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Archive for the 'peapod' Category

Chrysler: Half of all cars electric by 2020

Monday, September 29th, 2008

Filed under: EV/Plug-in, Chrysler, Dodge, Jeep, GEM, USA

Click above for a high-res gallery of the Dodge EV

We’ve taken a good look at each of the three electric vehicle concepts that Chrysler took the wraps off of last week, plus one extra for good measure. For various reasons, none of these vehicles really seems quite ready for prime time - one is based on a Lotus sportscar chassis, two require huge battery packs and the last is limited to 25 miles per hour. Tough bring those to market. Still, Chrysler says it plans to launch one of them by 2010 in the U.S. with European delivery scheduled a bit later. We’ll see. If that does happen, Chrysler’s EV would join the Chevy Volt as the first mainstream(-ish) cars in the States not powered by gasoline in a very, very long time.

If Chrysler’s predictions are accurate, though, don’t expect the market to stay petroleum-dependent for long. In fact, Chrysler’s executive vice president of product development, Frank Klegon, has said that half the cars sold here in 2020 will feature electric power. That’s a long way to go in just a decade. In any case, the future promises lots of interesting things for the domestic auto market.

Gallery: 2011 Chrysler EVs

[Source: Automotive News Europe - sub. req’d]

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Posted in Uncategorized, chrysler, chrysler electric vehicle, chrysler EV, ChryslerElectricVehicle, ChryslerEv, dodge EV, DodgeEv, Jeep EV, JeepEv, gem peapod, GemPeapod, peapod, chrysler electric car, chrysler electric cars, ChryslerElectricCar, ChryslerElectricCars | No Comments »

Five concept cars Chrysler could have used for its electric debut

Friday, September 26th, 2008

Filed under: EV/Plug-in, Hybrid, Chrysler, Dodge, AutoblogGreen Exclusive, USA

When Chrysler introduced us to its EV line-up the other day some of us were a little taken aback. Although they hadn’t explicitly said so prior to the unveiling, the fact that they had shown off two ER-EVs and an all-electric concept at the last Detroit Auto Show led some to assume that one or more of these might be involved in this new unveiling. Obviously this was not the case. Instead we we’re treated to the somewhat dowdy Chrysler mini-van mainstay, a Jeep of SUV-like proportions and a freshly painted Lotus Europa with a UQM electric set-up. Oh yeah, there was also the peculiar Peapod.

That got us to thinking, what if Chrysler had of reached into its closet and pulled out some of its previous concept vehicles and presented them with electric drivetrains installed instead. Recycling is pretty green, no? They must have something from the not-so-distant past that had decent aerodynamics or some other quality that might give it an advantage as an EV over the ones they actually chose. We decided to take a look for ourselves and humbly share our choices after the jump.

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Posted in Uncategorized, chrysler, Dodge, chrysler town and country, ChryslerTownAndCountry, peapod, Chrysler Akino, ChryslerAkino, Dodge EPIC, Dodge Rampage, DodgeEpic, DodgeRampage, Jeep Hurricane, JeepHurricane, Lotus Europa, LotusEuropa, Wrangler Unimited, WranglerUnimited | No Comments »

GEM changes name to GreenEcoMobility, plans new vehicles

Tuesday, September 23rd, 2008

Filed under: EV/Plug-in, Chrysler, GEM, NEV (Neighborhood Electric Vehicle)

We’ve taken a pretty in-depth look at Chrysler’s three most visible electric or range-extended concepts already, leaving just the neighborhood electric vehicle from its GEM division to peer into. First, those three letters now stand for GreenEcoMobility, much more interesting than Global Electric Motorcars, which is what it stood for until now. What’s in a name, anyway… Moving along, Chrysler showed off the new GEM Peapod, a low-speed electric vehicle designed primarily for city use. Unlike past GEM efforts, the Peapod is rather car-like in its look; although it is rather egg-shaped, it has a real enclosure with four doors and what appear to be roll-up windows. Inside is a new dash layout that incorporates iPod and iPhone integration. Expect to see them for sale next year.

GEM also has plans to launch “a new light-duty, battery electric commercial truck and a larger city electric vehicle, with more range and performance.” We don’t exactly know what that means, but we’ve heard that the truck may be an electric version of the Tata Ace. Of course, as we know more, so will you. Full press release after the break.

Gallery: GEM Peapod