Hey! There are signs of life at Chrysler, which says an electric version of the Fiat 500 will roll silently into American showrooms in 2012.
Chrysler was long on promises and short on details today when it announced its engineers are developing an electric drivetrain for the car, which we loved as a concept (pictured) at the Detroit auto show in January. Of course, Chrysler offered no specifics, saying only that the car “is comprised of three main systems: high-power electric powertrain module, advanced lithium-ion battery and an EV control unit to manage power flows.”
Wow. Thanks for the EV Drivetrain 101 lesson, Chrysler.
Chrysler will do all the engineering for the vehicle at its HQ in Auburn, Hills, Michigan. BusinessWeek says Chrysler’s shooting for a range of 100 miles. The car will sport a Fiat nameplate, but Chrysler will build it specifically for the United States. No word on price, but Fiat and Chrysler capo Sergio Marchionne said in January the concept car would sell for $32,000 if it ever saw production, according to Automotive News Europe. He chalked up half of that to the battery.
No word on whether that price tag is before or after the $7,500 federal tax credit for EVs. Either way, 32 large is a lot to ask for a subcompact, especially since it almost certainly will be a two-seater like the Mini E (batteries eat up a lot of space. That’s the same ballpark the four-door Nissan Leaf EV is playing in. The car also will be coming to market at least a year behind the Leaf, the Chevrolet Volt and Ford’s electric Focus. On the other hand, the 500 has fantastic styling going for it.
Chrylser has teased us with electric vehicles before — anyone remember the ENVI skunkworks program and the cool Dodge Circuit EV we saw 18 months ago? But that was before Chrysler imploded and Fiat took over. Marchionne said in November that Chrysler would build 56,000 electric cars annually by 2014, and the two companies always have planned to raid Fiat’s stable to provide platforms for new Chryslers.
“The Fiat 500EV is an outstanding example of our efforts,” Scott Kunselman, senior VP of engineering, said in a statement. “The Fiat 500 is a small, lightweight platform perfect for integrating electric vehicle technology.”
The electric 500 will follow the conventional gasoline-powered model that will arrive in the United States at the end of the year.
Chrysler also said it’s killing its plan to build a hybrid Ram pickup — it couldn’t make a business case for it — but says it will develop 140 plug-in hybrid pickups for a three-year demonstration program. Chrysler has selected Electrovaya to provide the batteries.
UPDATED 2:50 p.m. Eastern March 24 to mention Chrysler decided to use Electrovaya batteries.
Photo of the 500EV concept at the Detroit auto show: Chuck Squatriglia / Wired.com More pix here.