smart car: What's the point?

[slothfish]

That car starts at $46K and looks like an old Hyundai Accent.

I also really doubt this thing has "sport" tires on it. That makes no sense for this kind of car.

...and it's electric. I dare you to find me a better electric for the price, not to mention there is a ridiculous amount of tax credit you'll receive that can potentially bring the price of the car down to $31,000 depending on where you live. I've seen quite a few people in this thread mention that the Nissan Leaf is a much better alternative to a Smart, I'm simply providing a much better alternative to the Leaf.

You can doubt all you want, but I've driven one...and you haven't. They all come equipped with very nice Kumhos stock.

Please do at least a little bit of research before you start hating all over the place.


Edit:

The definition of doing just a little bit of research

 

[A5]

...and it's electric. I dare you to find me a better electric for the price, not to mention there is a ridiculous amount of tax credit you'll receive that can potentially bring the price of the car down to $31,000 depending on where you live. I've seen quite a few people in this thread mention that the Nissan Leaf is a much better alternative to a Smart, I'm simply providing a much better alternative to the Leaf.

You can doubt all you want, but I've driven one...and you haven't. They all come equipped with very nice Kumhos stock.

Please do at least a little bit of research before you start hating all over the place.


Edit:

The definition of doing just a little bit of research

I'm not going to take the time to research something that I have no interest in. It would help if they put that information on their own marketing site.

No matter how good the battery tech is (and it looks good if their claims are true), they aren't going to find many people willing to pay that kind of money for a plain-looking (even by the standards of the compact car segment...) car when they could spend less on a Prius which is recognizable and has eco-caché already.

I'm not asking for something radical like a Tesla Roadster, but something that wouldn't look completely embarrassing next to a modern compact like the '11 Fiesta or '12 Accent would really help them. Even looking like the latest Corolla would be a massive enhancement.

 

[LTC8K6]

...and it's electric. I dare you to find me a better electric for the price, not to mention there is a ridiculous amount of tax credit you'll receive that can potentially bring the price of the car down to $31,000 depending on where you live. I've seen quite a few people in this thread mention that the Nissan Leaf is a much better alternative to a Smart, I'm simply providing a much better alternative to the Leaf.

You can doubt all you want, but I've driven one...and you haven't. They all come equipped with very nice Kumhos stock.

Please do at least a little bit of research before you start hating all over the place.


Edit:

The definition of doing just a little bit of research

Few will qualify for the full tax credits, and you don't get that until you file your taxes. You have to pay the full amount when you purchase.

4. After tax savings, net as low as $37,400. MSRP $44,900, with federal tax savings from 0-$7,500.

Why would I pay that much for that when I can pay a lot less for a Cruze or Focus? The CODA won't save me any money at all as far as I can tell.

If the price of gas goes way up, it would be a different story. Even then, I think it's a case of just breaking even with the electric car.

 

[slothfish]

I'm not going to take the time to research something that I have no interest in. It would help if they put that information on their own marketing site.

No matter how good the battery tech is (and it looks good if their claims are true), they aren't going to find many people willing to pay that kind of money for a plain-looking (even by the standards of the compact car segment...) car when they could spend less on a Prius which is recognizable and has eco-caché already.

I'm not asking for something radical like a Tesla Roadster, but something that wouldn't look completely embarrassing next to a modern compact like the '11 Fiesta or '12 Accent would really help them. Even looking like the latest Corolla would be a massive enhancement.

A user loses all credibility if they don't research that which they are criticizing. If you have no interest in researching, then anything you have to say about the subject is a moot point, so why even post anything other than to gain the attention of people you will never even meet?

Furthermore, your only argument against the car is that it's ugly. Have you bothered to even glance at the other options available? I'm talking about options that use no gasoline, not archaic combustion engines and soon-to-be obsolete hybrid tech. If your main concern is aesthetics, I sincerely hope you do not represent the voice of your generation.

...and it sure as hell looks better than a Leaf, which is the only car I was comparing the Coda to by the way.

Few will qualify for the full tax credits, and you don't get that until you file your taxes. You have to pay the full amount when you purchase.



