SmartWheels, Inc. in Denver: Saving the planet and saving lives

I'm talking with Stu MacPhail, one of the owners of SmartWheels, Inc. (that's him with the white hair, along with his partner and son-in-law, Gino) an electric car dealership in Denver, Colorado.

Me: Your address is on the directory, but where is your dealership located?

Stu: We're located just 2 miles south of the Denver Central Business District (and the State Capitol), on Broadway, the main street that divides east and west Denver.

Me: Is there parking nearby?

Stu: We have customer parking on our lot, so you can just drive in and park. When you go for a test drive, you'll pull right out on the main street in front of our dealership and on through to the neighborhood streets.

Me: What brands of electric cars do you sell?

While the Kurrent vehicles are considered "cute" by many of the people who stop by our lot, or see them at the many environmental expos where we show our vehicles, it's the Zenn and the E-Ride that are generally considered the most "solid" and well-built electric vehicles we offer.

Me: I see you carry the NEVs (neighborhood electric vehicles) rather than the faster, three-wheeled type electric "motorcycle"-type car.

Stu: Yes, that's right, and there's a reason for that.

Like all electric cars, these NEVs are clean economical transportation.

But there's another benefit to NEVs, which almost everybody likes to complain about:

They're limited to 25 mph, and the range is less than 50 miles.


We see this as a great asset, not a defect: kids should be driving these as a first vehicle! That way, they could drive to school, to football games and activities, to the mall - but it would keep them off the freeway.

In fact, here at Smartwheels, we think states should change how young people are licensed to drive. It makes no sense for a young person's first driver's license to put them behind the wheel of an 8-cylinder power machine on the highway. The first year or so of a young person's driving experience should be in a low speed vehicle like an NEV.

We'd like to see parents choosing low speed vehicles for their teenagers who are new to driving, and we'd like to see state legislatures back that up with a law that requires it. Had that been the case here in Colorado, my 16-year-old grandson may still be alive. He died in a car wreck just a couple weeks after he got his driver's license.

Me: I'm sorry for your family's loss, and applaud your efforts to spare other families the same grief. I thought the same thing when I discovered NEVs - these would be great for teenaged drivers and retirees.

When did you open up for business?

My partner/son-in-law, Gino, has 22 years experience in the automotive business here in Denver, progressing from salesman to sales manager to general manager of a large Dodge dealership. I am a former Vespa motor scooter dealer. My wife and I have also owned and operated several other businesses.

I came out of six years of retirement to join Gino when he expressed a desire to start an "alternative energy" car business. We did a lot of research and decided that 100% electric vehicles were the logical near-future alternative to gas-burners we were looking for: they're low maintenance, efficient, and you can plug them in anywhere.

He and I visited other EV dealers to learn more about the electric car business. That's where we had our first chance to drive a variety of NEVs. We've loved them ever since.

Of course, we knew we'd need to carry conventional used cars along with electric cars to sustain us while we got our new business started, but it is our aim to focus most on EVs, and build SmartWheels into Colorado's Electric Transportation Center.

Me: We'll just think of them as "donor vehicles" for the conversion crowd.

Services SmartWheels can offer

Stu: Yes! We have our own truck and trailer, so we're happy to deliver any of our electric vehicles anywhere in Colorado. Metro Denver delivery is free, and delivery cost to outer areas is minimal.

Me: What if the NEV I buy from you happens to break down some time later?

Stu: We're always happy to help. If needed, our truck and trailer can be used to pick up a stranded EV. We're just a phone call away! When repairs are needed, we have an electric vehicle specialist under contract to handle those harder-to-diagnose problems.

Me: Anything else you'd like to add before we close?

Stu: Two things. One, I believe we humans have an obligation to our environment and to the way we used our natural resources. I have seven grandkids, and I want to leave our community and planet to them in a condition better than I found it.

Two, I have discovered that use of an electric car has drastically cut my transportation costs. As a Scotsman, I always love to save money!

Come and meet Granddad Stu and the SmartWheels family at their dealership in Denver, Colorado:

SmartWheels,Inc.
1395 S. Broadway
Denver, CO 80210

Call them at 303-282-6594
...or visit their website at www.mysmartwheels.com.

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