From Spring 2009, French battery/supercapacitor manufacturer Bolloré and Italian car designer Pininfarina have finally reached the production line with their five-door hatchback electric Bluecar, and have started accepting online orders for it.
The electric car is powered by photovoltaic panels that make up the roof, and by a lithium metal polymer battery pack that gets its juice from a state-of-the-art regenerative braking mechanism.
The Bolloré group is also looking into the design of photovoltaic cell panels to be installed in private or public places to allow partial or total recharging of the batteries through solar energy alone. A 50kW electric motor gives the Bluecar a top speed of 130 km/h and 0-to-60 km/h acceleration in 6.3 seconds. Developed in Italy, the car is 3.65 meters length, 1.72 meters width and 1.6 meters high.
The customers are required to deposit €330, which is refundable only during a 7 day cooling off period or if the customer is not allocated a vehicle.
[via Energyharvestingjournal]
