iMiev not selling well?

[tonymil]

So why did the price on his lowest priced SE drop $635 in two weeks? Might he have been told by Mitsubishi that it would soon become public knowledge that the i-MiEV would be discontinued, so sell your remaining inventory of i-MiEV's at very attractive prices as soon as possible?

Let's hope that it's an end-of-year clearance to get rid of the 2012 model before the 2013 model comes out. I wish Mitsu would make some public statement about its intentions for the MiEV. I keep promoting it to anyone who'll listen.

 

[jjlink]

Unless a company spokesperson comes on here, anything said is mere speculation. I think EVs are here to stay. I think only the ones produced by major auto manufacturer's like Mitsubishi Motors, Nissan, Ford, GM have a chance to survive. I think the start-ups like Tesla will fail or get bought out by another manufacturer. But this is all my speculative opinion.

I disagree, companies like Mitsubishi Motors have no clue how to market EVs (oh, were we supposed to advertise this car?). Get a clue guys, Apple Computer could have sold a million of them the first day ( iCar, get it Mitsubishi? No they don't). The big companies can just fail and move on to the next thing, where as companies like Tesla have a clear vision on where they are going, and out of business it not an option (unless you drink the Mitt-Kool Aid).

 

[DonDakin]

Hi All,

Well I would say that while it's reassuring to own a popular car that everyone has in terms of knowing that there will be lot's of parts available in the future being early adopter we risk that not happening. It would be great if the i caught on and had a good run but we have put a lot of thought into our car purchase and we all love our cars. Just by driving an EV at this point in time we all all pretty fringe. So you have to admit that its not surprising that the i does not sell like a Civic. I mean Civic drivers aren't very fringe people.

If the car does what you want and you get good use out of it then that's enough for me. Let people watch as you glide by.

I would also like to see Mitsubishi push the car a little more but to tell you the truth I think the answer to how and why should a company sell an EV vs a PIH is not that simple at this point. But that's another discussion.

Perhaps the i is just a little ahead of it's time. Perhaps there will be a few pure EV models that will come and go as the market matures and become more defined. Bottom line is I think the people who bought it like it. Enjoy your new car, I totally enjoy mine.

Personally I think "if" they only make a couple thousand US models they may become very sought after in the future. Keep your i in great shape and maybe in 20 years it will be worth something.

Don.....

 

[jray3]

I haven't seen any discussion of this yet in our forum...
http://insideevs.com/mitsubishi-no-next-gen-for-i-miev-will-focus-on-phevs/

 

[Don]

I disagree, companies like Mitsubishi Motors have no clue how to market EVs (oh, were we supposed to advertise this car?). Get a clue guys, Apple Computer could have sold a million of them the first day ( iCar, get it Mitsubishi? No they don't)

Oh, I'm sincerely glad they didn't market it that way . . . . I wouldn't have bought one

I've never owned an 'i anything' in my life and if I thought for one second the 'i car' was an Apple product, I wouldn't have taken a second look. Why anyone pays $650 for a phone which cost just $185 when it left China is something I will never understand

If I thought for a second Mitsu was selling cars with a 350% mark-up, I would have bought an old car and built my own EV from scratch!

Don

 

[JoeS]

I haven't seen any discussion of this yet in our forum...
http://insideevs.com/mitsubishi-no-next-gen-for-i-miev-will-focus-on-phevs/

Quoting from that article "... and despite a recent push by Mitsubishi to promote the car..." HUH? - I still haven't seen any iMiEV ads on TV or in the newspaper, but I'm evidently a targeted prospective customer as they do keep (wastefully) popping up on my Internet screens.

If Mitsubishi wishes to regress to the last decade and provide a hybrid product, they simply won't get any more sales to me (although more than once my wife has hinted that we should get a second iMiEV while we still can). Sorry, zero pollution is what this decade should be about, and hybrids don't cut it.

While I'm on a rant, it's infuriating watching the Volt ads on TV -

"Haven't been to a gas station in two months" - duh, you bought the wrong car as in order to accomplish this you have to charge twice as often as our iMiEV!

"Qualifies for a green (single-occupant) HOV sticker" - I've not seen any Mitsubishi ads in the local papers or on local TV touting the white (zero emissions single-occupant) HOV sticker - highly desirable in this commuter-traffic-infested San Francisco Bay Area.