Why would I pay that much for that when I can pay a lot less for a Cruze or Focus? The CODA won't save me any money at all as far as I can tell.

If the price of gas goes way up, it would be a different story. Even then, I think it's a case of just breaking even with the electric car.

Few will qualify? Where are you getting your information from? As far as I know 100% of purchasers qualify. And that is only Federal tax credit that you mention, don't forget the thousands and thousands that are offered by your state and city governments. Not rebates, credits...good as cash.

I drive 7 miles to work every day in a 35+ mpg car, and I still go through a tank a week (thanks Los Angeles). You may be paying "less" for a Cruze or a Focus, but that's not the point. The point is that it costs less than $3 (if you're even using your own electricity) to fill up your car, and that this car produces no emissions. The Coda is a car that is aimed at people that are thinking of purchasing an electric car or a hybrid, not people looking to get the cheapest thing on wheels that will suit their needs.

At this point it's more about implementing better electric vehicle technology than saving money. If everyone had your mindset we'd be churning out the same old crappy internal combustion designs forever. As soon as our society is actually willing to accept some kind of change, that change will happen. Of course electric cars are expensive, they always will be unless we start accepting them as viable forms of transportation and allow the technology to evolve, otherwise we will never advance battery technology and that one caveat of the electric car will be it's downfall.

tl;dr: If smart people buy expensive electric cars now, stupid people will be able to afford them later

 

[JCH13]

I drive 7 miles to work every day in a 35+ mpg car, and I still go through a tank a week (thanks Los Angeles). You may be paying "less" for a Cruze or a Focus, but that's not the point. The point is that it costs less than $3 (if you're even using your own electricity) to fill up your car, and that this car produces no emissions. The Coda is a car that is aimed at people that are thinking of purchasing an electric car or a hybrid, not people looking to get the cheapest thing on wheels that will suit their needs.

-emphasis mine-

This is an ignorant statement to make (I also blame auto manufacturers), especially given how well you've researched the subject. Electric cars are not emission free, one must view the situation holistically. Those battery packs take a substantial amount of energy to make and are consumable products with a finite lifespan. It costs energy, and therefore carbon emissions, to make the original packs and future replacement packs. Electricity also takes energy to create, and quite often it is produced with a carbon based fuel such as oil or coal. The electric equivalent carbon emission is worth about 120mpg in gasoline, which is great, but it's not zero.

 

[LTC8K6]

A user loses all credibility if they don't research that which they are criticizing. If you have no interest in researching, then anything you have to say about the subject is a moot point, so why even post anything other than to gain the attention of people you will never even meet?

Furthermore, your only argument against the car is that it's ugly. Have you bothered to even glance at the other options available? I'm talking about options that use no gasoline, not archaic combustion engines and soon-to-be obsolete hybrid tech. If your main concern is aesthetics, I sincerely hope you do not represent the voice of your generation.

...and it sure as hell looks better than a Leaf, which is the only car I was comparing the Coda to by the way.




Few will qualify? Where are you getting your information from? As far as I know 100% of purchasers qualify. And that is only Federal tax credit that you mention, don't forget the thousands and thousands that are offered by your state and city governments. Not rebates, credits...good as cash.

I drive 7 miles to work every day in a 35+ mpg car, and I still go through a tank a week (thanks Los Angeles). You may be paying "less" for a Cruze or a Focus, but that's not the point. The point is that it costs less than $3 (if you're even using your own electricity) to fill up your car, and that this car produces no emissions. The Coda is a car that is aimed at people that are thinking of purchasing an electric car or a hybrid, not people looking to get the cheapest thing on wheels that will suit their needs.

At this point it's more about implementing better electric vehicle technology than saving money. If everyone had your mindset we'd be churning out the same old crappy internal combustion designs forever. As soon as our society is actually willing to accept some kind of change, that change will happen. Of course electric cars are expensive, they always will be unless we start accepting them as viable forms of transportation and allow the technology to evolve, otherwise we will never advance battery technology and that one caveat of the electric car will be it's downfall.

tl;dr: If smart people buy expensive electric cars now, stupid people will be able to afford them later

The car makes no financial sense to me. I see that you have noticed the financial angle as well. I'm not losing money just to be trendy.

