I am interested in seeing reliably and longevity of the batteries.


Hybrid Technologies has started production on the all-lithium electric MINI Cooper MINI . The electric version of the popular MINI has been in development for the past two years. This version of the MINI uses Hybrid Tech's own proprietary advanced lithium management and battery-balancing system to propel the car.

The system uses a brushless AC motor that puts out 105 hp and is capable of moving the electric MINI (1,315kg) from 0-60 mph in six seconds. The top speed of the car is 80mph and with more passive driving the vehicle is capable of going 120 miles on a single charge.

The Electric-Powered MINI Cooper Has Started Production and It Has Lithium-Ion Batteries (The Torque Report)

 

thats nice !.. good performance, good range.

I fear the price though.

Performance, Range and Good Price - Pick 2.

 

yeah its for sure a jump in the right direction

 

hmmmm....article dated july 12th, 2007. A year old.

Here are some of there products:
Cars | Hybrid Technologies

 

This is the article that caught my eye... it's dated 7/8/08, but doesn't have a lot of information.
BMW Builds 500 Electric-Powered MINI Coopers for California (The Torque Report)

I searched around on that site and found the older article but it doesn't has as much info.

 

Fad. Lithium-ion is expensive, and starts to degenerate the second it rolls off the assembly line. It will start holding less and less power for about 2 years until catastrophic failure. So factor in the cost of new batteries every 2 years. I wonder how environmentally friendly that is.