Tuesday, January 31, 2012

Coda will start selling Sedan in February, report says


Coda Automotive will finally start selling its battery-electric sedan by the end of February, Coda CEO Phil Murtaugh told the Detroit News.

The Los Angeles-based company will soon have five dealers – one in San Diego, one in the San Francisco Bay Area and three others in locations that haven't been disclosed – the newspaper said, adding that Coda plans to have 40 dealers in 25 cities by year end. The company hasn't disclosed how many vehicles it plans to sell this year.

The company, which opened its Los Angeles headquarters in November, said last September that it raised $147 million in its fourth round of financing to bring its total to more than $300 million since the company's 2009 founding. Coda will sell its 150-mile-range Sedan for $39,900 and said earlier this month that it would offer a version with a slightly shorter range for $2,650 less.

Coda Automotive parent company Coda Holdings said last week that it would launch a division specializing in energy storage, as the company looks to cash in on what many believe will be a rapidly growing market for secondary use of electric-vehicle batteries. The new company, Coda Energy, will specialize in designing battery systems that may be used for on-site power supply as well as a backup power source in the event of a grid outage. Coda has an existing business partnership with its car-battery supplier Lishen, which also makes lithium-ion batteries for companies such as Apple and Samsung.



Source: Autoblog Green