I drive less than 10 miles a day round trip for work. An electric car would be perfect for me. When it makes sense to buy one, I'll start looking at them more closely.

Also, I can get Volt for that kind of money, and have no range worries, although the Volt seems to be selling poorly so far.

As for the rebate, I'm just going by CODA's page, which says $0-$7500, which you must have already read.

I'm reluctant to buy from an unknown mfg anyway, when known mfgs have similar vehicles.

I can get a LEAF from Nissan, a company I'm familiar with, if I want an all-electric car.

 

[LTC8K6]

Southern California automaker Coda Automotive announced plans to bring a new electric car to the US from China in 2011. The Coda Electric sedan is based on an existing gas-powered four-door car, known as the Hafei Saibao 3, built in Harbin, China.

If that's true, I'm not buying that under any circumstances.

Do we know if it has passed US crash testing?

EDIT: Apparently not. They did their own testing in China.

 

[sdifox]

If that's true, I'm not buying that under any circumstances.

Do we know if it has passed US crash testing?

EDIT: Apparently not. They did their own testing in China.

People are great as bumper cushions.

 

[Capt Caveman]

Saw a couple this weekend in the city, parked on the street where no other car would be able to fit.

Also, saw one on the highway putting along and everyone was driving around them.

 

[Aikouka]

At this point it's more about implementing better electric vehicle technology than saving money. If everyone had your mindset we'd be churning out the same old crappy internal combustion designs forever. As soon as our society is actually willing to accept some kind of change, that change will happen. Of course electric cars are expensive, they always will be unless we start accepting them as viable forms of transportation and allow the technology to evolve, otherwise we will never advance battery technology and that one caveat of the electric car will be it's downfall.

tl;dr: If smart people buy expensive electric cars now, stupid people will be able to afford them later

Interesting to see that you registered just to post this stuff about the electric car in this thread.

I think you're being rather short-sighted to not understand why electric cars are currently a complete waste of time. I agree that they're usually good for your daily work commute, and in fact, they would work for mine as well (~6 miles). The problem comes with the fact that the daily work commute is almost all they are good for. Their range makes them extremely limited, and even if there was a quick-charge station on every corner, it would still take longer to charge your electric car! Adding in that their range is shorter than a ICE-equipped vehicle, you are taking longer to fill it and filling it up more often.

Essentially, it comes down to this... it's impractical to own just an electric car. This turns them into either a novelty or a luxury item. Personally, I don't have an issue with the concept of electric cars, but I won't ignore the fact that the current implementation is absolute rubbish! Stop spending government funds ($7.5k tax credit) on promoting such limited technology, and put the tax credit funds into research on battery technology and things like that.

EDIT:

It's also good to add that working on improving battery technology can potentially help a lot more than just electric cars.

 

[LTC8K6]

I have no problem with BEV's either. The LEAF would suit me pretty well, I think, for an in town runabout.

There are some other associated costs with them. You really need to have a 220V charge station installed at your house for convenience. So that's extra money right there, even though such stations are also subsidized.

I don't think you can just rig your own 220V charger even if you have a handy outlet because I believe all of these cars require a smart system for the 220V charge. A dumb 220V outlet may not work.

They take approximately forever to charge from a regular 120VAC outlet if the battery is low. Even with 220, it still takes a few hours with a depleted battery.

If you live in a place with climate extremes, you are supposed to keep the car plugged in to regulate the battery pack temperature. This adds a little extra to the operating costs.

What is the real world range? Can I make a 100 mile trip with 3 friends and some luggage on a hot day with the A/C running? Or on a cold day with the heater on?

We want faster charging, but faster charging shortens battery life...

 

[slothfish]

-emphasis mine-

This is an ignorant statement to make (I also blame auto manufacturers), especially given how well you've researched the subject. Electric cars are not emission free, one must view the situation holistically. Those battery packs take a substantial amount of energy to make and are consumable products with a finite lifespan. It costs energy, and therefore carbon emissions, to make the original packs and future replacement packs. Electricity also takes energy to create, and quite often it is produced with a carbon based fuel such as oil or coal. The electric equivalent carbon emission is worth about 120mpg in gasoline, which is great, but it's not zero.

