Chevy Spark EV

[NeilBlanchard]

The Chevy Spark EV has been announced, and it looks pretty good, so far. Seats four, costs ~$32,500 before incentives, and has a pack that is at least 20kWh using A123 cells. They did some aerodynamic mods and lowered the Cd from 0.36 down to 0.325; a 10% reduction.



Chevy Spark EV Can Be Had For Under $25,000 After Incentives - Gas 2

2014 Chevrolet Spark EV Priced At Less Than $32,500

The battery pack is under the back seat and the hatch floor, and it is very torquey - 400ft/lb.



If I missed an earlier post on this, I apologize.

[gone-ot]

...it super-fast recharges on DC, but that option is an EXTRA COST OPTION! Standard is the same-o-same-o 120/240VAC charger units as VOLT uses (8 hr overnight).

...sorry, but 0.325 Cd is NOT very good aerodynamics...the much bigger VOLT is around 0.30 as I recall.

[NeilBlanchard]

I agree - the company that built the EV1 with its Cd of 0.20 is capable of much more. At least they are going to build and sell a practical four seat, four door EV. EV's save about $17,000 per 100K miles of driving vs an average ~22mpg vehicle. The Spark EV is better (on paper at least) than the Mitsubishi i MiEV which is selling for almost exactly the same price. We can hope that Honda sees the light and sells their Fit EV everywhere, for a similar price - I think they would clean up!

[Ryland]

In comparison, the Mitsubishi i-MiEV has a 16kwh battery pack and a 62 mile range, with a Drag Coefficient of .35.

So if Chevy can sell the Spark, with a larger battery pack, less drag for the same price as the Mitsubishi i-MiEV then I think that they might have a good market, I suspect that their EPA range is going to be near 80 miles.

[Daox]

Where are you guys getting prices that the Spark at ~$32,500 is less than the MiEV which MSRP starts at $29,125k?

[Daox]

Another difference between the Spark and MiEV is the battery chemistry. The MiEV is using lithium titanate versus the Spark's lithium iron phosphate. I believe lithium titanate is better suited to abuse (fast charging) than lithium iron phosphate. However, the A123 nanophosphate technology should narrow if not eliminate that gap. The townside of lithium titanate I believe is that it is not as energy dense thus the battery is larger and I'd imagine heavier.

[tjts1]

Originally Posted by Old Tele man

...sorry, but 0.325 Cd is NOT very good aerodynamics...the much bigger VOLT is around 0.30 as I recall.

You need to read up on what coefficient of drag means because you're statement is complete nonsense. Trying to compare the Spark to a Volt or EV1 is ridiculous. Drag coefficient has nothing to do with size. A full size car has the same drag coefficient as a 1:18 scale model of the same car. 0.325 is excellent for an upright city car with 5 seats and very short length. Long sedans will always have the CD advantage over short hatchbacks.

Originally Posted by Daox

Another difference between the Spark and MiEV is the battery chemistry. The MiEV is using lithium titanate versus the Spark's lithium iron phosphate. I believe lithium titanate is better suited to abuse (fast charging) than lithium iron phosphate. However, the A123 nanophosphate technology should narrow if not eliminate that gap. The townside of lithium titanate I believe is that it is not as energy dense thus the battery is larger and I'd imagine heavier.

After the Fisker debacle and A123 in bankruptcy I wonder how many battery packs they can actually supply. The original announcement was for 5000 cars but I wouldn't count on them.

[CigaR007]

Originally Posted by NeilBlanchard

They did some aerodynamic mods and lowered the Cd from 0.36 down to 0.325; a 10% reduction.

The Toyota Yaris does not have any of those aero add-ons and has a Cd of 0.29.

Could it be Toyota embellishing their Cd numbers or GM is incapable to get below 0.30 on a hatchback/liftback ?

[Daox]

I do believe when the Prius came out GM had it tested in their wind tunnel and questioned the Cd that Toyota had calculated. That was a while back, and I've only heard it second hand.

[NeilBlanchard]

I think the Leaf Cd is 0.29 and the Volt is 0.28? The Spark EV obviously suffers from shape drag more than detail drag; but at least they are working on it.

My point with bringing up the EV1 is that GM obviously knows how to build a low aero drag car.