.jpg)
The Th!nk City electric car's proportions are almost normal, so it looks bigger than it is from some angles, like this one.
View full slideshow
The Norwegian Th!nk automaker doesn’t sell its City electric car in the U.S., but it is rare in the world for producing something that’s street legal and gas-free and releasing it freely into the hands of its customers.
But demonstrations of the Th!nk City in the U.S. may be counterproductive to the idea that electric is the way to go any time in the near future. Some deride the popular Toyota Prius hybrid and the upcoming Chevrolet Volt plug-in as stopgap measures, as they still require some gasoline – the Prius if you accelerate quickly or drive more than about 40 miles per hour, the Volt if you travel more than 40 miles – but they are what the Th!nk is not: real cars.
The Th!nk City that was recently brought to Washington makes the diminutive Smart ForTwo seem substantial. Like the Smart, it seats only two passengers – three, if someone sits on the cargo floor behind the car’s two actual seats, as a Th!nk representative did during one test drive – but more than any other car produced in recent years, it feels crude and not fully constructed.
The Th!nk’s plastic-bodied doors feel flimsy and there’s no power steering or air conditioning – both would overtax the electric motor. The interior includes a hodgepodge of parts familiar to my personal Ford Focus, a vestige of that company’s former involvement with Th!nk. And the car doesn’t feel peppy or solid even in gentle city driving, and has an absolute top speed of just 65 miles per hour. The company’s website doesn’t list an acceleration time of zero to 60 mph – the most common automotive metric – but it takes 16 seconds to reach 50. (The average economy car in the U.S. hits 60 mph in about 10 seconds, and even they are losing wind at the higher speeds.)
The Th!nk also doesn’t look like a real car. With the shape and proportions of a normal small hatchback but with shrunken dimensions all around, it resembles more of a Little Tykes Cozy Coupe than another current automobile, even a Smart.
The Th!nk City does get around without using any gasoline, allegedly going over 100 miles on a charge. It is a step above a golf cart and can be driven on the road, even if the driving experience is more in line with 15-year-old Geo Metro than cars presently available in the U.S. And it’s not inordinately expensive, like experimental electric cars such as the General Motors EV-1 have been; though it sells for around $34,000 in Norway, that’s a country where a Toyota Corolla would set you back close to $40,000.
But the little Th!nk can be used as an argument to the inaccurate idea that a real car cannot be environmentally friendly – that there can be no usable yet inexpensive electric car. Such a vehicle is likely on the way.
But until then, electric vehicle advocates would be wise to act as though the Th!nk did not exist. It is far from where it would need to be to convert a skeptic to the merits of an electric car's potential.
Vehicle tested: Th!nk City electric car
Version base price: 212,500 Norwegian kroner / $34,000 US
Key specifications:
Length: 122.8 inches
Width: 63.1 inches
Height: 60.9 inches
Wheelbase: 77.6 inches
Weight: 3,080 pounds
Turning radius: 14.8 feet
Powertrain: 3-phase asyncron electric motor
Top speed: 65 miles per hour
For more info: http://www.think.no/think/TH!NK-city/TH!NK-i-city-i
Comments
Does the $34K price include or exclude the battery? One of the articles said it excludes the battery which is an additional $20K or so, which would make the total price about $54K?
The price does not include the battery, which is leased from the Th!nk company, at least under the current arrangement in Norway. The lease rate for the battery is 975 kroner (about $157) per month, but that also means that the company is fully responsible for maintaining/repairing/replacing the battery.
I have to take exception with the Brad's comments. I had a Th!nk City for 30 months and loved it. It was the previous version that had a top speed of 56mph. No having power steering, wasn't a problem. The new Th!nk City, being designed by Ford, is a real car, I don't agree that its a step above a golf cart - even the previous version that I had, considering that is was a low volume production car, was substantially more than a golf cart in every way. I now have a Smart Car and I actually prefer the Th!nk City. I'm not sure how he could say, "The Th!nk City... makes the diminutive Smart ForTwo seem substantial." My Th!nk City had a lot more storage space and the Th!nk is over a foot longer than the Smart Car. A small electric car isn't designed for everyone - just like each gas car isn't for everyone. Brad evidently has it in his mind that the Th!nk City is not a viable car. I would ask him to actually spend some time with one to really evaluate it. I'm looking forward to having one.
You really can't directly convert the cost of a car in Europe to what it will cost in the U.S. Most countries have significant taxes which, but the base costs also tend to be higher there (for reasons I haven't quite figured out). I've expected the Th!nk to show up here at around $20k with a $100 to $200 monthly battery lease, but I worry the price could be higher
It's definitely not a car for everybody. The design is kind of a warmed-over version of what they had ten years ago when Ford was backing the company (but if you're switching from a car that's 10 years old anyway, would you notice? ;-)
Anyway, it's a big step up from any of the neighborhood electric vehicles (NEVs) that are around now, since those don't get crash-tested and are limited to 25 mph. I know a number of people who'd like an electric city car, but need to handle a handful of roads that have 40 to 50 mph speed limits and are unsuitable for the cheaper NEVs.
mulad,
To give a context for the extra cost of cars in Norway, I'd included the price of a Toyota Corolla there -- the equivalent of nearly $40,000.
Who pays you for writing this article?
I suppose american car industry??
Exactly right. It's a big conspiracy to cover up the fact that this vehicle doesn't actually have any of the shortcomings this article details. But please don't tell anyone.
Got something to say?
Examiner.com is looking for writers, photographers, and videographers to join the fastest growing group of local insiders. If you are interested in growing your online rep apply to be an Examiner today!