Ford Magna electric car in India by 2011

Indian roads will see yet another electric car – this time from a large car maker.

Ford Motor Company and Magna International are planning to launch an electric car in North America in 2011, and there is a good chance that the car would make its way to India too the same year.

Electric cars are ideal for countries like India and China where the gasoline economy and infrastructure are not as developed as i the West – and they can leapfrog an entire generation if they can offer practical electric cars to their customers.

The arrival of the new electric vehicle from Ford-Magna will futher boost the confidence of the Indian car market. Alternative fuels such as CNG, LPG are already popular in India, and several Indian companie shave plans to launch pure electric cars or electric versions of their existing cars in India.

Ford is using its global platform to build new new products. The Magna combine is expected to provide a much needed leg up to the car maker as it gets ready to migrate its electric vehicles to markets in Europe and the Asia-Pacific. The Ford-Magna combine will look at venturing into prospective markets in these regions with the new electric vehicle, it is expected.

The new electric car that is being redied at the Ford facilirty in North America is being described as a zero-emission lithium-ion battery electric vehicle (BEV). The car, which will be a sedan, is likely to record a range of up to 150 km on a single charge. Previews of the concept under construction said that its on-board battery charger has the capability to pluginto a 110-volt or a 220-volt outlet. The charging time of 110 volts being 12 hours and half of this would be 220 volts, they added.

Meanwhile, even as the electric car is being developed in the North America facilty of Ford, the car maker has bullish plans for India. Apart from upping workforce by 1,500 in a phased manner and is looking to expand its Chennai plant, the company is believed to be lining up an all-new small car, based on the Verve model. The model is expected to be unveiled by year 2010 .

The small car is being lined up in such a way that it would have the designs to meet Indian conditions and emission norms. The car is expected to come powered by a a sub-1.2-litre engine.