Once thought to be a no-brainer for eco-conscious car consumers, electric car sales have fallen short of the mark. The costs of manufacturing, along with the wavering economy, simply haven’t allowed electric car makers to profit in the retail car sales. After Coda filed for bankruptcy protection earlier this month, now Israeli car firm Better Place is seeking financial help.
A Clouded Vision
Better Place was developed with the idea of revolutionizing the personal transportation industry by offering battery powered cars. Unlike competitor products, Better Place vehicles were to be more affordable, provide comparable accessories and performance specs as conventional gas powered vehicles. However, a series of investment snags and business model setbacks lead the once hopeful company into the red.
Still depending on additional investors to make the vision a tangible success, Better Place has not been able to come up with the backers or the funds. Requiring an addition $500 million in financing and more time, the company’s projected goal of 115,000 in sales became unobtainable. Having only sold 2,000 vehicles and facing large fines by 2016 for the failure to reach sale goals, Better Place is seeking bankruptcy protection for help with it some $800 million in losses.