Can’t Afford A Tesla? Try A TH!NK Instead
By Calvin Lewis
So an electric car sounds rather tempting, right? How about an electric car that’ll go from 0 to 60 in less than four seconds, with a top speed of 125 mph, and that can travel 220 miles on a single charge, without emitting an ounce of carbon? Unfortunately, that car, the Silicon Valley Tesla, also comes with a $100,000 price tag, making it more of a fantasy of the future than a possible reality now. However, an electric car you can actually afford might be a reality in the near future — it’s called the Think City.
Think, a small Norwegian company that’s been designing and building cars for 17 years now, is committed specifically to electric cars — that’s right, a 100% electric car company. Ford owned the company from 1999-2003, during which time they invested 150 million dollars in it, before exiting the electric car market. Fortunately, some Norwegian investors interested in environmental concerns bought the company, and now they’ve given us the Think City, a two-seater hatchback available with either a sodium or lithium battery.
With a 0-to-5o time of 16 seconds and a top speed of 62 mph, it’s definitely no Tesla, and it makes the Smart Fortwo, with its top speed of 99 mph, seem that much more appealing. But on a single charge the Think City can travel from 112 to 124 miles, depending on the tires, the battery, and whether the heater’s on. The battery charges up to 80% in eight to ten hours, with a regular plug.
And now for the big one, the price: Think’s web site lists the price at 20,000 EUR ($32,000) — but a recent review on AUTOCAR.co.uk puts the price at 14,000 EUR ($22,000). You also need to figure in a monthly charge — about $280 — for battery service.
Think [Corporate Site]
Think Review [Autocar]
March 28th, 2008 at 1:45 pm
Battery only electric cars are an oxymoron. They can meet the transportation needs of practically no one. And I think the one thing we don’t need is a second expensive car to be paid for and maintained (and buy very expensive batteriees for - the Tesla battery pack costs almost $30,0000 and lasts 5 years, Sucker) and can reach destinations a mere 50 miles away. Oh, yeah, I can’t wait to get my hands on one of those numbers. Take my order , NOW!
RIGHT NOW!! You’ve convinced me with your impressive logic.
March 28th, 2008 at 10:39 pm
Please ignore Kent Beauchert AKA Thomas C. Gray AKA too many permutations to list. He is Mr. Misinformation.
http://www.teslamotorsclub.com/off-topic/672-ken-kent-kerry-beauchrt-beuchert-beuchrt-biker-rider-krider-2.html#post3713
March 31st, 2008 at 3:13 pm
Yeah, wow. Got any empirical data to back up your claims there Kent?