Coda and Great Wall to Make Battery-Powered Cars

Coda Holdings and Great Wall Motor plan to build battery-powered vehicles to be sold in China under the U.S. company’s name from 2014.

The partnership aims at creating electric cars that would match the price of gasoline-powered autos, after government incentives are included. Coda, the Los Angeles- based maker of electric cars, is closely held by investors such as billionaire Philip Falcone and former U.S. Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson. The company already uses chassis and other parts from China for its electric Coda Sedan. Deliveries for Coda Sedan began in California in March, but the company didn’t unveil how many units it sold.

The Coda Sedan’s price is $38,145, before a $7,500 tax credit. The car covers 88 miles (142 kilometers) per charge, according to a U.S. Environmental Protection Agency estimate, compared to Nissan’s Leaf hatchback which has a $36,050 base price and covers 73 miles per charge. The chassis for this car is produced in Harbin, China, through a partnership with Hafei Motor, and Lithium iron-phosphate cells for its 1,000- pound (454-kilogram) battery pack are from LIO Energy Systems, which is a joint venture of Coda and China’s Tianjin Lishen Battery.