Chrysler talks about it’s electric vehicles some more.  They estimate that by 2020 at least half of the market will be made up of vehicles that utilize batteries to get better mileage in one way or another.  It could be simply shutting the engine off at stops all the way up to fully battery powered vehicles.

“You’re going to see the electrification of all vehicles” in the years ahead, said Frank Klegon, Chrysler’s executive vice president - product development.

The current Dodge EV is Chrysler’s first attempt to build an all electric vehicle (and is likely going to be their first EV in production).  It’s built on a Lotus Europa platform, and would outperform the Lotus on the track.  It goes 0-60 in less than 5 seconds with a top speed of 120 mph.

Though he’s tight lipped about which one will come first, CEO Bob Nardelli promises that by mid decade Chrysler will have a fleet of electric vehicles.

Last week we got a good look at three electric vehicles that Chrysler intends to produce, with one of them coming into production as early as 2010.  If that happens Chrysler would be right there with GM as the only two makers of mass produced electric vehicles (the Tesla Roadster isn’t mass produced).  That’s just the beginning according to Chrysler.

Frank Klegon, Chrysler’s executive vice president of product development, has said that half the cars sold here in 2020 will feature electric power drivetrains.  That’s a pretty amazing leap in just one decade.  Lets hope they can do it.

When does it make sense to outsource key elements of product design and how far do you take it?

Chrysler this week announced that it was much closer than most who follow the auto industry realized with the development of its new prototype of electric cars. It’s clear that cars that can achieve 200 miles on a single battery charge and quickly accelerate to highway speeds on battery power, can resuscitate Chrysler’s market position and possibly be among the factors that change the current oil usage equation.

“We are well ahead where the industry observers thought we were,” Chrysler President Tom LaSorda said.

Whether it was that financial aspect, time-to-market issues, or a combination of both, Chrysler chose to rely on suppliers for help in design of many key elements of the new electric prototype to a much greater degree than usual.

“Chrysler was able to make quick progress on electric cars by relying on outside suppliers for many of the key components,” The Wall Street Journal noted. “That is a big change from the auto industry’s traditional approach in which car makers develop most of a car’s components themselves.”

Right now that bet looks smart. It is clearly part of the trend called “Supply Chain Virtualization,” as companies in most industries are adding less and less value to the products they sell. The supply chain adds 80% or more of the value in many cases, from a production perspective. The final seller is increasingly just the “final assembler” in the process.

Source: SupplyChainDigest