Electric cars with a range of 125, 155, and 250 miles have been announced by three Asian car makers. The longer ranges than previous models make them more practical and they should appeal to a larger market. They are also good news for The Energy Revolution as electric cars, to the extent that they are used, reduce the consumption of liquid transportation fuels, switching it to electrical energy, which does not rely on these fuels that are becoming in short supply.
Subaru plans a car, the R1e, to be released in Japan as early as 2009, with 125 mile range, using lithium-ion batteries, that can be recharged to 90% of capacity in 5 minutes.
Mitsubishi Motors has plans to release a mini-vehicle in 2008. The car, called the Mieve, has a 155 mile range, a 90 mph top speed, powered by lithium-ion batteries, will have a recharge time of 4 hours and be priced under $18,300. This appears to be a smaller car, with a earlier delivery date than the car I described in a previous post, although their quite a few similarities or they may have modified their plans.
Chinese battery maker Byd, worlds second largest manufacturer of rechargeable batteries for cell phones, bought out a Chinese automaker and claims it has developed an EV with a range of 250 miles on lithium-ion batteries, and a top speed of 75mph. It is building a 200,000 unit plant in western China and is planning to export world-wide.
These cars have enough range for most commuters and all use lithium-ion batteries, indicating that this battery is catching on and should be the standard for hybrids and electrics within five years. The quick charging Subaru makes it as easy as filling up for gas. Because all of these cars are quite small they may have a hard time in American markets, but who knows what $3.00 or higher gas prices will do to consumer tastes.
Resources:
"The Electric Car's Not Dead; Asian Companies Strive for Breakthrough", Edmunds/Inside Line, 8/19/05
"Subaru Joins Electric Car Race with R1e", treehugger, 8/21/05
"Mitsubishi, TEPCO To Team Up On Electric Car", Terra Daily, 8/18/05
"Battery firm bids for leading role in auto Industry", People's Daily Online, 2/4/04
Technocrati tag: electric vehicles
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