Jay Leno talks electric cars, drives off in a Chevrolet Volt
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Who was the bigger star at Rydell Chevrolet in Northridge on Friday night: The new crop of recently delivered plug-in hybrid electric Chevrolet Volts or auto enthusiast Jay Leno, who was there to pick one up?
Hard to say. The Volts and their competitors -– the all-electric Nissan Leafs -– have been basking in attention this month as they roll out to dealerships.
“The [Toyota] Prius got a jump-start on everybody, but that’s now old technology,” Leno said in video shot by Chevrolet at Rydell. “This is the new technology.”
The television host was waiting to pick up a cyber-gray Volt, which he said would be more useful for long hauls to Las Vegas or Santa Barbara.
Fully electric vehicles such as the Leaf are “OK,” he said, but will only “take you half to where you want to go. Gas will take you the rest of the way.”
Another plus for Leno: The Volt is being manufactured in Detroit.
“It’s American,” Leno said. “I like American technology.”
Leno also owns a 1909 Baker Electric vehicle -– zero emissions and all. He talks about it in the video below.
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-- Tiffany Hsu
