Mercedes will produce electric car in 2010

Mercedes is developing a 100% luxury (what else?) car referred to as the “S-Class.” It will be manufactured luxury to mid-size and will run on a lithium-ion battery. The lithium-ion battery pack is stored under the hood. The driver will have the options of plugging it in to charge it or letting the “dynamo” device charge it while it’s running.
Their tests show it was able to get approximately 105 miles before needing to recharge.

By 2010, Mercedes promises to have on the market an all-electric version of its popular sub-compact, the Smart Fortwo, as well as a similarly-powered version of one of its higher-end offerings. Whether it will be based on Benz’s entry-level B-class hatchback, or some higher-end model has not yet been revealed. “We plan an electric Smart for 2010 and for the same year a Mercedes (electric) model as well,” said Dieter Zetsche, aka Dr. Z, to a German paper.

Mercedes has acquired 25 patents for lithium-ion battery technology. These are to be used in their new S 400 Blue Hybrid next year. The S 300 model a year later. The general consensus is that they will be rolling out late 2010 or early 2011 if production goes according to plan.

This is great future for the people who can afford to buy Mercedes.