Think Stops Production in Europe

Having seen the interest the people in the launch markets have expressed for the small electric car City, Norwegian manufacturer Think kept increasing the production queue for the model, asking Valmet Automotive, the company that builds the cars, to keep at it. This strategy, apparently, backfired, and now Think has to deal with quite a sizeable inventory of cars in Europe. Or, at least, this is the official version.

According to Auto Observer, citing Finnish publication Finansavisen, the decision to ask Valmet to stop producing cars does not come as a result of the high inventory, but as a result of lack of funds. Think has a past of close encounters with bankruptcy, but this time, said the company, that is not the case.

Asking Valmet to stop manufacturing the models, for the moment, is not affecting the North American operations, said Think, as the supply of car bodies from Europe continues, despite the production halt.
In the US, says the company, Think City is slowly gaining ground, building on the high prices for gasoline and the customer's tendency to begin considering electric vehicles. Although it didn't provide any numbers, Think representatives told Auto Observer that it had enough cars to meet the demand.

The models produced in the US use locally sourced lithium-ion batteries. The electric system of the car gives it a top speed of 100 km/hour (62 mph) and allows for a sprint time from naught to 62 mph of 6.5 seconds. During summer and with the heater off, Think City has a range of in between 170 km (105 miles) and 203 km (126 miles).