Test Drives Start in Electric Car Dubbed the Anti-Ferrari
by Christine Lepisto, Berlin 
on 12.17.08
Image: Spirt Avert
A Dream on Wheels
The Anti-Ferrari. The Classless Status Symbol. Günak's Dream. These are just a few of the rubrics earned by the first European sportscar designed from the ground up as an electric vehicle. Lorenzo Schmid, the Swiss millionare backer for Günak's dream, tells the German daily Frankfurter Allgemeine why all other attempts to break into the automotive market with eco-autos have failed:
They were all super concepts, fuel-efficient, clean, innovative -- except they are mainly not fun. Without sex appeal, you can't sell a car.
Of course, the Tesla is excluded from this assessment, but the Tesla can be dismissed as too pricey for the average driver. Schmid aims to make an electric car that is affordable but which is more sportscar than golf cart. From the looks of the prototype, Mindset is well on its way to acheiving this goal. But Mindset will be more than one step ahead: at least one of the technical specification will really suprise you...and that is not even counting the solar panels on the roof and trunk.
With the street-legal licensing of the prototype, the dream of Martin Günak, former Head of Design at VW, to beat the auto manufacturers at their own game is one step closer to reality. Günak's electric car prototype, the Mindset, was presented in Bonn, Germany, only 18 months after the start of development. The 2+2-seater benefits as a high-performance car from being designed for lighter weight. This quest for the lightness of being loans the Mindset its most unusual specification: you can leave the motor at home!
Leave the Motor at Home
Yes, it is true. The car is designed with a combustion generator motor that can turn 30L (7.9 gallons) of gas into 700 km (435 miles) more range in case the 100 km range of the lithium-ion battery pack runs out. Drivers that are satisfied by plugging the car into a normal household outlet for two hours to top up another 100 km can leave the extra weight of the combustion engine in the garage at the press of a button. Or, a truly eco-efficient possibility for Europeans who rarely have garages: rent the range-extender motor only when it is needed. A partnership with the ubiquitous auto parts company A.T.U. Auto-Teile-Ungar points to the seriousness of this possibility.
Reflecting on why these innovations are not coming out of the American Big 3 automakers, or off the tables of designers in Wolfsburg or Tokyo, Günak's reply provides food for thought as regulators face big questions about bail-outs for the traditional automotive companies:
Revolution can only come from outside.
Image: Spirt Avert
Heuliez Mindset Prototype in Test Drives
The prototype was built by the French based coachbuilder Heuliez. You may remember that Heuliez is also a partner in the design of the Will, an electric car with the Michelin Active Wheel system that sets a motor inside each wheel. Günak's team reportedly has a secret partner in the wings, ready to launch production of the Mindset; it is not clear whether Heuliez will have an ongoing role in the project.
Test drives for potential Mindset customers will demonstrate a 95 horsepower electric motor which can go from 0 to 100 in under seven seconds. The top speed is limited at 140 km/h (87 mph). The company Mindset, under the publicly traded parent organization Spirt Avert, hopes to be selling 10,000 cars per year starting by the end of next year, with a goal of 50,000 units per year in the long term.
More on Mindset Electric Hybrid Car
Spirt Avert Press Release
Spiegel Online (German)
FAZ (German)
auto-illustrierte (German)
Hybrid by Former Head of Design at VW Due in 2009
Michelin Unveils Active Wheel in Affordable Electric Car
Follow @TreeHugger on Twitter & get our headlines with @TH_rss!
Thirsty for more? Check out these related articles:
- Nissan Electric Cars are Coming to Your Town!
- 7 Ways the Troubled Automotive Industry Could Change Your Car and Your Commute
- Bike Commute Too Strenuous? Try the Moto-Hybrid Bike!
- Zip Around on a DIY Plug-In, Hybrid Trike--No Joke
- What is the Cheapest and Greenest Way to Travel?
- Save Over $1,000 with These Six Green Tips
i wouldnt say it looks as good as a Ferrari but its a start...
What a cool looking electric car. It would be a better place if every car on the road was like this.
Hmmmm, wonder how well it handles ice and snow.
"Without sex appeal, you can't sell a car."
Funny, the guy knows what the target is, understands what it's for, then turns around 180 degrees and shoots in the other direction.
He gets it, but he sure isn't a designer, that much is certain.
I've been mentioning for a while that what we needed was strap-on engines for those days you need more range. Glad to see someone did something with that idea.
Not really fond of the looks of the car, but then I like small little hatchbacks. I like function, over pretty.
I'd like to see someone do something like this in the shape of a Chevy Luv pick-up. Something to be used for hauling stuff around a job site, or light delivery in a limited area.
Not too keen on those outboard rear wheels, would seem inboard would be more aerodynamic. Appart from that, it'd work for me. Had wondered why someone hadn't just thrown a Honda generator in the back for range extension, guess thats what this one does, makes sense, no point in the weight of a generator unless you need to go far. I'll take one.
"can leave the extra weight of the combustion engine in the garage at the press of a button"
No video of this feature?
Hate to be skeptical, but I will believe it when I see it.
yikes...this is a gas driven car with an electric range extender... why? 100km on electric and 700 on the gas motor.... still the detachable motor is something... it also looks...... different.. like a Panoz roadster in reverse...
Skinny tires like those are great for boosting efficiency, but at the cost of high-speed grip. If this is to be marketed as a sports car, that's a pretty big compromise that I doubt many potential buyers would want to accept.
The aerodynamics don't seem oriented toward either performance or efficiency, except maybe for the kamm-style rear.
A leave-at-home engine -- what a great idea!
I, too, wonder about the aerodynamics, at least of the prototype shown.
Maybe as battery and thin-solar technologies improve, the car will be even more promising.