AutoblogGreen

1. if only it had 4 wheels...like a NORMAL car

Posted at 5:25PM on Apr 26th 2008 by Mark

2. 70 mph onn a motorcycle - no crash tests required on any of these 3-wheel wonders.

Think of it as evolution in action.

Posted at 7:32PM on Apr 26th 2008 by Bill

3. If the battery last 10 years then i think that for that price it's a good buy. I can't wait to see cars power by battery of hydrogen or even natural gas that can run without suffocating petroluem. If
north-american goverments were truthful we will convert a lot of actual gasoline cars to run on natural gas, it's a cheap convertion and it help pollution and especially it can replace imported petroluem. 10x better then subzidizing ethanol.

Posted at 8:44PM on Apr 26th 2008 by A.Brien

4. The website. Unreal. They/he states the car is sheik! Is that a joke or does it really mean "chic".

S

Posted at 11:00PM on Apr 26th 2008 by scott

5. If they could only produce those performance numbers in a motorcycle (as in open and two wheels), they would own the electric motorcycle market.

Of course, so much is dependent on the price point. That's a frequent disappointment with lithium-powered vehicles.

Posted at 11:46PM on Apr 26th 2008 by GenWaylaid

6. With performance/range similar to the Aptera, but $10K less - seems like a good entry into the arena - maybe the competition will heat up!

Posted at 12:21AM on Apr 27th 2008 by oobflyer

7. Interesting.......

Posted at 11:46AM on Apr 27th 2008 by hodad66

8. Nice vids: all style, no substance. I'll believe these when I see them. But as all -electric vehicles, I'd say they're very "anti-sheik".

BTW, from the photos, seating is side-by-side, not tandem.

Posted at 12:38PM on Apr 27th 2008 by Bill

9. Why do I get the uneasy suspicion that the "available now" car is the NEV, not the freeway compatable vehicle?

Maybe I'm getting to old and cynical.

Posted at 10:08PM on Apr 27th 2008 by Chris M

10. Hey,,,It's different creation,different style..attracts me..I like it.

Posted at 1:35AM on Apr 28th 2008 by DAMARA NIGHTSTAR

11. The center headlight makes it look like the old cyclops cartoons from Road and Track.

Posted at 6:13AM on Apr 28th 2008 by john riley

12. Reminds me a bit of an auto rickshaw

Posted at 7:23AM on Apr 28th 2008 by Niralisherni

13. OMG, I just saw his car stting in a showroom here in Mill Valley, CA!!!! I just had a second to look as i drove by, but the sign on the window said "all electric vehicles" I am going to go there tomorrow to see if it was actually this car!!

Posted at 12:31PM on Apr 30th 2008 by Taylor Kemp

14. Aptera beats it, even with the added $7000 cost. Better performance, safety (airbags,rollcage) etc... I'll by an Aptera if the warranty is reasonable and they include GPS.

Posted at 3:38PM on May 2nd 2008 by Jake

15. Aptera does not have airbags...that is the whole point of making it 3 wheeled...no crash test needed. If they had airbags it would need to be crash tested, thus why not make it 4 wheeled.
ps...I read somewhere else this Triac thing has a rollcage too...plus, how can you take a car that looks like an airplane seriously?

Why do you think there are NO 4 wheeled electric freeway cars, save for Tesla? The big guys in Detroit are the only ones who can afford to crash test them and get them approved to drive in the USA...and THEY still have a couple trillions of $ of oil in the ground to do business with their partners in the oil company! They don't want anyone driving these things!

Support American energy companies (clean coal, solar, wind) and support the little guys building three wheelers, so in 5 years when gas is $10 a gallon they'll have the $ to build you a 4 wheeled EV!

Posted at 11:18PM on May 3rd 2008 by TeslaHater

16. TeslaHater: Aptera does indeed have airbags and is undergoing crash testing, even though the law doesn't require it for 3 wheelers. The designers chose the 3 wheel design in an attempt to reduce rolling resistance, simplify construction and reduce weight, not to evade safety regulations. However, the 3 wheel does not offer much of an advantage, and may cause some problems, and Aptera is already planning to design a 4 wheel version.

Where did you get the strange idea that adding airbags would automatically trigger a crash test requirement?

There are (or were) other freeway capable 4 wheel electric cars besides Tesla, including the RAV4EV, the Honda EVplus, the GM EV1, several other limited production cars and homebrew conversions.

Posted at 2:48AM on May 4th 2008 by Chris M

17. ya...and look what happened to those.

cars with air bags are required to be crash tested, regardless of amount of wheels it has...i didn't just get a "strange idea"

as you say, if Aptera is building an air bag equipped, crash tested, 3 wheeled "air plane" car that in order to reduce rolling resistance, either:
1). you don't know what you are talking about
2). Aptera doesn't know what they are doing/talking about

it makes zero sense for a start up car manufacture to start with a three wheeler that they plan to air bag and crash test...might as well start with a 4 wheeler if that is the case. with this in mind, i must respectfully say you have been misinformed. if i am wrong, then the guys making these decisions at aptera, are, well, the correct adjective is evading me...i'll get back to you on that...

Posted at 4:02AM on May 4th 2008 by TeslaHater

18. TeslaHater: Tesla was formed by a bunch of dotcom millionares who were sick of waiting for Detroit to save the world. They are currently rolling fully functional 4-wheel highway obliterating electric vehicles off the assembly line. If you follow Tesla's logic, it's simple and intelligent. They couldn't make a cheap bottom of the line EV for the masses because they don't have the economies of scale that the big manufacturers have. They would have to use the crappiest of components, and the car would feel, look, and probably run like a much cheaper model because of it. So they decided to come in with an elite model and compromise on nothing. The success of that model combined with an influx of cash when they go public next year will allow them to produce their 'whitestar' electric 4-door sedan at a much lower price point in a few years. As economies of scale start to work in their favor, they can add even less expensive models, and everybody wins. It seems like you want electric cars on the road, have much anger with the established players in the automobile industry, and dislike Tesla??? I don't get it. Tesla is a startup that is selling EV's and turning the industry on it's head. Hate Tesla? They are the only company building the future you dream of right now. Strange...

Posted at 2:05PM on May 14th 2008 by James Bowe