Turkish firm Karsan pledges to build NY taxi in Brooklyn

Karsan V1 New York City Taxi – Click above for high-res image gallery

Three manufacturers remain in the running to be the chosen supplier for New York's "Taxi of Tomorrow": Ford, Nissan and Turkish firm Karsan. In an informal poll conducted by the New York Taxi and Limousine Commission – the same body that will be deciding which of the three gets the milk and roses – New Yorkers chose the Karsan. Now Karsan wants to make the Commission's job even easier by promising to build its taxi in Brooklyn if it's chosen.

Previously, all three makers said they'd be building their vehicles overseas (the Transit Connect is built in Turkey, the Nissan NV200 in Japan). Perhaps sensing a huge opportunity to bring the four-year process to an end, last month Karsan turned tack and said it would build the V1 at the South Brooklyn Marine Terminal, in Brooklyn's waterfront Sunset Park complex, creating up to 800 jobs. It might not only be about getting ahead with the public, however: the powertrain for the Karsan V1 comes from Chrysler, in Michigan.

What the Karsan lacks in looks it makes up for in its powerplant modularity, handicapped accessibility, and expansive glass roof. Karsan has said a Sunset Park factory would cost $100 million, a pittance in light of the billion-dollar contract it's trying to win and being the yellow-cab-of-record in movies for the foreseeable future. Thanks for the tip, Julio!