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No money for gas, no problem, just plug it in
Joan James' small electric car is completely street legal, just like the larger automobiles almost everyone else owns, and if you call it a golf cart, she'll set you straight in a heartbeat. Joan's little automobile, the Tomberlin Emerge, comes equipped with headlights, seat belts, tail and brake lights, a horn, four-wheel disc brakes and a speedometer. It cruises at a top speed of around 30 mph. Buster, Joan's husband, bought the little car for his wife to get her out of the house more. Due to diabetes she has trouble with her legs and had nearly become housebound. "I wanted her to be able to get out more like she used to," said Buster. "She used to be really active until her legs got worse." The Tomberlin Emerge is equipped with six eight-volt batteries, which convert the voltage to 12 volts for the lights and other electrical compo- nents to operate properly. It has a range of approximately 30 miles between charges. One feature of the small car Joan said she is pleased with is an automatic brake that engages if the vehicle picks up too much speed going downhill. "That way you don't have to worry about it going too fast and losing control," she said. For awhile, Joan had trouble getting stopped by the police, because people would complain about her being on the street. "I think they thought it was a golf cart, but it's not," she said. "It's a lot faster than a golf cart and it is street legal." She and her husband had the Jackson Police check it out and they determined it is indeed a street legal vehicle. It even is registered with the county and has a regular license plate. "The county had a little trouble finding out how to register it," said Buster. "I ended up having to call Montgomery a couple of times and they finally figured it out." Joan makes trips to do her shopping around town, to get her hair done and to choir practice at the First Baptist Church. "I don't drive it at night, although I could if I wanted to," she said. "I prefer to just drive it during the day." Because her miniature car only has a top speed of around 30 mph., Joan is very aware that some drivers may get upset when they get behind her. "The speed limits in town are around that, but so many drivers want to go faster," she said. "I am constantly watching my mirrors to see what the cars behind me are going to do--whether they are going to slow down or not." Joan added that she knows her car is just for town driving and would never attempt to take it out on the highway, but it has allowed her to get out and be more active. "It affords me some freedom that I felt I had lost," she said.
The best part is with today's gas prices between $2.60 and $3 a gallon, the James have cut the money they spend on fuel for their regular automobiles in half. "She doesn't use her regular car hardly at all when the weather's good," said Buster. "That's good for the pocketbook."
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