Why the California Air Resources Board came up with this green sticker for plug-in hybrids is beyond me - aren't we aiming for ZERO emissions? Recent Volt purchasers I've talked with tout this green sticker as the primary reason they bought the car.

How do we convince people that range 'anxiety' is a perception that disintegrates as soon as they do the math? Unfortunately, most people seem to be innumerate (math-challenged). :evil:

</rant>

 

[alohart]

I've never owned an 'i anything' in my life and if I thought for one second the 'i car' was an Apple product, I wouldn't have taken a second look. Why anyone pays $650 for a phone which cost just $185 when it left China is something I will never understand

<off-topic>Simple: superior combination of hardware, software that's updatable, ecosystem, and high resale value that literally millions of people around the world appreciate enough to buy. There's a lot more in the cost of an iPhone than just its hardware. (I'm a retired Apple software engineer.)</off-topic>

 

[sandange]

1

 

[sandange]

My take on this is

Well the sales were not what the Mitsubishi people had hoped for with the I Miev here in North America.
I personally did not see any great effort in the promotion or advertising of the Miev.

Maybe Mitsubishi had a "Wait and See" approach to it's Miev's sales before investing in advertising.
They are needing to sell in order to stay in business, so they have to turn to products that the general public is more comfortable in buying. So they have turned their marketing target to focus on Hy-breads to make their cars more attractive.

The few of us North Americans here who do own the Miev - All seem to be quite satisfied with their purchase so far.
I know we are very happy with our purchase.

"So Far " and a "Wait and See" approach may be part of the problem why people have not moved on to purchase this fine car. Among other factors..... Cost, the growing pains of a Charging infrastructure, miss-understanding of EV's Fear of the unknown, etc..

Price Sticker Shock

ICE drivers I spoke with don't even know how much $ they are spending on fuel every month or $ in repairs for their ICE . Some are too afraid to know & feel they have no choice but to pay the constantly rising fuel costs.

If they were to put their ICE Vehicle entire cost on Paper, loan payment, fuel & repairs in a Monthly Payment and projected this over a 6 year period.... And do a similar EV Comparison.

They could compare costs much more effectively.
Price Sticker shock would have a much less effect

Most ICE drivers I've talked to do not have a clear understanding of the advantages of an EV over an ICE. They tend to focus on the disadvantages - mostly the Range limitation, Charging time delays, and the lack of Public charging facilities.
All of these factors will change quickly as progress is being made.

For us, the cost of being able to say......

When we bought our I Miev we signed off of buying oil for the next 6-8 years or at least as long as the battery warranty last........

Priceless !

 

[peterdambier]

The i-MiEV was not on our radar. Karin and me were interested in trying an electric car but we knew we could not afford one.

I was interested in a lot of electric cars but some of them got lost ... money and big oil mafia. My favorite company did not even promise to build one. A conversion would have been the way to go.

"Big Snowwhite" was feeling ill again and had to see the garage. "Big Snowwhite" is a Golf Variant station wagon feeding on 98 ROZ for some 1.90 Euro per liter. This time construction works let us to a circumnavigation. "Little Snowwhite" stepped in our way telling us "Try me". We only wanted to try an electric car, only once. We never wanted to buy her. But that is how I met Karin. I never wanted to buy her - same for her. Today we are married and we own an i-MiEV.

Today I know the i-MiEV was made for us. There is no other car that comes close to her. How about advertising?

We kept the advertising on the car because that is how we met her and after all people would not know she is electric. We have always some flyers with us and I guess we'll sell 5 or 6 i-MiEV in the near future. Did you ever visit a restaurant and ask for a bathroom and a power socket?

Usually we are not selling cars but we try to grow public power sockets for electric cars and caravans. When you come with an electric car people do take you a lot more serious than when you come with an expensive jacket and maybe a wristwatch.

Still I have not seen much advertising for the i-MiEV except our own.

Best advertising is driving arround in our i-MiEV charging for free at most public power sockets and telling people how much fun it is driving an electric car.

Karin and me are looking forward to a meeting end of this month where somebody will tell us how much they still have to do to build a (slow) charging infrastructure before they can even think of building electric cars. We'll show him where he can charge today and where he does not even need an RFID card to charge. But I am afraid his cars are never going to get out of the show case because they could not charge from a power socket outside.

