Aptera Electric Car

NaboCane · Feb 15, 2009

http://autos.yahoo.com/articles/autos_content_landing_pages/857/exclusive-aptera-2e

100-mile range, 0-60 in 10 seconds/top speed 90MPH - and being a three-wheeler, you can legally travel in the carpool lane!

I'm accelerating and cornering — hard — on three wheels, little wisps of tire smoke curling out of the slender front wheel pants as steering is cranked in and "throttle" applied. And no, I'm not in an early Volkswagen GTI that hikes up its inside rear tire. Rather, I've been given a drive in the Aptera 2e, a soon-to-be-produced electric vehicle whose shape is slipperier than a Teflon-coated salmon on glare ice, and whose composite construction offers both light weight and impressive structural integrity. Better yet, the 2e is scheduled to begin rolling off the Vista, California, assembly line this October for an as-yet-to-be-determined price between $25,000 and $40,000. Charge it overnight from your 110-volt home outlet, and it's claimed to have a range of 100 miles...in the carpool lane, if you wish.

Pie in the sky? Nope. The business model looks sound; nearly 4000 deposits have been placed (Robin Williams among the clientele), enthusiastic investors are locked in, and co-founders Steve Fambro and Chris Anthony have assembled a team that balances Detroit low-volume niche-production experience with California "anything is possible" attitude. Chief engineer Tom Reichenbach was formerly vehicle engineering manager for both Ford GT and Shelby GT500 programs; and CEO Paul Wilbur has a storied history at Ford, Chrysler and ASC. And Fambro, a biotech engineer and private pilot intrigued by his aircraft's composite construction, and Anthony, a composites specialist with a background in boat design and fluid dynamics, seemed predestined for this partnership...

...Entering gracefully through the quasi-gullwing doors takes a few tries, but the door openings are large and once seated, the cabin width seems to split the difference between a Lotus Elise and a Toyota Corolla. There's a large hooded digital speedometer and bar-graph battery state-of-charge indicator, along with a central infotainment screen that offers mind- boggling possibilities. Leg- and head room were surprisingly generous for even my 6- foot-3 frame. And safety is preeminent in the Aptera's design — the final version will have both frontal and side airbags. And if there was any doubt about the strength of the composite construction, it was quelled as eight Aptera employees stood on the roof of a development shell. And that was after the shell had gone through government roof -crush testing!
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TokyoFishFan · Feb 15, 2009

Question:

What's the max weight capacity of the car? Can it hold 3 250lb people inside? Leg room?

Muck · Feb 15, 2009

I've been watching this for about a year. I wish they were offering it outside California. But it's gotta start somewhere.

I'd love to have one of these. It's a freaking space ship!

http://aptera.com

femalefinfan · Feb 15, 2009

The doors remind me of the delorian (sp?) of the 80's

NaboCane · Feb 20, 2009

TokyoFishFan said:

Question:

What's the max weight capacity of the car? Can it hold 3 250lb people inside? Leg room?
Click to expand...

Two passengers.

...Leg- and head room were surprisingly generous for even my 6- foot-3 frame...
Click to expand...

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