chance to see these cars on our roads!
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AUBURN HILLS, Mich. - In a surprise move here this morning amid struggling
sales numbers from its dealers and fuel-efficient buzz from competitors,
Chrysler announced that it's charging into the electric vehicle market a lot
sooner than expected. The automaker just unveiled a trio of battery-powered
vehicles-including an all-electric, 200-mile-range Dodge sports car that we
revved up near its 120-mph top speed on the test track and think could give
the Tesla Roadster a run for its money-and plans to bring one of them to
market by 2010, aligning Chrysler with the timetable for General Motors'
Chevy Volt.
Chrysler officials, who reinforced their case for an entirely hybrid fleet
at least partially powered by batteries, said at a news conference on
Tuesday that they're aiming to sell all three cars-extended-range plug-in
versions of a Jeep Wrangler and Chrysler Town & Country were unveiled in
addition to the Dodge EV-within a decade. But how fast they reach
dealerships, CEO Bob Nardelli cautioned, may well depend on whether the
federal government comes through with a package of loan guarantees for
Detroit's Big Three.
"You're going to see the electrification of all vehicles" in the years
ahead, said Frank Klegon, Chrysler's executive vice president for product
development. That will range from full battery power to simpler systems,
like Stop/Start, which temporarily shuts off an engine at a stoplight.
Indeed, Klegon forecasts that "at least 50 percent of the market" will
consists of pure EVs or extended-range electric vehicles (EREVs) by around
2020.
The former category very well could include the Dodge EV. If the look is
familiar, that's because the body and platform are borrowed from the Lotus
Europa sportscar (not the Lotus Elise, as you might first imagine). There
have been minor modifications made to squeeze in a 200-kilowatt motor and a
lithium-ion battery pack that, in production, would yield somewhere between
150 and 200 miles on a charge. Doug Quigley, engineering lead for Chrysler's
ENVI advanced powertrain division that is also working on three concepts we
saw at the Detroit auto show this year, said the rear-drive two-seater
should be able to launch from 0-to-60 in under 5 seconds. He wouldn't say
how much under, but the goal is to be faster than the Lotus with a target of
the mid-13-second range for the 1/4-mile run. And if our 20-minute test
drive on the 2-mile track here is any indication, that should be very
doable. The new EV handles like a charm, with sharp steering and some
serious giddyup-we could feel the 100-plus-mph beneath us while hearing nary
a thing.
The Jeep and Chrysler plug-ins, like the Volt, both fall into the
extended-range category to combine battery and gasoline power. And like GM,
Chrysler is aiming for a 40-mile range on electric charges alone, claiming
that both vehicles should be able to hit 400 miles with an 8- or 9-gal. tank
of gas. Chrysler modified its newest Jeep Wrangler for the white plug-in
truck unveiled here today-and that should mean the same off-road
capabilities. The minivan is a slightly upmodded version of the popular Town
& Country, with the underbody tubs-used to hide the Stow-and-Go seats in a
conventional Chrysler minivan-housing the large battery packs.
So which of the three new electric cars will come to market first? Chrysler
isn't saying-in part, President Tom LaSorda acknowledged, because the
company has yet to decide. There are serious questions to answer, including
what batteries the company will use-and who will supply them. The good news,
Klegon said, is that the number of potential battery vendors has "tripled"
in recent years. Coming up with reliable, high-power batteries is a clear
challenge, but there's also the issue of cost. Lithium-ion technology is
phenomenally expensive, but Chrysler, like its competitors, believes that in
high volume, costs should plunge.
Meanwhile, the automaker is launching a new joint venture with General
Electric (where Chrysler CEO Nardelli first rose to prominence) aimed at
developing even more advanced battery systems. One approach that the
partners plan to study would pair two different types of batteries, such as
lithium-ion and sodium-sulfur, to see if they can yield improved levels of
power and performance.
Admittedly short on cash and struggling with sales, Chrysler officials
recently have spent a lot of time in Washington, D.C., meeting with the
lawmakers who would have to approve a loan guarantee package that might
exceed $25 billion for Detroit. Nardelli said he was "very impressed" with
the feedback he has gotten, but stressed that without that assistance, there
will have to be some "very tough decisions" made about what Chrysler can
afford to fund.
Chrysler actually put a fourth product on display here, too: the buggy-size
"Peapod" Neighborhood Electric Vehicle (NEV) from the automaker's GEM
division. NEVs are, effectively, gussied-up electric golf carts; they have
found a small but comfortable niche in places like retirement villages and
college campuses. Newly renamed Green Eco-Mobility, GEM will launch the
25-mph Peapod and its 30-mile-range sometime next year, with more
eco-friendly rides to come from the division-and its parent company,
suddenly back in the game in a big way-in the new decade.
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