Click above for more images of the SAM from Cree Ltd.

There is a new all electric three-wheeler in Switzerland known as the SAM, produced by Cree Ltd. Featuring a power pack made up of six individual batteries which produces 168 volts, the 15kW motor, which also produces 80Nm of torque, is capable of propelling the SAM to speeds of up to 85 kilometers per hour (about 53 mph). Acceleration is fairly leisurely, but that's not really the point with this particular machine, is it? The range is not stellar, just 60 kilometers, or 37 miles. The price, though, would make this an extremely attractive machine to many: just $10,000.

In terms of design, SAM looks pretty good, with its aluminum backbone chassis and independent front suspension with a transverse leaf spring -- like the Corvette. The weight comes in at 695 kilograms, or about 1,500 pounds. Safety measures include three-point seatbelts along with an integrated roll bar. This is exactly the type of vehicle we'd love to see come to the U.S. as a replacement for the ZAP Xebra, which proved that there is in fact a market in the states for alternative transportation such as this.


[Source: Cree Ltd. via Faster and Faster]

While the crew at Zap! has yet to show off anything other than computer renderings of the three-wheeled Alias and four wheeled Zap-X, a team of students and faculty at the University of South Australia have built their own EV. The TREV or Two-seat Renewable Energy Vehicle uses a lithium polymer battery pack that provides sufficient energy for about 100 miles of driving per charge cycle. It also has sufficient power to accelerate the 600lb tandem seater to 60mph in a reasonable 10 seconds with a terminal velocity of about 75mph. One glance at the hollow door shell will tell you that this machine won't even come remotely close to meeting any crash safety standards in any developed country. On the other hand if you consider something like this as more akin to an recumbent electric bicycle with a full body you would be closer to the mark. Like the current and proposed products from Zap, as long as customers are aware of what such vehicles are and more importantly what they are not, this isn't a bad way to go for urban commuters.

[Source: TreeHugger, University of South Australia, via Engadget]