 

[alohart]

I was attracted to the i-MiEV because it is the least expensive, lightest, and shortest 4-passenger EV mass-produced EV sold in the U.S., and it has quite a bit of storage with the rear seats folded down. But as many have said, its first impression is that of an econobox which, when coupled with its non-econobox price, turns off many potential buyers and reviewers (they have little appreciation for the expensive battery pack that they cannot see). Most other mass-produced EV manufacturers make their cars appear expensive with flashy interiors, etc., which, I think, helps justify their (even higher) prices in the minds of many potential buyers. Most people don't want to pay $30,000 for a car that looks like a cheap econobox but they seem to be willing to pay $35,000 for a much flashier Leaf or even $50,000+ for a very flashy Tesla Model S.

I also think the i-MiEV's small size and non-traditional shape turn off many Americans.

Mitsubishi is not as popular a brand in the U.S. as Nissan, Ford, Honda, Toyota, and other mainstream EV manufacturers (or future manufacturers). This actually bothers me because now that Suzuki has left the U.S. auto market, Mitsubishi has become the weakest remaining manufacturer. This might bother other potential buyers who don't want to risk spending a significant chunk of change on a car whose warranty might not be supported during the lifetime of the car.

Mitsubishi's financial condition might not allow it to sell the i-MiEV at break-even or loss which some other EV manufacturers might be doing. The strong Japanese yen certainly hurts. Nissan is beginning to build Leafs in the U.S. to minimize the effect of the strong yen, but I've heard no plans for Mitsubishi to do the same in its U.S. auto plant which suggests to me that Mitsubishi has no plans to continue building the "wide-body" North American i-MiEV version.

At this point, I don't see how Mitsubishi could do much to turn around the extremely disappointing sales of North American i-MiEV's. It should have done more to market the i-MiEV when it was first introduced to try to combat some of the negative reviews.

 

[Don]

I think if they had imported 75% EX models, 20% SE models and only 5% SE Premium models, things would have gone much better for them - They would probably have sold all the cars

My dealership was only alloted 2 cars but they wound up with 4 because another dealer didn't get the required training done in time. Of the 4 cars, none were EX models. He sold the two SE's he had in the first 3 weeks (one to me) and the two SE Premium packages are still languishing on his lot today, six months later. It didn't help any that one of them was black (owning a black car in the summertime down here isn't too practical . . . . especially not if it has all electric air conditioning) and the other one was the Raspberry color, which doesn't seem too popular either - Having a blue or red color to choose from might have helped too. He has trailered both of the SE Premium cars to larger markets in an attempt to sell them, but until he can discount them $5K or $7500 I'm afraid he's stuck with them

The car is, as you say, basically an econobox, and who wants to pay $35K for a dressed up econobox? At $22.5K with the tax exemption for an EX, it's worthy of consideration, but at $35K it's never going to be on anyone's list of cars to look into I don't think

I really can't think of anything Mitsu could have done to make things worse for the car. They did no national advertising that I recall seeing, there were no articles written about it being introduced at dozens of car shows all around the coutry like there should have been, the dealer 'training' was pretty much a joke - There was no one at my dealership who knew enough about the car or it's capabilities to be able to sell it effectively . . . . they couldn't even answer simple questions correctly - If you were interested at all in buying one YOU had lots of 'homework' to do before you could commit $30K to a brand new technology . . . . the people at the dealer were no help

If they never make or sell another one, we're really glad we bought ours - It surprises me there aren't more people like us seriously considering the car

Don

 

[alohart]

I think if they had imported 75% EX models, 20% SE models and only 5% SE Premium models, things would have gone much better for them - They would probably have sold all the cars

Car manufacturers make a lot of money on upgrades and optional equipment, so selling mostly basic ES models might have resulted in Mitsubishi making no profit or possibly even losing money. But they needed to get as many i-MiEV's in customer hands as possible initially even if that meant making no profit, but they have failed to do so.

