Opnion: Chrysler dives into EV and RE-EV

How big of an impact will Chrysler make in the EV and RE-EV market? So far, it looks pretty big. I wouldn’t want to be in Ford’s shoes right now.

The first thing I would applaud Chrysler for is keeping quiet. They state they’ve been working on this for a year, and having a Dodge EV all electric vehicle to drive around a track is proof positive of their efforts. It must have been very difficult for them to sit on the sidelines and let GM and the Chevy Volt hog all the credit for promoting electric vehicles (EVs), specifically range extended electric vehicles (RE-EVs).

The picked a good time to speak up – the push for tax credits for RE-EVs went through the Senate today (whether or not the Senators knew about their plans is a mystery, but it wouldn’t be unheard of if they did know).

Another interesting aspect is that they’re announcing three models. Two of which wont see the showroom floor in late 2010, but shouldn’t be long in following behind the others. One item the executives were sure to point out was that because the system is modular (the engine, batteries, etc) they can push it from one vehicle to another, only having to worry about making enough space for the battery compartment.

Can they deliver? Well, GM has had a huge head start on them, but GM also built the Volt from the ground up. And in terms of battery technology, it appears that both LG Chem and A123 Systems will both deliver batteries around the same time frame (LG Chem will probably be first, followed by A123 shortly thereafter), so that doesn’t matter as much as everyone might think it will – its not like Chrysler has to develop every part in the car themselves, they don’t even do that for their current crop of gasoline vehicles. So as the infrastructure to support the supply chain for RE-EVs and EVs ramps up in 2010, GM and Chrysler will both be there to take the parts and put them into cars.