Refinanced Think Says City Car EV Production Will Resume in November

Norwegian EV-maker Think says it will resume production next month after more six months of financial turmoil that idled manufacturing.

But the new plastic-bodied Think City car (right) won't be built in Norway. Production is moving to Finland where investor and contract auto builder Valmet Automotive will assemble them along with the Boxters and Caymens it now builds for Porsche. Valmet also has the contract to build the Fisker Karma exotic plug-in hybrid for Southern California-based Fisker Automotive.

Think Sales Director Richard Walz told Automotive News Europe that the company hopes to have 4,600 cars built next year,  to supply government and private customers.

The company, which also has plans to build and sell its highway-legal Think City electric car in the U.S., said it has accumulated 2,300 orders - almost 80 percent for government fleets in Europe.

Fun and Practical

Green Car Advisor hasn't been able to wrangle seat-time in one of the company's cars since it was owned by Ford Motor Co. (which bought Think in 1999 and sold it in 2003), but we can report that back then it was a fun, practical little runabout, with a range of 50 miles and a top speed of 55 miles an hour. That range has been doubled since then with advanced lithium-ion batteries. 

The two-seater has a plastic body with the color molded in - great in parking lots because it absorbs door dings and shopping car scratches.

Back then it had an air conditioner, heater, stereo and CD player and a roomy storage area behind the bucket seats, accessible via an all glass rear hatch.

We're told most of the interior and exterior specs are the same now as then, although there have been changes made to the powertrain and suspension.

U.S. Roots

While it was founded - and continues to be headquartered - in Norway, Think has put down pretty deep roots in the U.S.

When it recently raised $47 million to complete its reorganization, Think's largest investor was U.S. battery maker Ener1 Inc., which not only holds a 31 percent stake in the company but has the contract to supply its lithium-ion batteries through its EnerDel subsidiary.

Ener1's CEO, Charles Gassenheimer, is a member of Thinks' board, along with former General Motors executive Ken Baker and Rockport Capital Partners managing parner William E. James.

Think's chef executive is former Ford executive Richard Canny.

We're hoping the U.S. influences help bring us the Think City and other electric cars the company has planned, and sooner rather than later.

John O'Dell, Senior Editor

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John O'Dell October 19, 2009, 9:28 AM

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Plug-ins and Electric, Think

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EVs, Think City, Think Electric Cars