My dealership was only alloted 2 cars but they wound up with 4 because another dealer didn't get the required training done in time. Of the 4 cars, none were EX models. He sold the two SE's he had in the first 3 weeks (one to me) and the two SE Premium packages are still languishing on his lot today, six months later. It didn't help any that one of them was black (owning a black car in the summertime down here isn't too practical . . . . especially not if it has all electric air conditioning) and the other one was the Raspberry color, which doesn't seem too popular either - Having a blue or red color to choose from might have helped too. He has trailered both of the SE Premium cars to larger markets in an attempt to sell them, but until he can discount them $5K or $7500 I'm afraid he's stuck with them

The Honolulu dealer is in a worse situation because he couldn't truck his SE's anywhere in hopes of selling them. I recall seeing 1 ES in his inventory, but I didn't start looking early on, so he might have had a few more. But his current inventory is 13 SE's, some of which are black and raspberry, neither of which is ideal in a warm, sunny climate, and others, because of their prices, must be equipped with the Premium Package which has made them difficult to sell due to their high prices.

It surprises me there aren't more people like us seriously considering the car

Especially in Honolulu where distances are limited (a relatively small island), the temperatures are ideal for EV performance, the cost of gasoline is very high, and the potential for solar charging is excellent if one lives in a free-standing house.

It is a bit ironic that the i-MiEV is ideal for those living in urban environments, but that a higher percentage of urban dwellers live in apartments where EV charging can be a significant and expensive challenge which can dissuade them from buying an EV.

 

[archie_b]

Vike just posted in another topic about Mitsubishi not promoting the i. I could not agree more.

Mitsubishi's own web site has 8, repeat 8, panels highlighting their cars. NONE of these panels highlight the i, not even the one with special offers for 2012 models (3 cars displayed, no i).

Hard to make the public aware of your car when you don't even promote it on your own web site.

 

[JoeS]

Here are the two very pertinent quotes from the iMiEV vs. Competition thread:

I just don't understand why Mitsubishi is not trying harder to sell these cars. Its like they are creating a self-fulfilling prophecy that EVs aren't sellable. I think if they created a marketing plan that showed real people that drive these cars and shared their stories about how practical the EV is - they would sell a lot more.

I'm pretty mystified by this myself. I haven't been able to square the following:
1) Mitsubishi loudly proclaims their commitment to electrification and plans for selling i-MiEVs in the U.S. by the thousands.
2) Mitsubishi makes absolutely no effort to advertise or promote the i-MiEV, not even showing it in their "Unpretentious" brand-awareness campaign. Most people I talk to have no idea the car exists until they see mine.
3) Mitsubishi expresses disappointment over low U.S. i-MiEV sales.

Unless Mitsu's just lying about #1 and wants to drive MLucas's hypothetical self-fulfilling prophecy about EVs being doomed, I don't understand their behavior. I've read some stories suggesting that Nissan's aggressive pricing on the Leaf forced Mitsubishi to sell the i in the U.S. at lower prices (and profits) than intended. If they're really losing money on every i-MiEV sold in the U.S. (at least until they can make some adjustments), I suppose the car can be regarded as a placeholder that they'd prefer not to move in any numbers.

Otherwise, I think if Mitsu did a modest TV campaign using the Volt's "our customers love our cars" approach, it could definitely grab some attention. I've been driving my i-MiEV for over two months now, and I do love it. I'm so glad I didn't give in to the temptation of those low-cost Leaf and/or Volt leases - the i-MiEV is exactly what I wanted, and I know that because I bought it, I can keep it instead of being forced to surrender it when the lease runs out.

I agree with both of you - Mitsubishi HQ spent a fortune not only re-engineering the car specifically to comply with North American requirements but also setting up the documentation, service network, supply chain, etc., to handle this unusual vehicle (not to mention the compliance demonstration costs). They've produced a great little car at significant expense.

Could it also be that their reticence to promote it is the (belated) realization that there's negligible recurring income for dealerships after the sale?

 

[MLucas]

Could it also be that their reticence to promote it is the (belated) realization that there's negligible recurring income for dealerships after the sale?

I've always wondered how manufacturers were going to square that with the dealerships. We don't leave much on the table after the deal is done, we don't come by for service very often and when we do show up its usually for a fill up of the complimentary electricity. Other than a green image, there really isn't much for dealers to like about us as customers.

Yet, this begs the question - when a company spends billions of dollars, is there not a risk analysis session that should take place?