Of course I understand the environmental impact that an electric car still makes, I was simply laying it out directly. Any form of energy we consume is going to have a significant impact, it's simply a matter of supporting the medium that is the most flexible so that our technology regarding that particular medium can improve in the future. This isn't by any means the solution to the problem, but it is a step in the right direction.

Replacement batteries in this particular car are a non-issue. The battery is easily capable of 300,000+ miles, and it's longevity is further increased with it's ingenious battery climate-control system...an incredibly important factor that Nissan completely overlooked when designing the Leaf. The battery is kept in an entirely separate, fully climate-controlled compartment under the car that keeps it right around 70F or so regardless of whether you're in Arizona in the summer or Michigan in the winter. This system is completely separated from the cabin climate-control system, so you will still be comfortable as well. The Leaf simply has a fan blowing over the battery that exhausts into the atmosphere, causing the range to fluctuate dramatically based on the outside temperature and the longevity of the battery to be significantly compromised.

Interesting to see that you registered just to post this stuff about the electric car in this thread.

I think you're being rather short-sighted to not understand why electric cars are currently a complete waste of time. I agree that they're usually good for your daily work commute, and in fact, they would work for mine as well (~6 miles). The problem comes with the fact that the daily work commute is almost all they are good for. Their range makes them extremely limited, and even if there was a quick-charge station on every corner, it would still take longer to charge your electric car! Adding in that their range is shorter than a ICE-equipped vehicle, you are taking longer to fill it and filling it up more often.

Essentially, it comes down to this... it's impractical to own just an electric car. This turns them into either a novelty or a luxury item. Personally, I don't have an issue with the concept of electric cars, but I won't ignore the fact that the current implementation is absolute rubbish! Stop spending government funds ($7.5k tax credit) on promoting such limited technology, and put the tax credit funds into research on battery technology and things like that.

EDIT:

It's also good to add that working on improving battery technology can potentially help a lot more than just electric cars.

Yeah, I was just googling info about Smart cars (not so smart after all lol), and I came across this thread. The only reason I posted anything was because of the numerous people showing so much interest in the Nissan Leaf, and I simply wanted to present those people with a much better option.

I entirely understand that owning an electric car at this point in time is not practical for everyone, and I made that very clear in my last post. In fact, you are entirely correct in your statement that they are a luxury item. My point is that in order for them to eventually not be an expensive luxury item, we need to invest a lot more interest than we as a society have been. Imagine what things would be like now if we didn't embrace those clunky, slow, ugly personal computers of the 80's. Because of our interest and investment, we are now able to carry around ridiculously fast, sleek, tiny little computers in our pockets that we call smartphones. Current implementation is rubbish, you're right, but how will we ever implement things any differently if all the engineers that work hard to speed the progress of technology are going hungry?

Anyway, you guys are missing my point. I was simply responding to people that were showing interest in the Leaf, no one else. In fact the entire reason I joined this forum was to hopefully help out some prospective Leaf owners before they made the wrong decision. Coda is currently the only company I have discovered with such advanced battery tech.

 

[Drako]

Anyway, you guys are missing my point. I was simply responding to people that were showing interest in the Leaf, no one else. In fact the entire reason I joined this forum was to hopefully help out some prospective Leaf owners before they made the wrong decision. Coda is currently the only company I have discovered with such advanced battery tech.

How is buying a Leaf the wrong decision relative to Coda?

Coda does not even have a car yet .

 

[slothfish]

I have no problem with BEV's either. The LEAF would suit me pretty well, I think, for an in town runabout.

There are some other associated costs with them. You really need to have a 220V charge station installed at your house for convenience. So that's extra money right there, even though such stations are also subsidized.

I don't think you can just rig your own 220V charger even if you have a handy outlet because I believe all of these cars require a smart system for the 220V charge. A dumb 220V outlet may not work.

They take approximately forever to charge from a regular 120VAC outlet if the battery is low. Even with 220, it still takes a few hours with a depleted battery.

