Like most greentech junkies, I think the plug-in electric revolution is moving much too slowly. To feed the demand of the just-can't-wait crowd, there's a device coming onto the market this fall that will turn just about any car into a PHEV.

The Poulsen Hybrid system attaches two 7 HP electric motors to each of a vehicle's rear wheels, giving your rust bucket a boost that the company says can take over 70-85% of motoring duties.

Conceptually, the idea is that a car traveling at highway speeds requires only 10-15 HP to keep pace. The snap-on plug-in will handle the majority of that load, with the internal combuster piling on power for starts, hills, and acceleration.

At around $4200 (including $600 for installation), it will take quite a few fill-ups to offset the cost. Including the batteries, the setup weighs about 300 lbs, but unlike a similarly hefty friend, it won't leave Cheeto dust in the back seat. Acid-lead batteries are being used for the time being, but a lithium-ion model (100 lbs less and 2x total cost) is planned.

Poulsen claims it will have installable kits ready by this Fall, but initial conversions will happen at the company's Connecticut headquarters. Eventually, though, they intend for dealers around the country to serve as installation stations. Poulsen believes their kit can be installed by the owner in 3-4 hours, but advises against marketing it as DIY "until issues of product liability have been resolved."

Poulsen hopes to be a contender for the Automotive X-Prize too by achieving the contest's 100 MPG threshold and launching their company into stardom.

It's a little unfortunate that the add-on somewhat resembles automotive orthodontic headgear. Actually, that may be an appropriate analogy, given that the car of the future is very much in its pimply adolescence. Still, it couldn't be any more embarrassing than driving around in mom's station wagon could it?