Th!nk, then Think Again
Well, back in the day (1999), when GM was still creating the EV-1, Ford wanted to come up with something electrical of its own and it did - it was called for Ford Th!nk and it was designed and made in Norway. Scandinavians, of course, are known as resourceful people. With their long winters and short growing seasons, they have had plenty of time to think about, hmmm, herring, engineering, the sea and umm, Scandinavian women. I call these the Norwegian thought equivalent of the USDA's Four Food groups.
Anyway, the Ford Th!nk, like the EV-1, did not take off. Actually, I have driven both vehicles and found them to be . . . . functional. Fast forward to 2006 and a new business model is afoot between Norway and Silicon Valley. The new, redesigned Think City is, of course, electric. Computers are electric. For that matter electric utilities and their grids are electric and so is the web. What if the Think City was built like a Dell computer - presold, assembled, and delivered? What if you bought the car without the battery but leased the battery instead? What if your Think City was really like a laptop computer that you could drive around in - in contact with you, with the web, with the grid? It is a new business model and several major people are involved and investors: Dean Kamen of Segway fame; the guys who started Google - Sergey and Larry, and Jan-Olaf Willums, CEO of Think.
There is more, much more to be learned about this vehicle and the business concepts it is built around. As expected, the fuel-burning heat engine is taking a back seat to first low-power electronics (fuel injection, ABS, etc.) and now high-power electronics (electric drive). Well, I would say it had a good run and "it ain't over till the fat lady sings." For instance, Dean Kamen wants to put a little multi-fuel Stirling engine in the Think to serve as a range extender. As a matter of fact their is a picture of him holding the engine and generator in his hands in front of the EV Think. Hey, wait a minute, didn't I write about such a removable unit just last week?
[Source: Business 2.0]
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
Arnie 11:23AM (8/11/2007)
I applaud ABGreen for keeping us posted on Think. I think Think (hehe) is the most viable e-car project in the world currently. I have driven one (the old model) and this is a car I might actually buy. I'm not aware of a similar program more likely to make a difference in the world today. If I had a couple of hundred million dollars stashed away, I might even want to invest in the company. And believe me, these cars would not be manufactured in China if I had a say. ;-)
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TX CHL Instructor 11:45AM (8/12/2007)
I like the idea of EV. I would love to own one, but the economics of EV aren't quite ready for prime time. I hope that they will be in the next decade, but I'm not too optimistic about that.
Right now, I could completely wear out a brand new car with a total cost of ownership over a ten-year period less than the purchase price of an equivalent EV (including fuel at $4-$5/gallon, assuming about 20mpg and 12K miles/year, and maintenance).
The EV that I *really* want is not even produced anywhere. It would be a small pickup (or similar vehicle capable of hauling at least one passenger, and bulky, but not heavy, loads) with 120 mile range at 60mph.
Maybe the cost/performance balance will swing in favor of EV in 40 years, which is not likely to be in my lifetime.
Speaking of economics, I wonder why we aren't hearing about potassium or sodium based technologies. Na and K both have chemistry similar to lithium, and should be enough cheaper to offset the weight penalty (especially sodium!).
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GoodCheer 10:47AM (8/13/2007)
I love the Th!nk. I think it is just the EV that the world needs in order to get BEVs accepted by the public.
The other reason I love them and wish the company success and profit is that the success of Th!nk would be a huge middle finger to Ford and Detroit for spending their money on lawyers to squash CARB rather than on engineers to advance automotive technology. Be sure I'll buy one when my Civic finally dies.
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GoodCheer 3:39PM (8/15/2007)
I don't know if the editors of AutoBlogGreen come back to old posts (like this one), but I was wondering if we would get to see Th!nk appear in the "Manufacturers" section of the ABG right hand column.
Being one of the most promising BEVs I know of to
-manage reasonable range and speed numbers
-get to mass production
-soon
-pass American crash testing
I'd think it's worth keeping an eye on.
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