LOS ANGELES, Calif. — Electric vehicles (EVs) have been around for at least two decades now, but not until recently was a luxury option available to discerning motorists. After all, who wouldn’t be wowed by the beauty of a fleet full of Teslas?
Motev, LLC is a luxury transportation company out to make a difference by using this technology while still appealing to luxury minded chauffeured vehicle riders. Robert Gaskill, CEO and cofounder, recently spoke with LCT to discuss how his business evolved and what it takes to craft a unique, environmentally conscious experience.
Curing Range Anxiety
When ditching the traditional fossil fuel powered car, it’s important to reassure clients they’ll still get from point A to point B (and even to point C and D) without any hiccups. With 11 all-electric vehicles, four Model S’ and seven Model X’s, it’s understandable prospective Motev clients may have their reservations because of range anxiety.
“We try to explain to them you have that same anxiety with regular fuel powered vehicles as well,” Gaskill says. “When your gas tank gets low, you go to a fueling station and you fill it up. Customers don’t and shouldn’t have to think about range when it comes to a professional driver with a professional transportation company.”
He also asks, how many times have you been in a vehicle where it’s driven for 10 hours straight? In the event a car’s power drifts into the last third of its range availability, the company has a plan to take care of it.
“Our chauffeurs are trained to call our dispatcher who will send out a fresh vehicle while a client is in a meeting,” Gaskill says. “They’ll switch the vehicle out, and the customer is never aware it has been changed. If the chauffeur is allowed to leave while the client is in a meeting, there are super chargers all over Los Angeles now. There are always breaks in the day and our chauffeurs are trained to take advantage of them.”
Never Skimp
When deciding how to start this unique transportation venture, Gaskill sat down with a major proponent of the private transportation industry, Motev investor, and actor Morgan Freeman in February 2016 to craft a business plan and do some investigating. They discovered some smaller owner operators who had one or two EVs in their fleet, but no one who started with 10 or more who really targeted this niche market. “Since there wasn’t anyone who really focused on just EVs, we figured we’d give it a shot,” Gaskill says.
Naturally, Tesla was the first OEM they considered. Gaskill, who likens the company to “the new Apple product on the market,” was pleased with the fact the vehicles made in America and that the company is starting to branch out into other environmentally conscious endeavors such as energy storage in the form of solar panels.
That being said, Gaskill would love to pursue other manufacturers if one were to come out with a product of similar standards. “We are certainly open to the prospect if there are other brands that can come in and compete at the luxury level,” he says. “We’d love to integrate some of those vehicles as well as long as they still meet the sustainable energy platform we are working with.”
Taking Safety Seriously
The company only hires chauffeurs who carry commercial driver’s licenses (CDL), and uses a thorough vetting process to ensure they employ the best. Those who make the cut also must go through a security training class. This allows them to get a federal live scan background check for an extra level of security. In addition, they are CPR and defibrillator trained, and wear tailored suits.
“With all of the technology built into Teslas, which are one of the safest cars on the road, we add a highly trained commercial driver behind the wheel and it makes it that much safer for the client,” Gaskill says.
Keep Going
In the future, Gaskill hopes to grow into the areas surrounding Los Angeles, then push out to San Diego and Northern California through affiliate work, and eventually branch out East starting with Las Vegas.
“As this push for more energy efficient vehicles really takes hold and more charging stations become readily available, I really do believe the public will start embracing this particular type of technology in transportation. The range anxiety will slowly start to dissipate as people accept the concept,” he says.
“Our clients still receive the high class chauffeuring experience, but we want to be the green footprint of the luxury transportation world.”
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