Electric cars: Drum solo for Coda

Tis the season of the electric car.

On the radio, I hear commercials for the Chevy Volt: "At a car dealer near you soon." The Nissan Leaf won best in class for mileage from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. And now the latest: Coda inks deal with Hertz.

Coda still reminds me of the last Zep album and that ripping John Bonham solo, Bonzo's Montreau. But I digress. I must adapt my thinking.

Executives of Santa Monica, Calif.-based Coda are pumped by their news.

"The 100 percent electric CODA was designed to meet the needs of most Americans with dependable, all-season range, and fast, convenient charging," said Mark Jamieson, CFO & COO of Coda Automotive, in a statement. "With one of the world's largest rental car fleets, Hertz is uniquely positioned to catalyze the adoption of all-electric vehicles and infrastructure supporting electric mobility."

That means a big boost for the electric car company that has yet to hit the market with its flagship sedan. If Hertz is cool with the car, others likely will be too.

Many people are like me. Rent a car, enjoy the experience, then buy one.

Coda officials said their sedan hits the market sometime next year. No specific date was given. Here's what they said about it: "The Coda is designed to meet the day-to-day needs of most Americans, featuring space for five passengers, a full-size trunk and a dependable 90-120 miles of range during any season."

They also said the sedan's battery system has "at least 40 percent more usable energy than any all-electric sedan on the market in 2011."

Take that Leaf. Actually, the Leaf offers about the same performance. It goes on sale in California next month.

And neither will make anything like the sound my well-carburated 1974 Bug makes, especially burning the tires on a rainy day.

And this is the best read post on this blog. Amazing. Wonder if it has to do with the Coda reference that has nothing to do with electric cars and everything to do with "The Song Remains the Same."