If you live in a place with climate extremes, you are supposed to keep the car plugged in to regulate the battery pack temperature. This adds a little extra to the operating costs.

What is the real world range? Can I make a 100 mile trip with 3 friends and some luggage on a hot day with the A/C running? Or on a cold day with the heater on?

We want faster charging, but faster charging shortens battery life...

Sorry for the double post, just saw your reply and wanted to quickly respond.

Yes, it is recommended that you purchase a 220v charging station because charging with a standard 110v outlet is very slow, however, like you mentioned, the government subsidizes this purchase so the end cost is $0.

Real world range is what Coda states it is, unlike many other manufacturer's claims. Check out this recent review, 105 mile trip with 2 passengers in 90+ degree weather on hilly terrain with extreme traffic...and 10% battery still remains (plus 20 miles worth of reserve power). In the same conditions the Leaf would fall short at nearly half the range.

I'm not saying the Coda is the definitive electric car of our generation, all I'm saying is that they are one of the few manufacturers that are actually taking the time to engineer their cars to operate at their maximum potential according to our current technology. It seems as if many other manufacturers are simply churning out electric cars for the sake of having electric cars to sell, i.e. Nissan.

 

[LTC8K6]

While the Coda Sedan’s battery pack is not liquid cooled, as is that of the 2011 Chevrolet Volt, its “active thermal management” includes fans that circulate air through and over the pack at a higher pressure than that provided by airflow in motion. And air continues to be blown through the pack even when the car is standing still. The effect, Czinger claims, is better control of internal pack temperature. That should lead to longer pack life and less erosion of the car’s range over time due to pack aging.

That sounds like a fan blowing air over the battery pack...

http://venturebeat.com/2010/10/04/how-the-2011-coda-sedan-hopes-to-compete-with-the-nissan-leaf/

 

[LTC8K6]

Sorry for the double post, just saw your reply and wanted to quickly respond.

Yes, it is recommended that you purchase a 220v charging station because charging with a standard 110v outlet is very slow, however, like you mentioned, the government subsidizes this purchase so the end cost is $0.

Real world range is what Coda states it is, unlike many other manufacturer's claims. Check out this recent review, 105 mile trip with 2 passengers in 90+ degree weather on hilly terrain with extreme traffic...and 10% battery still remains (plus 20 miles worth of reserve power). In the same conditions the Leaf would fall short at nearly half the range.

I'm not saying the Coda is the definitive electric car of our generation, all I'm saying is that they are one of the few manufacturers that are actually taking the time to engineer their cars to operate at their maximum potential according to our current technology. It seems as if many other manufacturers are simply churning out electric cars for the sake of having electric cars to sell, i.e. Nissan.

That was a pre-production model though, put out there to increase interest in the car, so it may have been a ringer.

The reserve "creep along" power doesn't really interest me. I can't imagine running my electric car down to that point.

 

[LTC8K6]

http://www.ford.com/electric/focuse...1b07c08d000751e09f12g01h09j12k30m6n0p20110617

This would be my BEV.

 

[slothfish]

That sounds like a fan blowing air over the battery pack...

http://venturebeat.com/2010/10/04/how-the-2011-coda-sedan-hopes-to-compete-with-the-nissan-leaf/

Well no crap, how else do you expect to move air in a closed, air-cooled system? My point is that it is implemented much better in the Coda than in the Leaf. The Leaf exhausts the used, dehumidified air into the atmosphere, making the car work much harder and use more electricity to keep the battery cool and the air dehumidified. The Coda's battery compartment is completely sealed and the air is recirculated, which means the dehumidified air stays where it should and a massive load is taken off of the car's system. This also solves the problem of what to do in cold environments, where battery life is just as adversely affected. It is far easier to keep the battery at the ideal temperature in extremely cold climates when it is working in an entirely closed system.

 

[Aikouka]

I entirely understand that owning an electric car at this point in time is not practical for everyone, and I made that very clear in my last post. In fact, you are entirely correct in your statement that they are a luxury item. My point is that in order for them to eventually not be an expensive luxury item, we need to invest a lot more interest than we as a society have been. Imagine what things would be like now if we didn't embrace those clunky, slow, ugly personal computers of the 80's. Because of our interest and investment, we are now able to carry around ridiculously fast, sleek, tiny little computers in our pockets that we call smartphones.

