GM’s troubled Adam Opel GmbH subsidiary presented the lithium-ion battery powered hatchback Ampera on Tuesday at the Geneva Motor Show, where electric-powered vehicles emerged as one way to persuade environmentally aware consumers to buy new cars during the global recession.
Other automakers - including Chrysler, Mitsubishi and Ford - also touted their plans for cars equipped with electric motors as the industry both seeks to overcome the current crisis that has decimated sales and meet increasingly tough environmental and carbon emission standards.
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The Ampera presented in Geneva was a white four-door sedan with a hatchback - and a set of front headlights that created a menacing, masculine impression. An Opel official demonstrated how the car could easily be plugged into any household electrical supply.
Mitsubishi Motors Corp. said it has reached an understanding with Peugeot Citroen PSA to sell its new electric car “i MiEV” to European customers as early as late next year.
By contrast, Ford, Toyota and Chrysler showed only concept cars that illustrate the company’s thinking about electric cars.
Chrysler showed its Dodge Circuit EV sports car, which was unveiled in Detroit.
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Toyota showed its FT-EV fully electric 4-seater concept car, also previewed in Detroit as part of the Japanese automaker’s pledge to produce a fully electric commuter vehicle by 2012.
At the same time, the Ampera, the European relative to the North American Volt, and the Chevrolet Spark, which Opel also presented in Geneva for sale in Europe by early next year, represents the kind of technology that it can get from its U.S. parent company.
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