Last year, we told you about an upcoming Dodge Concept that never made it past the production phase – 2008 Dodge Zeo. It was to be CDJ’s crowing achievement – combining a sports car with an all-electric layout…you know, that stuff Al Gore is always chatting about. As popular as alternative fuel/hybrid cars are nowadays, Dodge’s economic downturn left concepts like Zeo on the showroom floor.

But all hope may not be lost. Recently, 2008’s Zeo (Zero Emissions Operations) popped up at random car shows and press events. Chrysler Dodge Jeep has been working on new ad campaigns ever since their Fiat Merger. Could an electric car be in its Italian-made future? There’s no news on Zeo becoming a production car, at least until 2012 – so why has Dodge laid out a Zeo Microsite on their official web page?

It’s probably wishful thinking that Zeo, or a car like it, will see the light of day before 2020. We can all dream, right? I mean, look at these stats according to Dodge: Zeo is a “268 hp rear-drive motor,” sending driver/passengers from 0 to 60 in approximately 5.7 seconds. ZEO is powered by a 64 kilowatt lithium-ion batter pack. Think cell phone battery, only much, much, much larger. Price is something yet to be discussed, as ZEO is merely a case study for the moment. It has yet to be proven how a fully-electric vehicle would fare in the world of diesel and gas power (meaning mostly the United States).

It’s no surprise that any experimental vehicle, such as the Circuit EV, is on hold. Between Chrysler/Fiat and the financial troubles of car companies in America any and all chance taking has been forbidden. Some speculate that the Chrysler EV line was never meant for public transport or actual production – it may have all been a big marketing scheme to draw attention…or maybe get the government creditors off their backs.

Dodge’s EV Coupe is still a great idea and could be very profitable down the line. It’s a Tesla Motors-type electric sports car, capable of reaching zero-to-sixty in under five seconds and has a range of 150 to 200 miles, with a little help from the lithium-ion battery pack. It can (if this car is actually real) recharge from your average household electrical outlet, as long as you have 4 to 8 hours of no driving. But for now the EV is not in Dodge’s future – for the time being it’s all about staying afloat.

This wasp looking vehicle can maintain its energy flow on a full charge from anywhere between four to eight hours – on your basic household 110/220 current. You’d expect to see a HEMI under this Dodge hood, but it’s been exchanged for a lithium-ion battery pack. Dodge’s EV hits zero-to-sixty in under five seconds and has a range of 150 to 200 miles.

The Dodge ZEO Concept (ZEO: Zero Emissions Operations) captured stares and camera flashes of many American concept lovers at 2008’s Detroit Auto Show, and also raised questions such as “how fast,” “how much” and “where do you plug it in?”

Answering the first, according to Dodge, is a “268 hp rear-drive motor,” sending driver/passengers from 0 to 60 in approximately 5.7 seconds. ZEO is powered by a 64 kilowatt lithium-ion batter pack. Think cell phone battery, only much, much, much larger. Price is something yet to be discussed, as ZEO is merely a case study for the moment. It has yet to be proven how a fully-electric vehicle would fare in the world of diesel and gas power (meaning mostly the United States).

Outside, ZEO appears to be a 2-door coupe…and it sort of is, but is it really? Well…we’re not sure. But you have to admit those scissor doors are very Blade Runner. The vehicle itself stands roughly the same size as Honda’s current Civic coupe.

Inside, ZEO shows off her curves every chance she gets. Even the seats look like something straight out of a graduate school’s visual arts program. And is that a steering-mounted shifter? Dodge’s ZEO concept has the looks and can dish out the speed future car buyers are going to be on the hunt for. However, is the world truly prepared to cut their “addiction” to fossil fuels? At $4 a gallon, maybe…just be sure to budget your electric bill from now on.