Th!nk About It

Will the Th!nk City electric vehicle make splash in the US market in 2009? According to Automotive News...

The company plans to import the City from Norway, starting with a demonstration fleet of 50 vehicles aimed at utilities. Th!nk North America hopes to have the vehicles ready for sale to the public next year and said it plans to eventually manufacture vehicles here.

To sell the vehicles, Th!nk North America executives say they are considering options including setting up a dealer network and selling directly to customers.

Th!nk projects that the City will sell for less than $20,000, says Lane. " We want to be under the price of a Prius," he says.

Th!nk also may use a battery leasing program similar to one it uses in Europe. Under the program, the automaker owns and maintains the battery, and the customer pays a monthly fee for the battery along with electricity and insurance.

The City has a range of about 110 miles and a top speed of about 65 mph. The City uses sodium nickel chloride batteries that take two to three hours to charge after a day of driving or about eight hours to charge if fully depleted. The company has contracts with U.S. battery makers A123 Systems Inc., of Watertown, Mass., and EnerDel Inc., of Indianapolis, to develop lithium-ion batteries for the vehicle.

I think that lithium- ion batteries would be the killer app for this car. Given that A123 is already working with GM on lithium-ion technology for the Volt, the likelihood of the Th!nk seeing this technology is quite good.

Th!nk will launch U.S. business - AutoWeek Magazine