The EVs will be sold under the Smith brand, and will combine Wanxiang’s components with Smith’s proprietary drive and battery platforms.

Smith Electric Vehicles and Chinese auto parts maker Wanxiang Group announced this morning that they will from a joint venture to manufacture electric school buses and commercial vehicles in China. The companies signed a letter of intent at the US-China Economic and Trade Cooperation Forum in Los Angeles.

The EVs will be sold under the Smith brand, and will combine Wanxiang’s components with Smith’s proprietary drive and battery platforms. The Smith Drive system features a configurable drive controller with integrated inverters for the management of auxiliary systems, as well as a brushless permanent magnet motor. The Smith Power battery system uses battery cells of various sizes from Valence and A123.

Smith currently manufactures the Newton and Edison electric commercial vans.

Image: krispdk