Indian conglomerate Tata, makers of the controversial Nano and owners of two British marques, has introduced an all-electric version of their Indian-market Indica V2 hatchback. The kicker is that this Indica EV will be ready for production by 2009.
The first batch of the Tata Indica EV is designed for the chilly Norwegian market, of all places, since India apparently does not have the infrastructure to support a plug-in electric car. The car isn’t as revolutionary as the upcoming Chevy Volt though. Featuring special lithium-ion batteries in the boot, a permanent-magnet synchronous electric motor and a single-speed transmission, with no petrol engine of any kind.
Unlike the practical Volt, the subcompact Indica EV has a range of only 175 km to 200 km, and takes around 8 hours to fully charge, similar to many Chinese electric models in development. And we are pretty sure those figures are highly optimistic.
by Boris(K-sport), on September 8 2008 @ 4:56 pm
whoa whoa whoa whoa! hold it there… single speed trany??? on a 5-dr hatch? no wonder it gets less than 200km. its the same with electric motors as IC engines; the more gears you have, lesser the fuel consumption [in this case, power consumption] and thus, a longer range. If they offer me one for free, I won’t buy it what so ever. I could do better with those golf carts which are found in the dubai airport. they have more seats too.
by vin, on September 8 2008 @ 5:06 pm
electric motors are different from petrol and diesel engines. they do not require multi-gear ratio transmission.
by Mashfique Hussain Chowdhury, on September 8 2008 @ 6:00 pm
True. Electric motors provide instant acceleration when you press the throttle fully, just like those golf carts.
by nomi, on September 9 2008 @ 7:24 am
dum dum and useless car
by vivek, on September 9 2008 @ 5:09 pm
with that range, the car is no good for more than a drive to the nearby grocery store and back. And anyway, it is not for the Indian market and hence I dont think I should care. The diesel version of V2 is more than enuf!
by sar, on September 9 2008 @ 6:10 pm
look who is talking…people who can’t even manufacture a needle by themselves..nor even study a engine and make a copy of it or modify it..just buy and sell through dealers…if you ask them to fit a bull bar…they will weld it to chassis and paint…look who is talking…
by Boris(K-sport), on September 9 2008 @ 7:11 pm
well duh! we are the ‘customers’ and ‘audience’ and we expect something from a brand, not build our own cars. car manufacturers wouldnt even be there if ppl were building their own cars. So its them who have to give us what we ‘ask’ for.
I have no concern for this vehicle. mitsu, chevy and Lotus tesla are great with electric drivetrains. But negetive comments dont mean a brand cant accomplish things. If they’re smart, they’ll look to improve on the weknesses. Look at Hyundai-Kia. A decade ago, who’d have thought they’d reach no. 5 position in auto ranks.
by assassin, on September 9 2008 @ 7:33 pm
why does this car got an exhaust if it works by battery?
by Mashfique Hussain Chowdhury, on September 9 2008 @ 8:07 pm
Because I used photos of the non-electric version. After buying LR/Jaguar, Tata is too poor to take press photos of their latest cars.
by thatsit(mohamad), on September 9 2008 @ 9:59 pm
to get rid of the burned electricity assassin
by Al-gasimi, on September 17 2008 @ 3:03 am
u must be really happy mashfeq, ur home country is doing very well. congratss
by Mashfique Hussain Chowdhury, on September 17 2008 @ 4:44 am
…except that I’m not Indian.