Official Coda Electric Car thread

[smkettner]

I would pay that for a Leaf with ~50% more battery and leather interior.

 

[SpoonMan]

This is from this week

“Coda Automotive is a start-up company that will deliver its first $44,900 electric cars to customers in its home state of California “in three to four months,” said its president and chief executive, Kevin Czinger.”

http://sfcitizen.com/blog/2010/10/14/coda-automotive-deathwatch-day-1-deliveries-delayed-once-again-promised-chinese-electric-cars-to-come-in-2011/

When will the Leaf waiting list open up again?

 

[cdub]

That car is so DOA. Looks horrible. It's Chinese. It's $15 more expensive. Sorry folks. Back to the drawing board.

 

[evnow]

Merging to the Coda thread.

 

[adric22]

That car is so DOA. Looks horrible. It's Chinese. It's $15 more expensive. Sorry folks. Back to the drawing board.

I agree. Especially at the price point they are going to try selling it at, I just can't see how they would expect to compete with the Leaf or the Volt. I'd rather have a Volt 10 to 1 over that Coda.

 

[mwalsh]

I think that some are being too harsh on the poor Coda. Yes, it's Chinese. Yes, it's a dated design. But the cars I've seen seemed well assembled and didn't look too horribly cheap. Certainly on par with the Smart EV and the older iMievs I've driven (emphasizing older because I've yet to see the new i).

If, as the marketing guy from Coda told me, you can step into a fully charged one and have an expectation of 100 miles range. Period. No matter what, they could have something!

Now Coda has yet to give me a chance to drive, but I'm going to refrain from consigning them to the rank of waanabe until after I have.

 

[SteveInSeattle]

If you won't, I will... Coda has zero chance and probably will never come to market. Once the Ford comes out and there are choices of EVs from Nissan, Ford and Mitsubishi why would anyone buy a from an unknown corporation UNLESS it was thousands cheaper--and it won't be, it will be more. Given the choice of the Leaf at 34K or the Coda at 24K I would have still bought the Leaf.

 

[evnow]

http://www.latimes.com/business/la-fi-autos-coda-sedan-review-20110908,0,2830755.story" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Priced at $44,900 — $34,900 after applying federal and state incentives — the Coda is most notable for its range and quick charging. It can travel as far as 150 miles per charge and can recharge in about six hours with a 220-volt charger; that's twice as fast as the Nissan Leaf, Coda said.

 

[Boomer23]

http://www.latimes.com/business/la-fi-autos-coda-sedan-review-20110908,0,2830755.story

Priced at $44,900 — $34,900 after applying federal and state incentives — the Coda is most notable for its range and quick charging. It can travel as far as 150 miles per charge and can recharge in about six hours with a 220-volt charger; that's twice as fast as the Nissan Leaf, Coda said.

Yeah, I hate how it takes me TWELVE HOURS to charge my LEAF on 220. :lol:

 

[smkettner]

Now Coda has yet to give me a chance to drive, but I'm going to refrain from consigning them to the rank of waanabe until after I have.

Today, Coda is opening its first-ever storefront on L.A.'s Westside in the Westfield Century City mall. Located next to a Swatch shop and Godiva chocolatier, this nontraditional automotive sales outlet is geared toward getting curious passersby into its new car for a test drive.
http://www.latimes.com/business/la-fi-autos-coda-sedan-review-20110908,0,2830755.story" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

 

[IBELEAF]

Yeah, I hate how it takes me TWELVE HOURS to charge my LEAF on 220. :lol:

I think you are confused. Coda has 150 miles range (36 kW battery) so 3 hours of charging will get you 75 miles which is EPA rating of Leaf.

So basically it's roughly $10k more then Leaf... Not really worth the premium for extra 50 miles (and realistically 110 anyway)

 

[Boomer23]

Yeah, I hate how it takes me TWELVE HOURS to charge my LEAF on 220. :lol:

I think you are confused. Coda has 150 miles range (36 kW battery) so 3 hours of charging will get you 75 miles which is EPA rating of Leaf.

