CalCars has the full text of three stories reporting on Malcolm Bricklin, "a wild card, a high-flyer and a crash-lander," who says he is now working on prototypes for a series PHEV that could cost $25-$30K.
According to the Washington Post, Bricklin, chairman and chief executive of Visionary Vehicles, is tenacious. Bricklin brought Subaru, the gull-winged Bricklin SV-1 and Yugo automobiles to North America from the late 1960s through the early 1980s. Some of his ventures, such as that with Subaru, were bona fide successes. Others, such as that with the Bricklin SV-1 and the ill-fated Yugo, were dismal failures.
According to Reuters the car would use technology similar to that proposed by GM in their Cheverlot Volt concept car, but with a smaller engine. He said a working proof of concept would be built in six months and that the cars would be in production by 2009.
USA Today quotes him as saying that he's in talks with 15 Chinese manufacturers about building the cars in China to take advantage of low wages and modern equipment. "Use the Chinese advantage to make it cheaper" he says, "instead of it being $3,000 more."
25 to 30k is still too expensive. 13 to 20k is more like it. That is possible with mass production.
But more power to his efforts anyway!! At least he has the right design. Can he get the capital? Who knows? Borrow it from Chinese manufactureres? But will that give them too much leverage like they are getting by financing these oil wars.
Very likely. I doubt that any investors in China, especially Walmart, will be able to resist takeover. When will chinese investors own over 50% of Walmart? Only a matter of time.
Then chinese serial hybrids will be for sale at that 13 to 20k price range. At Walmart.
Posted by: amazingdrx | January 14, 2007 at 01:38 PM
The latest on nLiFePO4 batteries for EV application:
http://www.technologyreview.com/Energy/18054/
Posted by: Beek | January 15, 2007 at 02:55 AM