Posted on Wednesday 30 April 2008
In July last year Smart unveiled three new concept versions of its second-generation ForTwo minicar, all based around an ultra-efficient electric drivetrain. The trio included a regular petrol-electric hybrid, a diesel-electric hybrid and a zero-emissions electric vehicle. This third concept, the all-electric ForTwo, featured a 30kW motor powered by a sodium-nickel-chloride battery and could drive up to 115km on a single charge.
For the past several months, Smart has been conducting official tests of this car in the UK and now according to Auto Motor und Sport the car is headed to California and will commence U.S. testing next year.
The U.S. version will feature a second-generation electric drive system with lighter and more efficient lithium-ion batteries. Consuming just 12kw-hours per 100km, the average cost of running the car is around two and a half cents per mile and it takes just 5.7 seconds to accelerate from rest to a reasonable driving pace of 60km/h.
If the tests prove successful, Smart exec Anders Jensen says the zero-emissions vehicle could enter production very quickly.
now THAT would be a truly SMART car. full electric would be the only reason I would ever consider one.
This will be a great reason to buy a SECOND smart for me.
I wanted to love the SMART car, but until they fix the %^&* door handles, sort out the A/C, the CD player, the seats, the glass roof (on the hardtop) and the gearstick (every other tiptronic transmission pulls back to move the gear up!!!), I will not put it on my list. This is a clear example of waiting for version 2.0.
Motor Authority » Electric Smart ForTwo to start U.S. testing next year
In July last year Smart unveiled three new concept versions of its second-generation ForTwo minicar, all based around an ultra-efficient electric drivetrain. The trio included a regular petrol-electric hybrid, a diesel-electric hybrid and a zero-emissi…
In San Francisco, as a pure city runaround car, perfect.
But I see them scooting around LA all the time now, weaving inbetween semi trucks and flying down the freeways at 70mph… Good luck, people…