Mitsubishi and Nissan both have gone through some hard times lately. Maybe the only purpose of these cars is to get customers in the door, and while they are at it - take an ICE with them. None of the other manufacturers are building pure electrics for the mass market - only compliance cars. Hybrids, yes - but they need maintenance and have more value for the dealerships. Toyota has very publicly stated they are not interested in building pure electric cars.

Found a very interesting article about the GM Opel Adam. There is a mention at the end of the article about the i MiEV. http://www.digitaltrends.com/cars/gm-cancels-electric-opel-adam/

"Cars like the eQ and Mitsubishi i-MiEV will never make the case for EVs because they’re not very appealing as cars."

All I can say is, I'm glad I got mine this time around. Its such a shame, though.

 

[JoeS]

Found a very interesting article about the GM Opel Adam. There is a mention at the end of the article about the i MiEV. http://www.digitaltrends.com/cars/gm-cancels-electric-opel-adam/
"Cars like the eQ and Mitsubishi i-MiEV will never make the case for EVs because they’re not very appealing as cars."

Methinks the clueless author hasn't been to Europe lately, because the size/shape of the iMiEV is de rigueur. Here at home I hear "cute" referring to our iMiEV (usually from females) daily, and it's certainly appealing to them. While probably not "appealing" to the noisy muscle-car Hummer bloated-pickup male crowd, anyone with half a brain should readily understand the superb practicality of the iMiEV's configuration. Sadly, US auto marketing has convinced the populace that they can't live without a large SUV. :evil:

 

[Vike]

Found a very interesting article about the GM Opel Adam. There is a mention at the end of the article about the i MiEV. http://www.digitaltrends.com/cars/gm-cancels-electric-opel-adam/

"Cars like the eQ and Mitsubishi i-MiEV will never make the case for EVs because they’re not very appealing as cars."

All I can say is, I'm glad I got mine this time around. Its such a shame, though.

That Opel Adam article makes an interesting read fact-wise, but the embedded commentary verges on the idiotic. For some reason, the writer lumps together the iQ EV and i-MiEV as being too small for EV technology, then in the next breath encourages GM to move ahead with the Spark EV, which I perceive as barely (if any) larger (I'll check out the Spark when it shows up to see if I'm mistaken on this point). But to the writer's larger "technical" point that "very small cars do not seem like ideal candidates for EV conversion. Electric hardware adds weight, which can push these tiny, underpowered cars into the realm of impracticality..." - seriously, what the hell is this guy talking about? The reality is exactly the opposite - given the power of compact electric motors and the economics of current battery technology, mini-cars make ideal EVs.

But the i-MiEV is a lot more than well-sized - its VW Old Beetle vibe is exactly attuned to my preferences. I love driving an EV on the merits of the vehicle, but frankly had neither the resources nor inclination to manage and/or bankroll my own EV conversion project. To me, tarted-up corporate symbols like the LEAF and Focus Electric rather miss the point, while the i-MiEV seems a well-engineered effort to deliver quality EV technology in a practical and inexpensive package.

For the handful of buyers who both valued the i-MiEV's virtues and were aware of its availability, this may have been one of those ideal buying opportunities. I'd strongly advise those of you on the fence to think harder about pulling the trigger on a purchase decision (or at least start thinking through the numbers to position yourself in the Dutch Auction that seems to be on its way), given this article that I just read today (I saw this was already reported earlier, I'm repeating the link here for immediate reference):

http://insideevs.com/mitsubishi-no-next-gen-for-i-miev-will-focus-on-phevs/

. . . where it really sounds like Mitsubishi's throwing in the towel on BEVs. I'm not overly surprised, since I've been wondering how they would respond to Nissan's recently reported moves to reduce manufacturing costs and improve the technology in the LEAF (I guess we now have our answer). The cheap EV crowd may have another contender arriving shortly with the Smart ED, with the added bonus of a convertible option, but I've always been a fan of trunks and back seats.

I am aghast at the market failure of the i in the U.S., where it's been priced more reasonably and I think configured more practically (more crashworthy and better proportioned) than any other market in the world. I think Mitsubishi just inexplicably lost their nerve after making this huge investment, and never really made the commitment to put the car out front and in the public eye.

Oh well. Given the fortuitous combination of government subsidies and Mitsubishi's decision to bring a "how low can you go" mini-EV to the U.S., I saw no reason to miss out on an opportunity to completely free myself from Exxon for less than the price of a loaded Chevy Cruze. MLucas said it best - glad I got mine.

