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Aptera electric three wheelers up for grabs

September 29, 2007

I wonder why most clean vehicles look like spaceships that have come from Star Trek. Here’s another one, but this vehicle has some real cool specs to brag about. It can post a fuel economy of 230mpg; though lower than the original claim of 330mpg, it is still pretty impressing.

A low drag coefficient ensures the car does not lose to friction, thanks to the ‘spaceship’ design; well maybe these designs aren’t that bad. The company also claims that this vehicle can make it from 0-60 in 10seconds.
There’s an option of a plug-in diesel hybrid or an all electric model. You can go on the Aptera website to order one for yourself at a cost of $500. Models are likely to be delivered within a year, and will cost nearly $20,000.

[Via: Gizmodo]

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FM-4 HumanCar: A true Muscle car

September 21, 2007

The FM-4 HumanCar is a sibling of railroad handcar and a rowing machine; the imaginative work of Seattle based engineer Charles Greenwood. The car is named Imagine and its design, which is still under evolutionary stage, is owed to Stephen Brand.
The HumanCar built for four, runs on a rowing machine styled propulsion system and an additional DC electric motor for some extra muscle. Its bio-motion transmission system converts the oscillatory motion into rotational motion to make the car roll.

For steering the car along the road the travelers inside bend over to left or right, which triggers the steering mechanism, turning the front wheels. The car also has a lithium-ion battery pack just in case its engines (the occupants) stop propelling.
Greenwood plans a manufacturing facility for HumanCar by coming January and there are plans for a dealership at Tony San Francisco suburb of Menlo Park as Mr. Greenwood is accepting [...]

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