Your computer analogy has a huge flaw, and that's the fact that said "clunky, slow, ugly" computers were better than what came before them. A petroleum-powered vehicle may be more expensive to operate per-year and a bit more harmful to the environment, but it has some major benefits that can't be ignored over an electric car.

Current implementation is rubbish, you're right, but how will we ever implement things any differently if all the engineers that work hard to speed the progress of technology are going hungry?

I explained this in my post already. Stop giving tax credits for purchasing a "green car", and put the money into research instead. I believe that in the current business climate where profits are greater than all (including product quality), research and development is essentially a novelty. R&D is costly and purely an out-of-pocket expense, which even if the plan seems solid, it may result in no return on investment. Given how I stated that profits are the bee's knees of business, wasting money is kind of counter to that.

So how do you get around it? Provide grants to promising technology/advancements. Helping some yuppie pay for his new Prius does nothing but help said yuppie and possibly give Toyota some extra money. The profits from the purchase aren't even guaranteed to go into new technology, or even if they do, it could be universal technology such as the parking assist that I see advertised on TV shows so much ( ugh ). If we simply work on the underlying infant technology (battery, etc), we may not only help automotive applications but also other things such as mobile devices, etc.

Anyway, you guys are missing my point. I was simply responding to people that were showing interest in the Leaf, no one else. In fact the entire reason I joined this forum was to hopefully help out some prospective Leaf owners before they made the wrong decision. Coda is currently the only company I have discovered with such advanced battery tech.

It's more fun to argue about hot topics than looking at a single car.

 

[slothfish]

That was a pre-production model though, put out there to increase interest in the car, so it may have been a ringer.

The reserve "creep along" power doesn't really interest me. I can't imagine running my electric car down to that point.

Not a ringer, you can drive the exact car that the media drives at the Century City mall in SoCal. How do I know? I happened to be at the mall the same day that writers/testers from Edmunds, Popular Science, and other publications took their test drives. I watched them pull out in the demo models they have at the mall, and I then scheduled a test drive for the same exact car the next day.

As for the reserve power- it may not interest you, but it could potentially save your behind if you ever plan on purchasing an electric car.

 

[LTC8K6]

Well no crap, how else do you expect to move air in a closed, air-cooled system? My point is that it is implemented much better in the Coda than in the Leaf. The Leaf exhausts the used, dehumidified air into the atmosphere, making the car work much harder and use more electricity to keep the battery cool and the air dehumidified. The Coda's battery compartment is completely sealed and the air is recirculated, which means the dehumidified air stays where it should and a massive load is taken off of the car's system. This also solves the problem of what to do in cold environments, where battery life is just as adversely affected. It is far easier to keep the battery at the ideal temperature in extremely cold climates when it is working in a entirely closed system.

I really can't tell exactly how the CODA cools or warms the battery pack in hot or cold weather. The descriptions seem to be vague. Is there a link that explains the system?

I would think that recirculating the air warmed by the battery pack might make the cooling system work harder...and the Nissan system of exhausting the warmed air might actually be better. In fact I actually think it would be easier on the system with a hot battery to exhaust the air.

If we need to warm the battery in cold weather, then I would think recirculating would be more efficient.

Unless someone can explain it better...

 

[LTC8K6]

Not a ringer, you can drive the exact car that the media drives at the Century City mall in SoCal. How do I know? I happened to be at the mall the same day that writers/testers from Edmunds, Popular Science, and other publications took their test drives. I watched them pull out in the demo models they have at the mall, and I then scheduled a test drive for the same exact car the next day.

Yeah, they give ringers to the media. Happens all the time with car makers. It would hardly be unusual.

Do you know if the CODA has met US crash testing standards?

 

[slothfish]

Your computer analogy has a huge flaw, and that's the fact that said "clunky, slow, ugly" computers were better than what came before them. A petroleum-powered vehicle may be more expensive to operate per-year and a bit more harmful to the environment, but it has some major benefits that can't be ignored over an electric car.