 

[fjpod]

Found a very interesting article about the GM Opel Adam. There is a mention at the end of the article about the i MiEV. http://www.digitaltrends.com/cars/gm-cancels-electric-opel-adam/
"Cars like the eQ and Mitsubishi i-MiEV will never make the case for EVs because they’re not very appealing as cars."

Methinks the clueless author hasn't been to Europe lately, because the size/shape of the iMiEV is de rigueur. Here at home I hear "cute" referring to our iMiEV (usually from females) daily, and it's certainly appealing to them. While probably not "appealing" to the noisy muscle-car Hummer bloated-pickup male crowd, anyone with half a brain should readily understand the superb practicality of the iMiEV's configuration. Sadly, US auto marketing has convinced the populace that they can't live without a large SUV. :evil:

As a NYC driver, I can attest to the size and shape of the iMiev being just perfect. Easy to park, two people comfortably with luggage, four in a pinch. 75-80 mile range. No problem.

 

[jray3]

Yep, you read that right. If the following is close to true, and the Spark turns out to be a $40k pocket rocket, getting an i for 25% less could be an excellent marketing position for Mitsubishi, if they just HANG IN THERE.
(Yes, the Spark has 25% more battery, but it's also 400 lb heavier, and with twice our power on tap (100 kW), it'll take real dicipline to get much more range than the iMiEV).
---SNIP from EVDL---
GM: "This car is really, really fun to drive,"
% Hope there is an Eco-mode to keep the lead-foot on a short-leash %

http://www.edmunds.com/auto-shows/los-angeles/2012/snappy-2014-chevy-spark-ev-boasts-130-hp.html
[image] Snappy 2014 Chevy Spark EV Boasts 130 HP
by John O'Dell 11/15/2012

[image John O'Dell for Edmunds
http://media.ed.edmunds-media.com/chevrolet/spark-ev/2014/ns/2014_chevrolet_spark-ev_f34_ns_111512_600.jpg
2014 Chevrolet Spark EV Front 3/4, preproduction model
]

2012 Los Angeles Auto Show

Just the Facts:

- Chevrolet says the 2014 Spark EV will do zero to 60 in under 8 seconds.

- Powerful electric motor produces 400 ft-lb of torque.

- Spark EV will go on sale in the summer of 2013.

SAUSALITO, California ? ...

What did come out is that the 2014 Chevy Spark EV will feature a 20 kWh
lithium-ion battery pack paired with a high-power coaxial electric motor and
single-speed transmission that combined are capable of delivering 130
horsepower, 400 pound-feet of torque and 0-60-mph acceleration in under 8
seconds (GM's numbers, not ours). The new Spark EV will have a 3.3-kilowatt
charger, which means it will take about 6 hours with a 240-volt "Level 2"
charger ? the standard home charging unit ? to fully replenish a depleted
battery pack.

Mary Barra, GM's senior vice president for global product development, also
said that the 2014 Spark EV will be a global car, available in more than the
limited U.S. and Korean markets already announced, and that it will be sold
as well as leased ...

GM says the Spark's price will be "competitive" with the likes of Ford's
$39,995 ? before subsidies ? Focus EV. Company executives say they've pared
Spark development and production costs by using electric drive system
components developed for the Chevrolet Volt plug-in hybrid and the company's
dual-mode conventional hybrid system.

In an all-too-brief drive, the Spark EV proved to be fairly comfortable for
a subcompact; demonstrated that the claimed acceleration is probably right
on (the thing does get up and go); and showed that, ... its low-slung ...
battery pack (560 pounds) helps it stick to the ground and handle corners
with little body roll and lots of verve.

The battery pack and its associated electronics and electric-drive
components more than make up for the weight lost by removing the gasoline
engine and transmission. The 2014 Spark EV weighs a hefty 2,869 pounds, 26
percent more than the 2,269-pound gasoline-powered version.

GM, ... managed to keep road noise to a minimum in the new Spark EV ...
While range wasn't disclosed, there are instruments onboard the Spark EV
that tell you how many miles you are getting per kilowatt-hour of battery
power consumed. The figures differ depending on how heavy-footed the driver,
but in a fairly modestly paced run around the 10-acre Ft. Baker parade
ground circuit the Spark managed 3.1 miles per kWh. The industry
rule-of-thumb average when discussing EV range in general is in the 3.5-4
miles per kWh range.

