That is amazing, jacq. I almost got one, but it did not have enough of a safety history to consider at the time. The test drive was really smooth and the car would have been mine if it had a safety record established (back then). I heard that Honda is no longer making the Insight. : ( Maybe they should rethink this and get the 'Google' prize.
BTW What is up with GM and why are they moonlighting with Compact Power????
Monday, August 13, 2007
Novel Batteries Get a Boost
GM plans to develop batteries with A123 Systems for its new electric vehicle.
By Kevin Bullis
MIT Technology Review
technologyreview.com
"General Motors has announced it will work directly with A123 Systems, a start-up based in Watertown, MA, to develop batteries that are fine-tuned for the Chevrolet Volt, an electric vehicle scheduled for production in 2010 or 2011. The new agreement between the companies is designed to speed the vehicle to market. ..... The Volt, first announced in January, will use batteries that can be recharged from a standard electrical outlet and is expected to get 40 miles on a single charge. ..... A123 uses a new lithium-ion chemistry that allows its batteries to be much lighter and more compact than the nickel metal hydride batteries in existing hybrids today, and safer than the conventional lithium ion batteries found in consumer electronics. In June GM announced that it is working with the South Korean company LG Chem, and its subsidiary Compact Power, based in Troy, MI, to make both battery packs and the individual cells inside them. ..... Earlier this year GM had picked A123 Systems as a potential supplier of lithium-ion batteries for a new version of its Saturn Vue hybrid that can be recharged by plugging it in, giving it a 10 mile all-electric range." |