I explained this in my post already. Stop giving tax credits for purchasing a "green car", and put the money into research instead. I believe that in the current business climate where profits are greater than all (including product quality), research and development is essentially a novelty. R&D is costly and purely an out-of-pocket expense, which even if the plan seems solid, it may result in no return on investment. Given how I stated that profits are the bee's knees of business, wasting money is kind of counter to that.

So how do you get around it? Provide grants to promising technology/advancements. Helping some yuppie pay for his new Prius does nothing but help said yuppie and possibly give Toyota some extra money. The profits from the purchase aren't even guaranteed to go into new technology, or even if they do, it could be universal technology such as the parking assist that I see advertised on TV shows so much ( ugh ). If we simply work on the underlying infant technology (battery, etc), we may not only help automotive applications but also other things such as mobile devices, etc.



It's more fun to argue about hot topics than looking at a single car.

I see what you mean in terms of the computer analogy, but aren't today's internal combustion cars far superior to those 100 years ago? My point is that it is old tech that is advancing at an incredibly slow rate, and that it is up to us to be the catalyst of change.

I agree with you 100% that the government should be funding the advancement of battery tech, but unfortunately they aren't. At this point, all we can do as consumers is support independent companies like Coda to ensure the progress of battery technology. This is another huge reason I support Coda as opposed to Nissan or Toyota- who knows what large auto manufacturers are doing with that money? We can at least be somewhat assured that money going to independent startup companies like Coda is going to be used for R&D for new, improved products in the future.

I really can't tell exactly how the CODA cools or warms the battery pack in hot or cold weather. The descriptions seem to be vague. Is there a link that explains the system?

I would think that recirculating the air warmed by the battery pack might make the cooling system work harder...and the Nissan system of exhausting the warmed air might actually be better. In fact I actually think it would be easier on the system with a hot battery to exhaust the air.

If we need to warm the battery in cold weather, then I would think recirculating would be more efficient.

Unless someone can explain it better...

Well I'm no engineer, so unfortunately I am not able to explain it any better than I already have. I have spoken with the head of battery development at Coda, and he explained the entire battery system to me in detail; frankly it sounds lightyears ahead of anything that is currently on the market.

If someone in L.A. with more technical knowledge of thermodynamics would stop by the store and ask for details I'm sure it would benefit the community immensely. If I come across any more technical details I will be happy to share with you guys.

 

[LTC8K6]

it sounds lightyears ahead of anything that is currently on the market.

Light years? Not sure why you'd take a rep of the company so seriously. He's trying to push the cars.

It sounds ordinary to me, actually. I am unable to find anything impressive about the battery pack at all.

It's a regular Lithium Ion variant that has advantages and disadvantages over the pack in the LEAF, as far as I can tell.

This Miles Electric Vehicle has been around for a while, hasn't it? It's just renamed now and the company reorganized.

Here it is in a 2007 article saying 6 prototypes will soon be ready for testing, and it would be for sale in 2009:

http://money.cnn.com/2007/08/13/autos/electric_car/index.htm?cnn=yes

 

[LTC8K6]

4. What type of batteries will it have?
The XS500 is powered by a 320 volt, 25 kilowatt, 80 amp/hour, advanced, proprietary, safety tested, lithium-ion battery pack. The battery system will take 4-6 hours to charge at 50% depletion and charge on a 220 volt service. The expected battery life of the system is 125,000 to 150,000 miles.

5. What special features does the car have?
The MILES XS500 is an all electric, zero emissions, four-door, highway speed sedan. It will travel 80+ mph for 120+ miles on a single charge. Pininfarina styling and interior design along with sophisticated electronics systems and an advanced airbag system make the XS500 a desirable consumer and fleet car. The XS500 will offer a wide range of options including Bluetooth capability, air conditioning, power seats, power windows, a sunroof and an AM/FM CD stereo system.

Here they claimed 120+ miles range with a 25kw Lion battery pack.

http://green.autoblog.com/2008/02/06/miles-xs500-will-be-a-lot-more-expensive-than-planned/