So basically it's roughly $10k more then Leaf... Not really worth the premium for extra 50 miles (and realistically 110 anyway)

Yes, I knew that the Coda has the 6 kW charger, hence charges twice as fast as the LEAF. I was just reacting to the quoted statement that the Coda can charge in 6 hours, which is twice as fast as the LEAF.

 

[fooljoe]

Well actually, since it has 1.5 times the battery capacity at 36 kwh (IBELEAF, please don't forget the h in kwh), then it can only charge 133% faster than the Leaf. This of course because for some stupid reason all EV writeups insist on saying how long it takes to charge the battery from 0 to full - something that a typical driver should NEVER experience. :roll:

 

[Herm]

Today, Coda is opening its first-ever storefront on L.A.'s Westside in the Westfield Century City mall.

Finally.. This would be the perfect BEV for high mileage drivers in hot weather.. with a much larger pack, active temp control, bigger charger and long life LiFePO4 chemistry sounds like you get a deal for the extra cash.

 

[jkirkebo]

Today, Coda is opening its first-ever storefront on L.A.'s Westside in the Westfield Century City mall.

Finally.. This would be the perfect BEV for high mileage drivers in hot weather.. with a much larger pack, active temp control, bigger charger and long life LiFePO4 chemistry sounds like you get a deal for the extra cash.

And for $13k more you can get the Tesla Model S with an even bigger pack (42kWh base model), much bigger (luxury) car, even more powerful charger (probably at least 16.8kW) and the best battery temp control available. Not to mention the 5.6s 0-60 time.

The Coda is at least $10k too expensive to be even mildly successful.

 

[adric22]

The Coda is at least $10k too expensive to be even mildly successful.

Yep - and being that it looks like a cheap, late 1990's model Ford Escort, and priced more than a Chevy Volt, I'd rather have the Volt 10-to-1 over the Coda.

 

[Herm]

And for $13k more you can get the Tesla Model S with an even bigger pack (42kWh base model), much bigger (luxury) car, even more powerful charger (probably at least 16.8kW) and the best battery temp control available. Not to mention the 5.6s 0-60 time.

There are a lot of people that wont drive a Model S, way too flashy and sporty looking. I like the looks of the Coda, very practical looking and I like the battery chemistry, that pack will last a lot longer than Tesla's laptop batteries.

The supply of BEVs is so limited that they will all sell.

 

[abasile]

I also like that the Coda sedan has more range and a battery chemistry that is likely more robust. However, Coda being a little-known startup company with an uncertain future, I think they need to be selling their sedan for the same price as the LEAF or lower if they want to grab market share. Unfortunately, they probably cannot afford to take the kind of loss on each car that Nissan is able to tolerate.

Even today, there seem to be enough LEAF orphans that someone determined to purchase an EV can find one at MSRP. Of course, they might need to have it trucked. You'd have to really want a Coda sedan to pay ~ $10K more than a LEAF orphan.

 

[jkirkebo]

You'd have to really want a Coda sedan to pay ~ $10K more than a LEAF orphan.

Not to mention it's a sedan, the most impractical body type available short of two-door cars. I'd never buy a car where the rear window didn't open and the rear seats didn't fold down.

Thankfully, both the Leaf and the Model S are hatchbacks.

 

[smkettner]

The Coda is at least $10k too expensive to be even mildly successful.

Yep - and being that it looks like a cheap, late 1990's model Ford Escort, and priced more than a Chevy Volt, I'd rather have the Volt 10-to-1 over the Coda.

I would take Coda over Volt any day. Pricing is high but not outrageous.
I really hope Coda does very well.... and others follow when they see the money being made.

It will be interesting with new federal mileage requirements if the electrics get subsidized by the larger gasoline vehicles.