Coda EV startup files for bankruptcy

Electric-car startup Coda Holdings Inc. filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy Tuesday after producing just 100 of its EV sedans, according to a report from Reuters.

Coda filed with U.S. Bankruptcy court in Delaware, starting a process that will allow the company to emerge from bankruptcy and refocus on energy storage. Coda said that the company can use the same technology in the EV sedan to build systems to store power.

"After concluding a comprehensive review of our strategic options, the board of directors, management team and senior lending group have concluded that focusing on the company's energy storage business presents the best opportunity moving forward," said company CEO Phil Murtaugh. "We believe the restructuring process that we have entered into today will enable the company to complete a sale and confirm a plan that maximizes the value of its assets, serving the best interests of our stakeholders."

The news follows fellow California-based automaker and EV startup Fisker Automotive's recent bankruptcy filing.

"Among independent forecasters, the general consensus is that there is a market for 50,000 to 60,000 (EVs) per year," Murtaugh told Autoweek in a previous interview after the first Coda sedan was delivered. "The forecaster's trend significant growth. Will it be 15 percent of the market? Probably not. But 1 or 2 percent is very realistic."

The Coda is a four-door, five-seat sedan powered by a 31-kilowatt-hour lithium-ion phosphate battery with up to a 125-mile range. Its base price was set at $37,250, and sales were limited to California.

By Angie Fisher