Chrysler is expanding its plans for a range of electric vehicles. In November, the company previewed the pure electric Dodge EV and the extended-range Chrysler EV and Jeep EV at the 2008 Los Angeles Auto Show. Just two months later, at the 2009 North American International Auto Show in Detroit, Chrysler has unveiled another Jeep EV, this one an extended-range version of the Patriot compact SUV.

The Jeep Patriot EV comes with front-wheel drive and a 150 kW (equivalent to 200 horsepower) electric motor with an integrated power-control module and a lithium-ion battery pack. According to Jeep, the Patriot EV will be able to accelerate from zero to 60 mph in eight seconds. The company also says the batteries, motor and power-control module will not interfere with interior space.

An extended-range electric vehicle always runs on electric power, relying on a gasoline engine to recharge the battery. Chevrolet announced plans for the first extended-range electric vehicle, the Volt, at the 2007 Detroit show. Chrysler says all of its extended-range EVs will be able to drive on an electric charge for 40 miles. After that, a small, possibly 1.0-liter 3- or 4-cylinder gasoline engine will charge the battery and extend the driving range to as many as 400 miles, depending on the size of the auxiliary gas tank. The company says the extended-range EVs will produce no emissions in the first 40 miles and only half the emissions of comparable vehicles thereafter.

Regenerative braking will help recharge the batteries in all Chrysler EVs. Owners will be able to fully recharge the batteries in eight hours by plugging into a standard 110-volt power outlet or in four hours using a 220-volt household appliance power outlet. Chrysler reports that the current average cost of electricity is the equivalent of about 75 cents per gallon.

At Detroit, Chrysler also showed updated versions of the EVs first shown in Los Angeles. The Dodge EV, based on the Lotus Europa, now has a Dodge cross-hair grille. The Chrysler EV is now called the Chrysler Town & Country EV, and it will come standard with the Swivel ’n Go seating system. Chrysler also said the Town & Country EV will have a larger electric motor than first announced (200 kW versus 190) and quoted a new zero-to-60 mph time of eight seconds, down from 8.7.

The original Jeep EV is now called the Jeep Wrangler Unlimited EV. In L.A., the company said this vehicle would come with rear- or 4-wheel drive. Chrysler now says the Jeep Wrangler Unlimited EV will have rear drive, but the company is also looking at the possibility of a 4-wheel-drive version that would be able to send power to each wheel individually.

All four EVs are being developed by Chrysler’s in-house organization ENVI. The group, which takes its name from the first four letters in “environmental,” has been tasked with envisioning the future by optimizing internal combustion engines, improving fuel quality, and looking at the future of hybrids, electric drive and alternative fuels.

ENVI official Doug Quigley says the necessary lithium-ion battery is “now in our hands,” but the company has not yet chosen a battery supplier. Chrysler plans to offer one of the four EVs by the end of 2010, probably as a 2011 model, and the others should follow by 2013. The company will test some vehicles in government, business, utility and development fleets as early as 2009.