Pininfarina plans battery-powered car

The way to drop the dependence on foreign oil (especially unstable Middle Eastern oil where the inevitable third world war will turn world markets into turmoil) is to build nuclear power plants to generate electricity (at least one in every state we say) and for all cars to be electric powered with outlets everywhere you go to plug in and recharge. It seems the automakers are starting to think that way too as increasingly we are hearing of eclectic cars on the drawing board.

The Chevy Volt is one such car. Italian designer and manufacturer Pininfarina and French battery maker Bolloré jointly plan to build a battery-powered car.

Pininfarina will design and build the four-passenger car while Bolloré will provide a lithium-metal-polymer battery from plants in France and Canada, according to a Pininfarina statement.

Bolloré said its battery pack has no liquids that could spill, overheat or start fires. On a full charge, the car will have a 155-mile range in city driving. Bolloré claims a battery life expectancy of more than 120,000 miles.

On the performance side, the car is expected to accelerate from 0 to 31 mph in 4.9 seconds and have a top speed of about 80 mph. The car can be recharged with a conventional household power outlet. A full charge will take about five hours, while a five-minute jolt will be good for 15.5 miles of range.

Pricing has not been announced. Pininfarina said it expects to begin sales in Europe, Japan and the United States by 2010.