taxes you owe.

In his 2011 State of the Union speech, President Obama outlined broad measures to support the development and sales of electric cars.

Following up on that, Michigan Senator Debbie Stabenow introduced legislation to make the $7,500 tax credit available at the car dealer - similar to the system put in place for the federal "Cash for Clunkers" program.

"Michigan is already a leader in emerging high-tech battery and electric car production," says Stabenow. "Other countries are acting to develop their own advanced vehicle markets because they realize the tremendous economic potential this new technology represents.These initiatives will allow Michigan innovators to continue to out-compete the world and create new jobs here."

Emissions testing

Because all-electric cars like the Nissan leaf and the Tesla sports cars are zero emissions vehicles (ZEVs), they are exempt from Michigan's emissions testing program.