Like a rock from a slingshot, the MINI E electric car shoots up the onramp and into the traffic flow. Press the accelerator (don’t call it the gas) and the 150 KW motor delivers its 204 horsepower in a burst.

You’ll hardly need the brakes. The regenerative braking system kicks in like the flaps on a landing 727. It’s like someone dropped the anchor or popped the ‘chutes. It takes some getting used to. Just lift your right foot as you approach a red light and cruise to a stop.

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The storage capacity of current generation lithium ion batteries remains a bottleneck for the widespread adoption of electric cars due to a perceived limited driving range. Although we could argue whether a 100-130 mile range really is that much of a limitation or not, perhaps the better solution is to be able to ignore that argument altogether by increasing battery capacity.

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Enertech is one of just a handful of companies that specializes in producing large format flat (or “prismatic”) cells, which Ener1 believes offer significant performance and manufacturing advantages over more common cylindrical designs. Enertech operates a 200,000-square-foot plant outside Seoul, South Korea capable of producing cells for 15,000 electric vehicle battery packs per year.

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What I learned from this transaction, is that the process of buying a used car is changing with the infusion of hybrid-electric vehicles (HEV) into the marketplace. Let me explain.

Oh, the building in the background? I have a link at the end of the article.

As you know, we’re older. (Well, I’m much older, Sally’s just older.) We have limited income and some physical considerations, so we had to settle for something less than I would like from the standpoint of our carbon footprint. Purchasing a used HEV was out of the question, as much as I would like to have one, but I’ll cover that later.

I did all the “guy” things, you know, kick the tires, check the engine, look at fluid levels and general physical condition. Sally did her part. She looked it over inside and out, got in the passenger seat for the test ride and exclaimed, “I like it, let’s buy it,” and we did.

Later, I got to thinking, what used car will you buy in the next few years? This will undoubtedly be my last car purchase, and it was done in the traditional manner with all the traditional considerations as outlined above. You, on the other hand, may have to think about more than the tires, drive train, engine, brakes and the like.

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I once again present the JetPack Rating System™, my weekly effort to help humanity cope with its collective disappointment over the broken promise of personal jetpacks, the Sean Connery-era James Bond standard of cool.

To recap, the JetPack Rating System™ is used to not only begin the healing process, but also for rating automobiles and buildings by a duel criteria:

1. How environmentally-friendly are they?
2. What would James Bond think of them?

Today, we JetPack™ the Volkswagen Chameleon.

Yahoo Autos Sez:

On the outside, the Volkswagen Chameleon Microbus looks like it rolled right out of the set of a 1960s surfer movie. But times have changed in the world of energy and technology. Volkswagen retrofitted the 1964 Deluxe Microbus for a new generation by installing an all-electric drive powered by lithium polymer batteries. Ten 30-volt batteries under the van’s floor provide a range of about 100 miles. A recharge takes about 6 hours. Surfboards mounted on the roof are lined with flexible solar panels that provide an additional source of energy. The vehicle needs all the energy it can find to power an arsenal of interactive digital cabin features, including imbedded touch-pads and speech activated controls. Don’t expect to ever see this vehicle on the road. Volkswagen is using the Chameleon strictly as a marketing tool to showcase a movie-fantasy future of automotive electronics. - Yahoo Autos

The JetPack Rating System™ sez:

Another green concept car that will never actually see the light of day. Usually this would irk James. Under normal circumstances he would be inclined to fly his jetpack to the corporate offices of Volkswagen where he would deliver well-placed karate chops to the men, and refuse to wine and dine the ladies, teaching them all a valuable lesson.

Ah, but this is different.

The 1964 design is in line with the old-school appeal of the 007 Jet Pack, yet while the rest of the world sees surf, sand and sunshine, James sees a giant bong on wheels. Not a fan of hippies. Volkswagen is actually doing society a great service by making sure that the Chameleon never sees the light of day. This vehicle has the sad smell of broken laws and free love…

Wait a minute. Did someone say free love?

Perhaps James is having a change of heart. The multi-tasking options are worth considering. The VW micro bus provides enough privacy for Bond to chase the bad guys and discreetly be attentive to the ladies. Our secret agent has been faced with a dilemma:

The hippies?

The ladies?

The hippies?

The ladies?

….the ladies win out. James ♥’s the Volkswagen Chameleon

JetPack Rating? 4 JetPacks (out of a possible 5)