Green mini-car to beat congestion

[DoYouEverWonder]

24 April 2006





A tiny, three-wheeled car that could help solve city congestion has been demonstrated at the University of Bath.

The prototype Clever (Compact Low Emission Vehicle for Urban Transport) car is one metre wide and less polluting than normal vehicles.

It has a top speed of 100 km/h (60mph) and uses a novel tilting chassis to make it safe and manoeuvrable.

The traffic-busting two-seater is the result of a 40-month project by researchers in nine European countries.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/technology/4930794.stm


It's amazing what we could do if we put our minds to it.

[SoCalDem]

1. True, BUT the majority of us will still have to rely

on our older used cars for a while longer. The "new" ones and "green" ones sound great, but they also come with car payments for many years, and lots of us don't DO car payments:)

I don't know how people can afford new cars these days..:cry:

[Clark2008]

3. And a lot of the new cars are downright ugly and not

safe for the tons of interstate driving (with HUGE trucks) some of us have to deal with.

This particular car isn't as ugly - looks more like a dune buggy - but most of the hybrids are kind of, well, I don't find them particularly attractive.

[DoYouEverWonder]

4. Here's a pic of the finished model

It's actually sort of cute but I've always liked ugly cars.

[Ian David]

6. It depends on the bumper stickers...

(Not my real license plate)

[One_Life_To_Give]

12. Your still not safe

If you tangle with a 60 ton semi. It won't matter if you are driving a tricycle or a hummer.

And maybe that is the answer. Since to maximize efficiency we need to make cars smaller and trucks bigger.

[jwirr]

16. Lots of us can't even get loans for cheap used cars!!!!

[laruemtt]

2. now that's a car

i could really get into. cool!

[0007]

5. Yeah? Go to India, they have millions of 'em. Of course they

are the older virsion.

[LosinIt]

7. Yes, but do they come with snow tires?

I live in the Lake Effect region of Central NY and we get hammered off and on through out the winter. I commute 40 miles each way to work so I don't think ito woul really be practical for me, better stick with the Mazda Protege 5, ZoomZoomZoom, it gets around 36mpg on the highway.

[IDemo]

8. I'll take an enclosed two-wheeler like this -->

[laruemtt]

10. man, that looks like fun!

so if you can get your hands on one, is it legal to ride it on the highway? i'm ready :)

[woo me with science]

19. It says max speed is 60mph, so highway driving is out.

Which would leave it for errands in the city, but there is no space to put anything, including a passenger.

Seems like it will be a toy for people who can afford it.

[boise1]

24. 150 mph on the above Ecomobile

http://www.peraves.ch/standarde.htm

[woo me with science]

25. Ecomobile is a different one then?

I still would never drive something like that on the highway. If you crash, you die.

[RawMaterials]

9. I want one were can i get it

It would be great for my 3 mile commute, just as long as the dumb suv driving soccer moms, who cant see over the steering wheal don't run me over.

[TriMetFan]

14. Its not only the Soccer Moms but everyone

that is on a cell phone. I drive fro a living and I'm just so sick of the people that have to have their freaking phone glued to their ears.

[CAcyclist]

30. For a 3 mile commute, why don't you ride a bicycle?

That's only a 15-20 minute bike ride.

[jayfish]

11. Looks Like A Straight-up Ripoff Of The Carver.

Carver Video

They should have just bought out the Carver guys instead of wasting 40-months of researchers time.


Jay

[TriMetFan]

18. Thanks for the link. Now I want one.

I also want a Smart Car. But for now I got a Vibe. Which is ugly but I like ugly cars, because I think they are so freaking cute.

[Robeson]

35. Great video....

...:thumbsup:

[woo me with science]

13. Kinda hard to take 3 kids grocery shopping in that. nt

[DoYouEverWonder]

15. Not every solution will work for everyone

but naysaying every good idea will get us nowhere.

[lagavulin]

22. What does naysaying have to do with it?

It's a simple fact: if it can't serve our lifestyle then it won't market. If you can't load 2 or 3 kids in the back, why will you buy this over a fuel-economy minivan?

I mean I'm not arguing the effort, but I would question the theory. Our culture has spent 70-odd years deciding that the mid-sized car is the ideal form of mainstream vehicle. How many dozens of "better" designed cars have been built? I've run across countless article and sites about more efficient engines, bodies, power-generators, etc. over the years and you know what? Cars look pretty much the same today as they did when I was a kid. Pretty much the same as the old-timey cars I've seen in pictures and museums. New technology and designs won't sell unless they have the look of at least a compact car and can drive 80mph without shaking....because that's the vehicle we've constructed our culture and the physical infrastructure of our society around (at least here in America).

