Mazda announces plans to produce an EV from 2012 as GM scales-up production of Volt
Wed 26 January 2011
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Mazda has confirmed its entrance into the electric vehicle (EV) market, following in the footsteps of rivals Nissan and Toyota. Japan's fifth-largest car manufacturer has announced plans to produce a battery-run sub-compact car in Japan from 2012, reversing its previous policy of focusing on improving the efficiency of its petrol and diesel ranges.
The car is to be based on the company's Mazda2 model, known as Demio in some markets, and expects to have a range of about 200km (124 miles) on a full charge.
Although Mazda initially plans to lease the car to Japanese government bodies and fleet customers it will eventually be sold for less than 3m yen (£23,080) after subsidies.
Meanwhile, GM says that it plans to accelerate its US roll-out of the Chevrolet Volt hybrid electric car which will be available nationwide by the end of the year. The carmaker said that a surge in customer demand had influenced its decision to step up marketing of the high-performance car just days after Nissan ramped up production of its Leaf EV.
The car has only been available to consumers in Washington DC, California, New York, Connecticut, New Jersey and Texas since its release last month, but deliveries will begin in a further 11 states this summer. By the end of the year, Chevrolet expects to deliver Volts in all 50 states. The model will be marketed in the UK from 2012 as the Vauxhall Ampera.
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