Electric Vehicles EVs

https://www.mobilityhouse.com/int_en/magazine/e-mobility/history-electric-vehicle.html

https://www.budgetdirect.com.au/blog/influential-evs-an-illustrated-history-of-electric-car-design.html

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That illustrated link is cool. Thanks for sharing.

Yeah that illustrated article is great. Some lovely things in there and I mainly love the small ones like the Scottish Aviation Scamp.

But this had to be the first e-type

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Really interesting how close EVs were to making it in the early days before big oil/model T fucked it.

I have just discovered (in the car thread just now) the Citroen ami. Interesting concept this low powered "enclosed moped" kind of vehicle. I read something that said Citroen offer a monthly rental option in places as well.

Probably the first EV I will ever get at this rate ...

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These look great for proper big cities but sadly just a tiny bit too slow for Dublin or anywhere I might use one.

I think they are cute but I don't see the point. All the sitting in queues of a proper 4/5 seater without the versatility of a 4/5 seater when you want to take the kids somewhere/give a lift to 3 drunk mates/transport something bigish/etc.

I'd rather have something like an electric BMW C1.

BMW C1-E good shout for the advantages of the Ami - parking, not using some massive piece of shit that can take 5 but is generally only you. But for those who like a wheel in each corner the Ami is decent.

Aren't we all better off waiting for the adoption of in-hub axial flux motors?

That's sort of the mindset that we struggle to get over - how often do you give a lift to 3 drunk mates, what are the alternative options? We are too used to the convenience of Big Car, fits everything in. The other positive is that they are very small, so working towards less congestion and safer for cyclists & stray peds.

I think they are cute but I don't see the point.

You can get places not wet/ sweaty / affordably/ spending hours waiting for multiple public transport connections

Can use a taxi or hire vehicle for those other scenarios

Also in france you can drive them on a moped licence/ when banned from driving....

You can get places not wet/ sweaty / affordably/ spending hours waiting for multiple public transport connections

Sure, but you can do that in a 'proper' car too. And more. If you want a cabin and four wheels then a C4 is so much better. I suppose it is 3 times the price though. Either way you get to read the adverts on the back of buses.

Also in france you can drive them on a moped licence/ when banned from driving....

The banned bit is terrible IMHO, or would be in the UK. The bar to being banned is quite high. If you have reached it you shouldn't be driving anything.

how often do you give a lift to 3 drunk mates

I have a 7 seater. It's used for ferrying family about (great to put the kids and grandparents in and go somewhere for the day) and going on camping trips. It mostly sits outside the house not moving. The cost per mile including the fixed costs is obscene but I'm happy to pay for the convenience. For going to work I cycle or get public transport. So it's more a case of if I'm not giving a lift to 3 drunk mates I don't drive at all.

very small, so working towards less congestion

I'm not convinced they make much difference. They still take up a lane and 7/8ths of the road capacity (sure they are shorter but you still need to leave how ever many metres behind them when moving in case they break suddenly).

safer for cyclists & stray peds

Are they? Is being hit by 500kg at 25mph very different to 2000kg at 25mph? I expect things like front end design and if you get knocked down or scoped up make a difference but I'd have thought even at 500kg that's enough momentum to be a problem. I just had a look for something about the Citroen Ami and pedestrian safety but couldn't find anything. Do you have a link?

Is being hit by 500kg at 25mph very different to 2000kg at 25mph?

.... yes.

less congestion

An Ami is just over half the length of the forum favourite bog standard SUV Nissan Qashqai, but less impressively it's still 3/4 of the width, in order to fit 2 seats abreast. Congestion reduction is of course more complex than reducing vehicle dimensions and will require en masse take up to be significant. I recognise single person occupancy of individual vehicles is still not the ideal.

safer for cyclists & stray peds

It's classed as a quadricycle which I understand means it's not subject to normal car Euro NCAP tests. This is stated on the Citroen website. I can't find independent test results but pedestrian & cyclist impact damage is also complex and of course variables include front end design but very significantly weight. Again size is a factor, smaller vehicle = reduction in accidents. Also lower average speeds.

They also do a Cargo version for solo driver and 400L of cargo

These look super fun, but honestly you'd just use an ebike

How do you secure the other packages on an ebike when you go in to a block of flats to make a delivery? Probably niche places for both

If you're a courier, in a box

I'd love to see a load of Amis in the city. They make me smile and for the vast majority of short distance, single person occupancy vehicle use would make more space on the roads.

would have thought this buggy version is much more 'on here'

gravel ami - just needs some custom frame bags for the doors and a danglemug or two

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I saw the fifth gear crew review one , they drove it enthusiastically around a cart circuit … first corner it nearly tipped over , proper on two wheels squeaky bum moment .
Meanwhile on the streets of hamstezd there is a trial of these things

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Here’s the roll
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=_gEjTTnu50E