BorgWarner (BW) is to supply its eGearDrive transmission for Santa Monica-based Coda Automotive’s electric sedan, scheduled for introduction in California next year.
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Designed for electric vehicles with either front-or rear-drive transverse drivelines, the eGearDrive unit is a single-speed transmission with high torque capacity, high efficiency, and low noise, vibration and harshness in a compact package, according to its maker.
About a year ago, BW began supplying electric sportscar maker Tesla Motors with a similar single-speed gearbox for its Roadster after an earlier two-speed unit from a rival supplier proved not to be durable.
In Coda’s sedan, the transmission will be paired with a UQM Technologies ‘PowerPhase’ electric propulsion system.
Coda has a lithioum-ion battery joint venture with Lishen Power Battery, China’s main state-owned battery manufacturer, and also designs and makes power battery systems.
It is working on a range of what it describes as “fully safety compliant, all-electric cars capable of mainstream performance and highway use”.
On sale from autumn 2010 in California, the four-door, five-passenger, “fully-equipped” mid-size sedan will sell for US$45,000 (mid-$30,000s after deducting a $7,500 federal tax credit and additional state incentives), Coda said on its website.
It will have a 333V lithium-ion battery with a “real-world range of 90 to 120 miles depending on individual driving habits” between charges.
An on-board charger will plug into any standard 110 or 220V outlet and complete a full charge in under six hours on 220V service. Charging the battery for a 40-mile commute can be completed in two hours, Coda said.