Yes, if America becomes a bankrupt, third-world nation then we will probably see millions of people driving tuk-tuks...and that will probably happen soon, but until it does people will continue taking on debt to buy something that they can use to haul their oversized bags and cardboard boxes from Target and Wal-mart back to their homes Suburbadale 20 miles away (while stopping to grab the dry-cleaning and a few value meals for the 2.1 kids in the back seat). That's the chief reason SUV's are so popular--you can carry lots of stuff in them (plus that they're perceived as being safer and more dominant).

Heck, even when people live in an area where most of their needs (and wants) are within walking distance, they still want a car they can throw a few suitcases in to "get away" for the weekend, to visit the family out of town, or just to lug the pool-toys to the beach or waterpark or pick up those 18 new shrubs for their back-porch permaculture garden or whatever.

The problem is not that we need more "efficient" or better cars! As long as we are a confirmed consumer culture we will need big cars (or at least access to one on short-notice). Until we learn--or are forced--to deconsume our lives, we're married to Motor City, now matter what country Motor City is in. Until we change our culture, we won't change our cars....

[jwirr]

17. And is there room for groceries?

[woo me with science]

20. Maybe you can put an apple in the glove compartment.

Oh, wait. I don't see a glove compartment.

[chopper]

32. uh

its aim is to solve <i>city</i> congestion, not to cart kids around in the suburbs.

i live in the city. and i don't take my car grocery shopping EVER. cause where i live in the city there are 3 grocery stores less than 3 blocks away from my place and a bunch more that deliver.

its like you're complaining that a hammer is no good cause it can't drive screws.

personally, i don't see what makes this thing so much better than a scooter.

[DoYouEverWonder]

33. It goes 60 mph

and is safer then a scooter. Plus it's got some 'new' suspension system that might have other applications.

[chopper]

34. my scooter goes 60mph

though i wouldn't say its nearly as safe as that thing at those speeds.

however, i don't do 60 in the city, and the 2-wheeled scooter is far more manouverable and easier to park than that glorified go-kart would be.

[FlaGranny]

21. They really need to come out with

several different vehicles: a one seater, a two seater, and a four seater. An enclosed wagon would be useful for when you need to get things. It could be detached when not used. It would be a lot more practical to do that.

Edit: The truth is, though, that I wouldn't feel very safe in a vehicle that tiny.

[alfredo]

26. you build up a keener sense of your surroundings. Your

reflexes sharpen, you become a more defensive driver, just like a cyclist.

[FlaGranny]

27. I tried bike riding on busy

streets once. I was terrified the entire time, so I rode on the sidewalk - also dangerous, but felt safer. The trouble with bikes and vehicles like that is that many times, they are not even seen. The same with motorcycles. My uncle was nearly killed, spent months in the hospital, and never recovered completely, from a motorcycle accident, where the driver of a car pulled out into his path without seeing him. Then, when I was working in a hospital, we had a couple come in to the ER both DOA. They had been innocently sitting at a red light one evening and were struck from behind by someone who didn't see them. In both those cases, defensive driving could not have helped. When I'm in traffic, I want to be seen. Even in a car, it's bad out there.

[alfredo]

29. It take a while to learn street smarts. I rode a lot in Detroit.

It wasn't just the cars that could get you, the pedestrians were a hazard. Some were just clueless, so wanted your bike to sell for a fix.

Now the greatest threat is the cell phone. A week or so ago a woman got hit by a train. She was so busy yakking on the phone that she didn't notice the warning lights and the approaching train.
Out of the gene pool in a flash. Not sure if it is safe to ride anymore. the cell ups the chance of getting hit. When on the phone the driver become "blind."

[CAcyclist]

31. You're safer on a bicycle than in a car

People feel safer in a car because they are enclosed but the safety is really an illusion.

[MrPrax]

23. Kinda Kewl

I like the little Smart car as well...

But while it maybe a concern that a smaller car like this might not fair vey well with larger cars (presuming the large car hasn't been supplanting by all these small cars over time), I am surprised nobody has pointed out that your are ALSO a pedestrian,and so, you are much more likely to survive being hit by one of these, I would think.

[Lydia Leftcoast]

28. Tiny little cars are common in Japan

They're fully encased in metal, but they're smaller than anything I've seen in the States. They're practical in Japan, where the streets can be so narrow that the sides of a bus practically scrape the buildings on either side.

People drive scooters and bicycles a lot more, too.

Personally, I wouldn't drive a scooter or an eensy-teensy car on a four-lane+ highway, but they'd be great for ordinary city street commuting. I see bicycle commuters going up Hennepin Avenue toward downtown Minneapolis, and I think, "Why do that, when there are practically traffic-free residential streets running parallel to Hennepin almost all the way downtown?"