British PM Gordon Brown checks out the Th!nk city EV
British prime minister Gordon Brown received a visit on Monday from Richard Blundell, the managing director of Th!nk UK. Th!nk is the Norwegian manufacturer of electric city cars that was once owned by Ford. Th!nk brought out its city car so that Brown and Transport Secretary Geoff Hoon (now there's a name of a transport secretary!) could check it out along with some other EVs that were on hand (but so far remain unidentified). A high level meeting to discuss electric vehicles is under way at Downing Street and the government may announce plans this week for a £100 million plan to purchase electric vehicles to be tested in several British cities. Th!nk is currently selling its cars in Norway and plans to start UK sales in 2009. The press release is after the jump.
Gallery: Th!nk visits No 10 Downing St
[Source: Th!nk]
PRESS RELEASE:
October 27, 2008
PRIME MINISTER GORDON BROWN AND HIS MINISTERS EXAMINE THE NEW TH!NK city ELECTRIC VEHICLE IN DOWNING STREET
Confirming its commitment to encourage the development of eco-friendly personal transport in the UK, the Government invited several futuristic electric cars to Downing Street today (Monday 27 October).
The line-up of cars, which represented various different solutions to the challenge of creating all-electric vehicles for everyday use in the future, included the new TH!NK city – a 100% electric vehicle fully homologated for the European market.
Prime Minister Gordon Brown, Secretary of State for Transport Geoff Hoon and Business Minister Ian Pearson each examined the THINK city, a vehicle that is already available in Norway and which will go on sale in the UK sometime next year.
The car's appearance in Downing Street coincided with a meeting in London arranged by the Department for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform ( BERR ) and the Department for Transport, where plans to accelerate the mass production and usage of electric vehicles were discussed.
Manufactured by Norwegian electric vehicle (EV) pioneers Think, a company with 17 years experience in EVs, the new TH!NK city is a true, modern urban car, with zero emissions, low cost of ownership and silent running, with no road tax and no congestion charge.
The body of the TH!NK city is made of recyclable ABS plastic, which is designed to resist dents and scratches accumulated in city driving. It has a top speed of 65 miles per hour, accelerates from zero to 30 mph in just 6.5 seconds and to 50 mph in 16 seconds. The car can travel more than 112 miles (180 km) in city driving on a fully charged battery and requires just an overnight top-up of electricity from a domestic electricity socket to restore its charge.
TH!NK city is designed to meet strict safety requirements. Equipped with ABS brakes, airbags and three-point safety belts with pretensioners, it meets all European and US requirements.
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
evpal 6:53PM (10/28/2008)
Today High Gas Prices, Air Pollution and Global Warming are at the forefront of Geopolitical, Economic and Social debates. The Trend is already set for Electric Vehicles powered by New Smaller Safer Cheaper NanoLithium Batteries and other CleanTech advances to be mass produced.
LondonEv and EnglandEv.com at OnlineEv.com.
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Adam 6:06AM (10/29/2008)
Hey guys -- I know they also had the Tesla there, not sure what else. I expect the plug-in Prius would have had a presence.
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lorincdm 2:37AM (10/30/2008)
I can almost hear Jeremy Clarkson ripping the government a new one.
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