Electric Car Built in State to Be Unveiled : Energy: The Calstart consortium hopes that the prototype is the first step toward achieving an advanced transportation industry in California.
The first ambassador of California’s fledgling electric-vehicle industry comes out of the workshop today.
Calstart, the public-private consortium whose goal is to foster an advanced transportation industry in California, will unveil its prototype electric car, built from parts made by 17 California companies.
The Showcase Electric Vehicle--one of three key Calstart projects--will be exhibited at automobile shows in Los Angeles, Geneva and Tokyo in January, and later at shows in other international cities. The car shows off the advanced electric-vehicle components that California companies, particularly defense and aerospace firms, are preparing to produce and market.
Calstart proponents hope to interest auto makers around the globe in the advanced engineering techniques and highly trained work force available in California. Almost all foreign and U.S. auto makers intend to build alternative-fuel vehicles in the next decades as air-quality regulations require them to sharply reduce auto emissions.
Calstart backers predict that their three projects--the prototype vehicle; a program to build charging stations, battery recycling stations and other infrastructure services, and an effort to promote electric buses in California--could create more than 55,000 jobs in the state.
Since its inception last June, the consortium has won $2 million in support from the State of California and $4 million in federal funding. The prototype vehicle was built with contributions from Calstart members and $375,000 in seed money from the South Coast Air Quality Management District.
Calstart has raised $14 million from its more than 40 members, or $20 million from all sources.
Construction of the prototype was directed by Amerigon Inc., a small Monrovia engineering firm whose founder, Dr. Lon E. Bell, has been a principal in the Calstart effort. The consortium’s goal has been to design parts that are highly efficient and environmentally safe.
Companies Working on Calstart Calstart, a public-private consortium formed to encourage an advanced electric vehicle industry in California, will soon hit the road worldwide to market components built by California manufacturers. Beginning in January, Calstart will exhibit its prototype car--using state-of-the-art components--to the public and the auto industry at national and international car shows. Most of the components represent new technology that is both highly efficient and environmentally benign. Below is a list of each company, its location and the component it makes. Hughes Power Control Systems, Torrance, battery charging system Kaiser Aluminum & Chemical Corp., Pleasanton, recyclable aluminum frame Fairchild Manufacturing Corp., Sacramento, plastic underbody panel Pirelli Armstrong Tire Corp., Hanford, low-resistance tires Aerojet, Azusa plant, collision warning system Amerigon Inc., Burbank, energy-consumption management system Avery Dennison Corp., Pasadena, dry paint body color IWON Motronics Corp., Burbank, electric drive motor Delta Tau Data Systems Inc., Canoga Park, motor-efficiency controller Group IX Systems, Los Angeles, battery monitors Dowty Aerospace, Los Angeles, Duarte energy-efficient brakes Trojan Battery Co., Santa Fe Springs, improved lead-acid batteries HUB Engineering Co., Burbank, lightweight battery housing Amerigon Inc., Burbank, system that uses weight of the vehicle’s batteries to activate safety devices such as seat belts, air bags Feher Design Inc., Burbank, seats that heat or cool passengers to improve interior heating/cooling efficiency International Rectifier Corp., El Segundo, electronic switches ITT Cannon, Santa Ana, high-voltage wires and connectors Audio Navigation System Inc., Burbank, on-board, voice-recognition route navigation system
