PopMech Gets First Drive of the Aptera Electric Car
First: I hate the stupid-ass Brightcove player that Popular Mechanics uses for their video that makes embedding difficult.
Second: I hate those stupid-ass Popular Mechanics editors for getting to drive an Aptera Typ-1e before I had a chance too. It's certainly my most looked-forward-to electric vehicle. They've got tons of exclusive pictures and (as mentioned) video. Damn you, Ben Stewart!
Think the Typ-1 looks funny? Well its shape is designed for maximum aero efficiency—the coefficient of drag is an astounding 0.11. Aptera founder and CEO Steve Fambro says sticking your hand out the window of an average car driving 55 mph creates more drag than the Aptera’s entire body.
Aptera's Super-MPG Electric Typ-1 e: Exclusive Video Test Drive [Popular Mechanics]
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I can't help but think it's going to need bigger wheels if it's going to survive a blizzard.
But gosh if it doesn't look cool.
Never mind Popular Mechanics, call me when Top Gear gets their hands on it.
Yeah, looks cool but will NEVER GET APPROVED for highway use.
No safety bumpers. The first touch of a 5mph collision will nearly total the car.
...it's a class-action lawyer's wet-dream to be able to sue the pants off of anyone that would put something like that on the highway....
Similar thoughts on the snow and the look. The uber environmentally friendly vehicles and concepts don't seem to lend themselves well to reasonable winter weather. Terrific that someone is really pushing the envelope with ideas like this though.
With looks like that, it's obvious that we should just be flying over the damn roads anyway.
Strap-on 3 anti-grav pods, hit the cruise control, and have a quick five-minute nap on the 100-mile trip to work. It's gotta be.
RE: Comment #3 above:
I don't buy your FUD. I'm not an engineer and this is not legal advice, but I did RTFA. Page 2 of the article (direct link: http://www.popularmechanics.com/automotive/new_cars/4237853.html?page=2&series=19 ) says:
"The chassis has steel reinforcements in key areas: at the roll hoop, along the bottom of the windshield, in the doors (for side impact protection) and, of course, in the front subframe (for the suspension system as well as the engine and battery cradle)."
You cannot see the "bumpers" (e.g. front subframe) of the finished car because these features are under the aerodynamic shell. I bet it's one of the reasons why "...the coefficient of drag is an astounding 0.11".
But you can see the safety features in the video, which among other things shows the car chassis without most of the shell. Go to page 1 of the article (linked from the original BoingBoing post above), press Play, and then move the progress bar to around 04:00.
So let's wait for the official word before jumping to conclusions like "... [it] will NEVER GET APPROVED for highway use," shall we?
This vehicle is classified as an enclosed motorcycle, so does not have to meet many of the requirements that you might think of for a full-sized car.