Think Norwegian electric car breaking away from Ford
In 1999 Ford Motor Company bought Pivco Industries, the parent company of the Think electric car, Think City. Several years later in 2003 Ford sold the company as demand in the US for electric cars was soft and it was not able to turn a profit. Fast forward to 2008 and Think is still around in Norway where it is releasing an updated version of it's old car the Think City.
This tiny car can be fully charged in just 12 hours and has a max speed of 68 with a range of ~100 miles. The new Think City has been crash tested in Europe and seats two comfortably with the option of two kids seats in the far back (which basically eliminates the trunk). With a price tag of about $30K it's an interesting deal and fits somewhere between the Mercedes Smart Cars (that run on Gas) and other more robust and expensive EV's such as the Tesla Roadster.
Also new to this model of the Think City are Lithium Ion batteries which boost the driving range significantly. The batteries are being supplied by A123 and EnerDel which are divisions of Ener1, an American company. Batteries are still a deciding factor for electric cars trying for high volume at middle class buyers who demand range and low price. the Think City car battery is 26-kilowatt-hour and accounts for one half the price of the whole car!
Norway will be the first to receive this new EV as it offers no compelling incentives and an eager consumer base. In Norway there will be no sales tax, road tax, freeway toll, parking fee on public streets, and the car will be allowed to drive in bus and taxi lanes (the equivalent of US HOV carpool lane incentives). With a production capacity limited to 10K per year Think will be holding off on the rest of Europe and exploring the US market until the first half of next year although there is a Menlo Park based headquarters for the company currently in the United States. US investors include GE General Electric, Rockport Capital, and Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers (which was an early investor in PayPal, Google, and other successful Silicon Valley companies). Menlo park is located just North of Palo Alto where Tesla Motor's headquarters are.
This tiny car can be fully charged in just 12 hours and has a max speed of 68 with a range of ~100 miles. The new Think City has been crash tested in Europe and seats two comfortably with the option of two kids seats in the far back (which basically eliminates the trunk). With a price tag of about $30K it's an interesting deal and fits somewhere between the Mercedes Smart Cars (that run on Gas) and other more robust and expensive EV's such as the Tesla Roadster.
Also new to this model of the Think City are Lithium Ion batteries which boost the driving range significantly. The batteries are being supplied by A123 and EnerDel which are divisions of Ener1, an American company. Batteries are still a deciding factor for electric cars trying for high volume at middle class buyers who demand range and low price. the Think City car battery is 26-kilowatt-hour and accounts for one half the price of the whole car!
Norway will be the first to receive this new EV as it offers no compelling incentives and an eager consumer base. In Norway there will be no sales tax, road tax, freeway toll, parking fee on public streets, and the car will be allowed to drive in bus and taxi lanes (the equivalent of US HOV carpool lane incentives). With a production capacity limited to 10K per year Think will be holding off on the rest of Europe and exploring the US market until the first half of next year although there is a Menlo Park based headquarters for the company currently in the United States. US investors include GE General Electric, Rockport Capital, and Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers (which was an early investor in PayPal, Google, and other successful Silicon Valley companies). Menlo park is located just North of Palo Alto where Tesla Motor's headquarters are.
AAA Greenlight Initiative
Triple A auto insurance is promoting green transportation through it's new Greenlight Initiative program which provides information on alternative fuels and sustainable transportation. You can see a list of upcoming events in your area related to electric vehicles and hybrids by visiting the website www.aaa.com/greenlight and entering your zip code. Currently the Northern California AAA Greenlight events page is promoting the upcoming San Francisco International Auto show and Triple A is offering a 2 for 1 discount to its members.We found out about the AAA Greenlight Initiative a week ago when we saw a Toyota Prius (not quite an EV)...Headlines:
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