I did a quick test of how long it takes the Electro-Metro to go from zero to 30 mph in 2nd, 3rd, and 4th gears.
This was me taking off from a dead stop onto the main road in front of my house. It's actually just a tad uphill from the stop, the the first section of the main road is pretty level.
In second gear, it took 17 seconds to get to 30 mph. It had real good acceleration from 0 to 25 but was slow to get from 25 to 30. That's exactly where I normally would have shifted in a gas car.
In third gear, it took about 13 seconds to go from zero to 30. Easy to pull away from a dead stop, and the motor wasn't over-revving at 35.
Fourth gear was also about 13 seconds, but takeoff was real slow and pulled lots of amps, once it got going, it got going fast.
This car really likes third gear. I can put it in third. Pull away from a stop and have smooth speed up to a little past 35 mph. After that, I shift to fourth.
To upshift, I need to pull the stick to neutral, and then wait a few seconds, THEN put it in the next highest gear.
Downshifting is difficult without a clutch.
The camcorder rode shotgun with me, so expect a YouTube video soon.
EDIT: Here it is!
I also just calculated last night's "fuel economy". It cam to just under 119 MPGe. Guess that's may penalty for running the batteries all the way down!!!
PS: Note the product placement T-shirt!