Fiat EV 500 delivered 2012 battery makes $10k loss for Chrysler

Chrysler faces $10,000 hit on every Fiat 500 EV it sells

That heavy financial hit won't stop the automaker from launching the Chrysler-built electric version of the minicar in the United States in 2012,

$45,000 why ?

The gasoline-powered 500 starts at $15,500 in United States, which means the electric version would cost more than $45,000, based on Marchionne's comments.

Production model would start at $32,000, with the batteries accounting for half of the minicar's cost.

While Fiat and Marchionne are skeptical about the future of EVs, alliance partners Renault SA and Nissan Motor Co. see a bright future for battery-powered transportation.

The alliance partners aim to have a combined 1.5 million EVs on the road worldwide by 2016. The first model to come out of the alliance was the Nissan Leaf compact hatchback, which was named 2011 European Car of the Year.

The Leaf will be joined later this year by the full-electric Renault Fluence mid-sized sedan and Kangoo car-derived van. Renault-Nissan wants to have annual production capacity for 500,000 EVs by 2015. The partners have invested a combined 4 billion euros to develop EVs and batteries.

source: autonews.com