GM has decided against mass production of its Adam electric city-car. Audi has kiboshed the Tesla-esque electric R8 that had been scheduled for a launch sometime this year or next. Nissan has slashed the base price of its Leaf electric car from $35,200 to $28,800 – hoping to defibrillate flat-lining sales.
But the real canary in the coal mine is Toyota, which has dropped plans to mass-produce the electric eQ – stating it had “misread” market demand for such a vehicle. Maybe 100 of these things will ever see the light of day, according to the latest statements from Toyota. “The current capabilities of electric vehicles do not meet society’s needs, whether it may be the distance the cars can run, or the costs, or how it takes a long time to charge,” explained Toyota Executive Vice President Takeshi Uchiyamada. (Reuters news story here.)
Instead, the world-leader in hybrid cars will concentrate on bringing out … more hybrid cars. Twenty-one of them by 2015 – vs. one all-electric car (the electric version of the RAV4, which Toyota – optimistically – expects to sell about 2,600 of during calendar year 2013).
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8 comments:
Just another way Obama has tried to shove something nobody wants down our throats. The taxpayers get screwed either way.
Big price reduction. Got to remember the battery cost every other year or so cost all most as much as the car, that will only go to the corner store and back.
I agree for autos the technology is still not there but motorcycle companies like zero are doing pretty well. Electric bike companies are popping up all over the world and with new quick charge technology coming out in the next few months we are getting closer.
The government was throwing money (grants?) at anybody who would try to build better batteries, etc. The manufacturers came in with open hands, gobbled up the money knowing it would fail. Just more dumb spending.
I love my Toyota Prius, 52-54 mpg for the first 13,000 miles.
647 is lying. Wikipedia has the volt as the best hybrid, and after an 11 hour charge, you get the first 38 miles at $2 a gallon, and the rest of the trip at 38 mpg. No reason here to jump at 41,000 dollars with a 5 year battery life, (see replacement) Money pit times 20!
Bullard Construction said...
647 is lying. Wikipedia has the volt as the best hybrid, and after an 11 hour charge, you get the first 38 miles at $2 a gallon, and the rest of the trip at 38 mpg. No reason here to jump at 41,000 dollars with a 5 year battery life, (see replacement) Money pit times 20!
May 3, 2013 at 7:38 PM
Wow, you call the owner of a car a liar based on what wiki says? There are many factors the affect mpg. Also, what is the formula that they use to come up with $2.00 a gallon of gas for 38 miles?
And please, if you have an answer, please share it politely, and not in the rude manner you directed towards the 647 commenter.
In the future, automobiles will burn hydrogen and oxygen (H2O) in their internal combustion engines, and the only exhaust emission will be steam!
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