What began as changing oil at a local auto shop as a 15-year-old has transformed into a lifelong automotive career for Chip Geppi, owner of Hybrid and Electric Car Sales in Cool Springs. After 25 years of overseeing large corporate used car dealerships across the country, Geppi and his wife Denna are living out their dream of owning their own automotive store as they serve the middle Tennessee community.
“We are the only store in Nashville selling exclusively hybrid and electric cars,” Chip Geppi explains of the business he and his wife launched earlier this year. “We realized we could put together a store that sold used hybrid and electric cars that [also] provided education to the market out there,” says Geppi who takes pride in not being like a traditional dealership. “Because these cars are new technology, it’s kind of scary because it’s a big shift [and people] have lots of questions, so we wanted to establish a place where you could come and ask those questions and not feel like you’re being sold.”
Four Reasons Why Hybrid and Electric Vehicles are Good for the Environment
Batteries from Battery-Powered Vehicles are Recycled and Reused
“We rebuild batteries here, it’s one of our specialties,” says Geppi. “When you replace a battery in a hybrid, you’re not actually replacing it with a new battery, you’re replacing it with a remanufactured battery, [which uses] pieces of old batteries taken apart and reassembled to make a good one, so you’re actually throwing out less. What [many] people don’t know is that the battery in a car, only utilizes about 60% of it, so once it’s depleted out of the car and the car can't use it anymore, that battery still has life and other uses outside of just the car.” So rather than throw out the batteries, the Geppis recycle the batteries to other companies that will reuse them in other products, which not only reduces waste, but reduces the environmental impact of other companies making new products.
Less Fuel = Less Pollution
Since electric vehicles run solely off batteries and hybrid vehicles use less gasoline than traditional vehicles they have a much smaller impact on the environment.
Charging a Vehicle at Home Through a Power Grid Reduces Environmental Impact
“Since you’re charging at home also, your power bill is going to go up just a little bit, but you’re going to have less of an impact on the environment since you’re drawing that power through the normal grid,” explains Geppi. Rather than the necessary supply chain logistics of fuel trucks needing to transport gasoline to gas stations across the country, charging a vehicle at home off of a normal power grid reduces the environmental impact that gas stations require.
Maintaining Vehicles Extends Their Life and Reduces Waste
Hybrid and Electric Car Sales is one of the only stores in the Nashville area that services hybrid and electric cars, offering battery replacement and complex diagnostics. By servicing vehicles, Geppi and his team are extending the life of these vehicles and keeping them on the road longer so they aren’t going to scrapyards.
