Thanks to forerunners like Tesla, electric cars seem to have a cool new image they've never enjoyed before, and
Pininfarina is usually behind the scenes, but this time its name will be front and center. if all goes according to plan with Italian coachworks firm Pininfarina and French battery experts, Bollaré, a new even cooler player is about to enter the ring. The two have teamed up in a 50/50 joint venture collaboration, which will have Pininfarina designing, engineering and assembling the vehicles and Bollaré engineering and producing the powertrain and batteries. The vehicles will be known as a Pininfarina, although other than this has yet to be named. Although no images of the car are yet available, it should be in good taste; after all, it's being penned by one of the most famous and successful design houses in the world. Key details of the plan have been announced however, and state that the car will seat four occupants and will be fully automatic. Most importantly though, are the prospective specs. Pininfarina wants the car to be a replacement for a regular automobile, and not just a tiny city car or fancy exotic. This is where a decent range of 155 miles (in the city) will come into play, and an ability to sprint from a standstill to 35 mph in 4.9 seconds. It'll do well for itself on motorways as well, as it's been given a top speed of 80
No, it won't look like this one... mph. Thanks to Bollaré's Lithium Metal Polymer battery technology, the electric car should be fairly practical. Full charges will take in the neighborhood of five hours on a typical household outlet, while five minutes worth of charging time will equal 15 miles of distance, enough for small errands. Battery longevity is a matter that Bollaré has also worked on; new battery pack technology should allow the car to last upwards of 125,000 miles. Plans include production of 15,000 units per year, and sales across the globe including Western Europe, Japan and North America, making it a true international vehicle. Meanwhile, electrics experts Toshiba has just announced
It'll probably look more like this car... but larger. a new type of lithium-ion battery that's perfectly suited for use in electric cars. The Japanese giant, known particularly for their laptop computers, has announced that its batteries will be able to charge to 90-percent maximum
capacity in a mere five minutes, which is comparable to the wait times one would experience when filling up a car with gasoline or diesel at the pumps. Toshiba also made ground in durability and longevity, where it claims that its batteries will be good for 5,000 charges. If indeed this were the case, the bulk of the impracticalities associated with electric cars would be dispelled. Toshiba is planning on banking in big-time with its new batteries, which are expected to bring in sales of $900 million by the year 2015. No word yet on when these batteries will be ready to launch in the marketplace.
Pininfarina is usually behind the scenes, but this time its name will be front and center. if all goes according to plan with Italian coachworks firm Pininfarina and French battery experts, Bollaré, a new even cooler player is about to enter the ring. The two have teamed up in a 50/50 joint venture collaboration, which will have Pininfarina designing, engineering and assembling the vehicles and Bollaré engineering and producing the powertrain and batteries. The vehicles will be known as a Pininfarina, although other than this has yet to be named. Although no images of the car are yet available, it should be in good taste; after all, it's being penned by one of the most famous and successful design houses in the world. Key details of the plan have been announced however, and state that the car will seat four occupants and will be fully automatic. Most importantly though, are the prospective specs. Pininfarina wants the car to be a replacement for a regular automobile, and not just a tiny city car or fancy exotic. This is where a decent range of 155 miles (in the city) will come into play, and an ability to sprint from a standstill to 35 mph in 4.9 seconds. It'll do well for itself on motorways as well, as it's been given a top speed of 80
No, it won't look like this one... mph. Thanks to Bollaré's Lithium Metal Polymer battery technology, the electric car should be fairly practical. Full charges will take in the neighborhood of five hours on a typical household outlet, while five minutes worth of charging time will equal 15 miles of distance, enough for small errands. Battery longevity is a matter that Bollaré has also worked on; new battery pack technology should allow the car to last upwards of 125,000 miles. Plans include production of 15,000 units per year, and sales across the globe including Western Europe, Japan and North America, making it a true international vehicle. Meanwhile, electrics experts Toshiba has just announced
It'll probably look more like this car... but larger. a new type of lithium-ion battery that's perfectly suited for use in electric cars. The Japanese giant, known particularly for their laptop computers, has announced that its batteries will be able to charge to 90-percent maximum
capacity in a mere five minutes, which is comparable to the wait times one would experience when filling up a car with gasoline or diesel at the pumps. Toshiba also made ground in durability and longevity, where it claims that its batteries will be good for 5,000 charges. If indeed this were the case, the bulk of the impracticalities associated with electric cars would be dispelled. Toshiba is planning on banking in big-time with its new batteries, which are expected to bring in sales of $900 million by the year 2015. No word yet on when these batteries will be ready to launch in the marketplace.
