The AP reports, "Chrysler LLC said Tuesday it will put an electric car on sale in North America in 2010, revealing that despite missing out on the buzz surrounding the Chevrolet Volt, it is neck and neck with General Motors Corp. in the race to put a mass-produced electric vehicle on America's roads."
The company showed four prototypes of electric cars to the media yesterday. One, known as "the peapod," was a golf-cart like niche vehicle with a top speed of only 25 miles per hour meant primarily for use in retirement communities. Three, however, could see production as daily drivers.
They include the Dodge EV, a completely electric sports car based on the Lotus Europa, and a pair of Extended-Range Electric Vehicles -- a Jeep EV based on the Wrangler SUV and a Chrysler EV based on the Town and Country minivan.
According to Autoblog, the Dodge EV "uses a 200kW or 268 equivalent horsepower electric motor mated to an 'advanced lithium-ion battery pack and an integrated power control module.' Peak torque is 480 lb-ft," which gives the car a zero-to-sixty time of "less than five seconds and a 120 mph top speed. Its range is pegged at between 150 to 200 miles with recharge times of 8 hours for 110-volt outlets and four hours using a 220-volt."
The others are not pure-electric cars. The AP notes that, much like the Volt, "the Wrangler and minivan plug into a standard wall outlet and can go 40 miles (65 kilometers) on battery power alone, but then a small gasoline engine kicks in to recharge the batteries. Chrysler said its vehicles will be able to travel up to 400 miles (640 kilometers) on 8 gallons (30 liters) of gas."
From an engineering perspective, both are surprising choices for conversion to electric power.
Chevrolet engineers have repeatedly stressed the importance of aerodynamics in making the Volt efficient. The Jeep Wrangler, however, has the aerodynamic profile of a stack of bricks. Jalopnik reports that the Jeep EV "holds a massive 27 kWh" of electricity, compared to 16 for the Volt, to help overcome this problem. Its electric motor produces the equivalent of 268 horsepower with 295 lb-ft of torque. Theoretically, it could make a very useful off-road vehicle. "The knee-jerk reaction to an electrically motivated Jeep might be to recoil in horror at the thought, but think about it for a second - maximum torque at zero RPM, a power source unaffected by orientation, and no engine noise to get in the way of your spotter's directions."
The Chrysler EV minivan is an unusual choice for weight reasons. The Volt may be small enough to be classified as a compact car, and Chevy engineers have worked hard to ensure that it is light, in order to maximize its efficiency. Chrysler hasn't revealed the weight of the electric minivan, but we anticipate it to be even heavier than a gasoline-powered minivan, given the weight of its batteries.
Jalopnik explains, "It's mainly the batteries that make the difference" between the Volt and Chrysler's minivan. "In the figures Chrysler published to go along with the Chrysler EV, the hybridized minivan is equipped with a 22 kWh lithium-ion battery which operates at 200 kW and up to 410 volts -- considerably larger than the electric fuel tank in the Volt. The big battery gets it to the 40-mile range, but the exciting part is the electric motor. Clocking in at 268 HP with a whopping 480 lb-ft of torque, the minivan will hustle to sixty in a silly 8.7 seconds."
Despite the sex appeal of the Dodge and the rock-crawling potential of the Jeep, it's the minivan we're betting will see production first. Families are accustomed to paying a premium for minivans these days -- their prices routinely rival those of luxury cars. And a family hauler that could travel through most days without using any gas, output zero emissions, and accelerate like a much smaller sedan sounds like something many would be willing to buy.
Kicking Tires notes, "Families who own minivans most likely have a garage and could plug a car's power cord into an outlet at night, and they're likely to drive fewer than 40 miles a day."
Before yesterday, Chrysler appeared to be behind GM in the green car race. Today, it appears they may have simply out-thought their cross-town rival.
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