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]

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]