Coda joins race to launch first electric highway-capable sedan.

Coda Automotive is looking to beat its competitors to the market by being the first in introducing a highway capable electric sedan in the United States market as soon as next year, according to a report.

The Santa Monica, Calif.-based company, which unveiled the vehicle two weeks ago, wants to to launch 300 evaluation vehicles of its sedan model - which will cost $45,000 - in the summer of 2010, according to MIT's Technology Review.

By fall that year it expects to sell the vehicle to the general public and estimates 2,700 cars to be delivered that year, according to the report

Coda's sedan will be built by Hafei, a Chinese automaker using an existent model of the company but replaced with all-electric technology. Coda is also partnering with a major Chinese lithium-ion batteries maker called Tianjin Lishen, to provide the battery packs for the vehicles, according to the report.

Coda's sedan price could drop to the mid $30,000 with government incentives in the U.S. The startup's CEO Kevin Czinger has said the next generation of Coda's electric cars could cost as low as $25,000, according to MIT.