This is a great thread. I laughed.... I cried.... I mostly laughed though.

I think ALL the "plug-in" vehicles, Ford, Toyota, or otherwise are being done by private 3rd parties in co-operation with the auto companies and the buyers. SCE or whomever.

I have visited and donated a few dozen hours to a new start-up company doing Plug-in conversions.... I'm mostly there as a consultant for the Ford Escape Hybrid... and I will tell you, the plug-in is not a simple task to incorporate into an existing vehicle. If built from the assembly line up, it should be easier. And the lithium based cells are VERY expensive.... even at wholesale prices, even when you buy in bulk of 100,000 units at once.

But also keep in mind that plug-ins are not fossil fuel free vehicles.
They are simply a matter of convienience to the user, and shift the pollution and fossil fuel consumption to outside the city limits.

What we need is LOWER POWERED cars. NOT just just plug-ins with the same power. 100 Horsepower from the grid is really not a great improvement from getting 100 Horsepower from the pump. Once society accepts a 15 HP car, that will be progress. Cheers!
-John