Above: Mahindra's Appalachian pickup truck

Right now, the Reva G-Wiz has the Indian electric car market cornered. Rumors indicate that this may not be the case for long, though, as both Tata Motors and now Mahindra - India's two largest automakers - both have plans in place for zero-emission vehicles of their own. While we've heard about Tata's plans for both electrically-driven and air-propelled Nano microcars, this is the first we've heard of an EV from Mahindra, the company which has been making news with its plans to introduce new diesel and hybrid trucks and SUVs into the American market.

Mahindra's new EV would come with four seats, making it eminently more practical than the Reva. According to reports, the automaker would first launch the vehicle in its home market of India, which would act as a test-bed for the technology, before exporting to other countries. Would the U.S. be one of them? Time will tell, and consumer opinion over Mahindra's upcoming trucks and 'utes will likely play a big role in finding an answer.

[Source: CarTradeIndia.com]

We don't use the word "quadricycle" around here much. But over in the UK, quardicycles are a specific vehicle type defined as "a vehicle with four wheels whose unladen mass is not more than 400kg (excluding batteries if it is an electric vehicle) and whose maximum continuous rated power does not exceed 15 kW," according to the Department for Transport. Basically, a teeny-tiny NEV (just right for Elton John).

Yesterday, the DfT said it wants a review of the European safety regulations for these vehicles now that they're becoming more popular. The original standards were set up at a time when no one thought that vehicles that fit the technical definitions of a quadricycle, like the REVA G-Wiz EV (pictured), would be used much. Now that this is coming to pass, DfT says it's time to take another look.

in response, GoinGreen, the UK importer and retailer of the G-Wiz, released a statement today saying the G-Wiz "has an exemplary safety record" and "no reported serious injuries." But, if you must test, then "we welcome any informed debate or Government initiatives to make quadricycles an even safer means of urban transport."

Official statements from both organizations are after the break.


Related:

• G-Wiz EV AC has greater range and higher top speed

[Source: Department for Transport, GoinGreen Ltd.]