According to a survey conducted by the electric car maker THINK, 50% of potential buyers would give up the range of the car for a lower car price & lower auto insurance quotes. This population would prefer having a 70- to 80-mile range if this means that the cost of the vehicle can be reduced by $5000. This online survey was carried out by MBA students of the University of Michigan (Ross School of Business), and it confirms an earlier study done by The Green Car Site.

For the longest time, a 100 mile range was considered the standard requirement for highway-capable EVs. This is largely because auto makers thought that no one would purchase EVs with a shorter driving range. On the other hand, though, the survey also revealed that the other half of the participants would be willing to spend more for a range of more than 100 miles.

While a cheaper 80-mile range EV would be nice, some of these potential EV owners said that they’re willing to pay $5000 premium for a 160-mile range. Only 9% of the survey participants said that they’re willing to have a driving range of less than 50 miles for a lower price.

Based on the survey findings alone, THINK CEO Richard Canny said that offering different battery sizes for their customers is an “intriguing” prospect. He thinks that more customers would support the idea of owning a fully electric car if this choice was available.

The THINK City EV is currently on sale in Europe. It’s slated to be released in the United States during the last quarter of this year. The EV has a driving range of 100 miles per charge. The company also announced that it will be collaborating with AeroVironment on a project involving the THINK City electric vehicle and the AV’s level 3 fast-charge-system.