GenX cars to b powered by lithium cells, fuel cell dead?

[Apollo]

The future is high on lithium Last Updated: 12:01am BST 09/06/2007

 

 

Lithium-ion battery-powered cars came a step closer this week, writes Andrew English

 

American giant General Motors signed development contracts with two companies (Compact Power of Michigan and Continental of Germany) for the advanced development of lithium-ion batteries for its hybrid electric Volt concept.

 

GM hopes to have the Volt, which has its drive train mounted on the chassis rails from the Astra hatchback, on sale by 2012. "The first Volt to go on sale will be the fuel-cell version," said Dr Christopher Borroni-Bird, GM's director of advanced technology, who warned that without government incentives to consumers such technology might be still born. "We can't go on subsidising this business forever," he said.

 

At the same time, Mitsubishi UK MD Jim Tyrrell has confirmed he has asked for 3,000 lithium-ion versions of the Mitsubishi "i" to come to Britain when it goes on sale in 2010. (The petrol-powered "i" goes on sale this summer.)

 

The battery-powered "i" will dispense with the heavy in-rear-wheel motors on the concept car and use a simpler single motor, driving the front wheels. "They will test the car in Tokyo from August," says Tyrrell. "They hadn't planned to sell in Europe until I told them about the congestion charges." So does this mean the fuel cell is dead? Yes, if you believe Ricardo CEO Dave Shemmans. "Battery cars will overtake fuel cells; even the Japanese think that," he said.

 

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/motoring/main.j...09/mnvolt09.xml

 

mitsubishi r tied with Yuasa on the new battery development. mitsu own sista company MHI r also developing newer batteries for cars.