Splitting the difference and giving the Spark EV credit for 3.25 miles per
kilowatt-hour and a 98 percent depth of discharge (using all but 2 percent
of the battery's stored energy) renders a range estimate of 64 miles. Using
the industry average of 4 miles per kWh would result in a range of
approximately 78 miles. We'll have to wait until GM and the Environmental
Protection Agency release official test results to see if the official Spark
EV range number is better or worse than that guesstimate.

Inside, the Spark EV is outfitted pretty much like its siblings, the chief
differences being on the instrument panel, which is lozenge-shaped and
doesn't have the big clock-faced analog speedo of the ICE model, and the
addition of a "Sport" button for the transmission. Punching it dials up the
throttle response, which makes the little car feel sportier, indeed, and
also helps burn electrons a little faster ...

The company has its own battery development, battery pack manufacturing and
battery testing facilities ? way ahead of other U.S. automakers in that
regard ? and Lauckner said it is investing in and partnering with battery
development firms working on new chemistries and other improvements that can
bring down costs and increase energy density ? a requisite for longer range
...

Edmunds says: ... zero to 60 in under 8 seconds is a pretty impressive
milestone for a small commuter EV!
[? Edmunds.com ]

http://www.detroitnews.com/article/20121115/AUTO0103/211150460/Spark-EV-packs-lot-pep-mini-package?odyssey=tab|topnews|text|FRONTPAGE
Spark EV packs a lot of pep in a mini package ...

Battery: 20-kilowatt-hour lithium-ion battery pack built from 336 prismatic
cells; produced by A123 Systems Inc.?s Livonia plant Battery pack warranty:
8 years or 100,000 miles.

Motor: The magnet electric motor and drive unit will be produced at GM?s
Baltimore Operations transmission plant in White Marsh, Md., beginning in
early 2013. It?ll mark the first time an automaker has built an electric
motor and drive unit for a new electric vehicle in the U.S.

Price: To be announced.
Range: To be announced.
[? 2011 The Detroit News All rights reserved]

http://www.hybridcars.com/news/chevrolet-spark-ev-details-released-61321.html
Chevrolet Spark EV Details Released ...
[images
http://www.hybridcars.com/files/ChevySparkEVCutaway11.jpg

http://www.hybridcars.com/files/ChevySparkEVCutawaydetail.jpg

video flash
]

The Spark EV?s more than 20-kwh lithium-ion battery pack will be protected
by Chevrolet?s eight years /100,000 miles warranty, and is said by GM to be
capable of handling multiple DC Fast Charges daily ...

The Spark EV motor and drive unit will be manufactured early 2013 at GM?s
transmission plant in White Marsh, Md., near Baltimore. GM says this will
make the first time a U.S. auto manufacturer has built both a complete
electric motor and drive unit for a modern electric vehicle in the United
States ...
[? 2012 HybridCars.com ]

http://www.detroitnews.com/article/20121116/AUTO0103/211160337/1148/AUTO01/GM-juiced-over-all-electric-Spark-s-future
GM juiced over all-electric Spark's future
[image
http://cmsimg.detnews.com/apps/pbcsi.dll/bilde?Site=C3&Date=20121116&Category=AUTO0103&ArtNo=211160337&Ref=AR&Profile=1148&Border=0&GM-juiced-over-all-electric-Spark-s-future
General Motors test engineer Randy Floresca inspects the Chevrolet Spark EV
battery, which provides more than 20 kilowatt hours of energy. )
] ...
The car, which can comfortably carry four adults, instantly responds to the
accelerator and launches forward thanks to 400 foot-pounds of torque ...
"This car is really, really fun to drive,"
[? 2011 The Detroit News All rights reserved]

http://www.autoevolution.com/news/chevrolet-spark-ev-revealed-video-51915.html
Chevrolet Spark EV Revealed (Video)
[images
http://s1.aecdn.com/images/news/chevrolet-spark-ev-revealed-video-51915-7.jpg

http://s1.aecdn.com/images/news/chevrolet-spark-ev-revealed-video-51915-7.jpg
photo gallery [slideshow]
] [? 2012 SoftNews NET All rights reserved]