The Dutch website dedicated to electric and hybrid automobiles, ZERAuto, has been conducting a poll, asking its visitors to rank their favorite ride and offering 12 very nice entrants to choose from. Perhaps not surprisingly, the Netherlands-based DuraCar Quicc! Diva grabbed the top spot and now proudly sports the "Car of the Future" crown, even though it had competitors like the Tesla Roadster and the Pininfarina B0 BlueCar. Putting aside possible nationalistic motivations, it seems likely that the practical Dutch see the Quicc! Diva as a stylish yet pragmatic way of moving themselves and their stuff around the narrow streets of their city centers. The Chevy Volt, which had occupied the top spot, was deposed to 2nd place; the Th!nk City was also a bridegroom.

The honor did not go unnoticed by certain politicians and yesterday the Minister of Economic Affairs, Maria van der Hoeven, presented DuraCar CEO Steen Wim Bakker with a certificate denoting the accolade. Although the company recently declared bankruptcy, as did their intended builder Karmann, they plan on making a comeback and begin producing 25 cars a day in Q3 of 2010, more than a year behind schedule. For their part, Karmann may also be a zombie phoenix. It's been reported that they've landed a £10 million ($14 million) model-development contract from Volkswagen which will help them restructure and allow them to focus on electric cars. Hit the break for a Google translated press release as well as a bonus video of the Diva struttin' her stuff.


[Source: ZERAuto / Bloomberg]

Bad news from Dutch EV entrepreneur Duracar, manufacturer of the Quicc Diva: The company that owns Duracar, Econcern, is shutting down because it can't repay part of its $1 million debt. And there's more: Duracar's founder, Paul Hamm, is considering filing a lawsuit against Econcern, as he traded Durcacar shares valued at $30 million against Econcern just to find out a month later that the shares didn't have the promised value. It's still unclear how Econcern's problems might affect Duracar, but there are rumors that it could be bought by an automotive industrial group.


[Source: Autoblog NL]

As our faithful readers are already aware, the Quicc! DiVa by DuraCar has just been introduced to the world and is currently on display at the Paris Motor Show. And while its great that the public can now see the electric city van made of plastic, it would be even better if they could buy it, so we are happy to inform you that Wilhelm Karmann GmbH has stepped into the DuraCar picture and, beginning in June 2009, will be building some of the Quicc! DiVas. The famed company, located in Osnabrück, has an agreement to supply vehicles bound for the German market though there may be other collaborative efforts between the two companies in the future. Perhaps better known today for its convertible-making operations, Karmann has a long history of building entire cars and has produced over three million of them in their 100+ year history including the Chrysler Crossfire, the Ford Merkur XR4Ti and, of course, the legendary Karmann Ghia.

As part of their overall strategy, DuraCar is seeking to have several production lines in close geographical proximity to where the cars will be sold thus keeping their carbon foot print to a minimum. The Dutch company is currently in talks with other potential constructors in different markets. Hitting the jump will give you bonus videos of the Quicc! DiVa in action as well as the official press release.



[Source: DuraCar]

When last we heard from the Quicc DiVa from DuraCar, it was still being referred to as the Innovan and had many bridges to cross, many mountains to climb. In the intervening months, the little Dutch van has garnered a "Most Promising Technology" award, millions of euros in investment capital from Econcern and an air of sophistication which should come in handy as it officially premieres at the upcoming 2008 Paris Motor Show. The project has even attracted the man behind the Smart, Johann Tomforde, who will help with the design before it goes into mass production in 2010.

The Quicc DiVa is quite light since it is made entirely from recyclable plastic. When powered by a lithium ion iron phosphate battery it should achieve a range of over 90 miles and top out at 75 mph. It is positioned as a city delivery vehicle and can carry over 1300 lbs in its 77 cubic feet as well as the two people you would need to unload it. A limited production is planned for next spring for customers already standing in queue and several configurations should be expected. Check out the press release after the break.



[Source: AutoWeek.nl / DuraCars]

A few days ago we introduced to you the InnoVan IPS, a Dutch EV van project which had very interesting features. We had the pleasure to speak a little bit more with Guido Boosten, Duracar's CMO, about this vehicle, and he gave us a few more details.

The InnoVan IPS was bought at the beginning of 2007 from ITS. A prototype was tested during the second half of 2007 and when they defined the car's BOM (bill of materials), together with PDE Automotive in Helmond (in the Netherlands). Duracar completed its management team January 1st, so they could start the company's business plans which will also include promotional materials (which we're waiting for) and a new website

DuraCar Holding is now at a point where they will build the first five second-generation new prototypes for testing and, after 3 months, a small series of 30 vans which have already been sold to a single customer. DuraCar Holding plans to make this a large-scale test which will lead to build more vehicles by the end of the year.

What's battery technology will they use? They want to test different types: traditional lead, a new lead battery, Li-ion, LiFePO4 and even fuel cells. Mr. Boosten stated that the most important thing right now was to get the vehicles on the road and experience what happens in real life, rather than just do lab testing.

Regarding the body, Mr. Boosted told us that it was currently being further developed by a number of companies, including the one that builds the DAF SpaceFrame. The current fiber is still a bit too heavy for its purposes, so during this year the car will most probably change a couple of times and the first vehicles will not be completely built according to all the hoped-for specs.

Duracar wants to sell a electric-driven light-weight recyclable fiber utility van that's under 850 kilograms (1,874 pounds) including battery, has a range of 150 km (90 miles) and is able to reach 120 km/h (75 mph). Payload is also an important requirement, as the van should be able to carry 600 kg (1,322) pounds, making this a vehicle suitable for inner city delivery.

[Thanks to Guido Boosten, Duracar's CMO for all this information]

If you thought that the Dutch only were known in the auto industry because of their cool DAF cars from the '60s, (which, by the way, had a very clever CVT system), they're out to prove you wrong. The Netherlands has a manufacturer that has a very interesting EV that looks to be ready in April. It's called the duraCar Innovan, and it's made from light recyclable fiber.

The van is aimed at companies who need to make local deliveries, but performance is quite decent and far superior to any of the available quadricycles in Europe (or NEVs in the US). Although the Innovan runs on electricity, it's estimated that its fuel-equivalent consumption is 1 liter per 50 km (about 118 mpg), with CO₂ emissions under 30 g/km. Driving range is claimed to be 150 km (90 miles) thanks to the vehicle's low weight, and driving cost is very low: the electricity bill will only cost you from 150 to 200 EUR every 10,000 km (that's 220 to 295 dollars for 6,200 miles, or 3.5-4.7 cents a mile).

There's a couple of videos from the presentation after the jump. They're in Dutch, but the van looks great to me. Don't miss the electrically-operated back doors.

[And kudos to Lascelles for the find]