It’s becoming clear now that the car of the future will not be driven by hydrogen or other fancy fuels but will be powered by an extension cord and a laptop battery.

Plug-in hybrids will be charged with an ordinary household electric plug outlet and go upto 70 km after which you have the option of running on petrol or getting another charge.

In just another year General Motors will have the Chevrolet Volt rolling into showrooms and Toyota will launch a small fleet of plug-in Prius hybrids.

It is estimated that in about 10 years half of all vehicles will be hybrids – a final blow perhaps to the fossil-fuel based automobile system that’s had everyone by the throat for a century.