Thursday, August 19, 2010

Velozzi Supercar and SOLO: We believe it but can we see it?

Velozzi made a splash in 2009 with the announcement of a joint project with Bayer Advanced Materials in the production of a super car, appropriately named the Velozzi Supercar. The Velozzi Super Car and the SOLO claim lower net emissions of NOx (nitrogen oxide) than any other hybrid electric or pure electric vehicle.




Velozzi Supercar Specs:

  • Type: Range-Extended Electric
  • Class: Sports Car
  • Manufacturer: Velozzi
  • Propulsion system: Electric
  • Top Speed: 200mph+
  • Vehicle range: 200 miles electric, 1,000 miles total
  • Fuel(s): Electricity, Biodiesel, Diesel, Ethanol, Butanol, Methanol, CNG
  • Battery system: Lithium-ion
  • Time to full battery recharge: 4 hours at 110V
  • Price: Not Announced
  • Availability: Late 2010

Velozzi SOLO Specs

  • Type: Range-Extended Electric
  • Class: Crossover (SUV/Wagon)
  • Manufacturer: Velozzi
  • Propulsion system: Electric
  • Top Speed: 130mph
  • Vehicle range: 200 miles electric, 1,000 miles total
  • Fuel(s): Electricity, Biodiesel, Diesel, Ethanol, Butanol, Methanol, CNG
  • Battery system: Lithium-ion
  • Time to full battery recharge: <4 hours at 110V
  • Price: Not Announced
  • Availability: 2011
Los Angeles-based Velozzi made a splash in 2009 with the announcement of a joint project with Bayer Advanced Materials in the production of a super car–appropriately named the Velozzi Supercar–and entrance into the Progressive Automotive X-Prize. Since then, the company has steadily gone forward with the design and has also released information on another, more practical crossover design called the SOLO. Both vehicles will be available for purchase inside the next 18 months.

The manufacturer says

Note that the Velozzi Super Car and the SOLO have lower net emissions of NOx than any other hybrid electric or pure electric vehicle†when other electric vehicles are using the CA or the US Avg. grid, and other criteria pollutants even when they are operating in charge sustaining mode with the microturbine on.

Overview

The Supercar is capable of some extremely impressive numbers, including a 0-60mph time of only 3 seconds and a top speed of over 200 miles per hour. The C65 microturbine, made by Capstone, produces 65kW of power while the AC-induction electric motor puts out a huge 770hp. This car is one of the most anticipated entrants into the X-Prize.
The SOLO, meanwhile, is a practical, luxurious vehicle made to appeal to a wider audience. It utilizes the C30 microturbine from Capstone, which provides 30kW of power to the motor. It's 0-60mph is still an impressive 6 seconds and it's good range and top speed ensure that it can compete with any internal combustion counterpart on all fronts.
Both vehicles feature the advanced microturbine technology from Capstone Turbine and will be the first production model cars to use the turbines, which have so far seen service in buses and trollies. They also feature the advanced, lightweight materials including Nanoledge carbon nanotube epoxy/carbon panels made in conjunction with Bayer.
In fact, Velozzi has managed to put together a strong team of original equipment suppliers including Bayer, Bosch, Nanoledge, Pirelli, and others.

What we like

Serious Speed - if you're going to go with a sports car, you may as well get one that can outrun an Indie racer. The price point for the Supercar is probably going to be near the Tesla Roadster or even the Audi E-Tron, but it will outperform both vehicles.
Practicality - although the price for the SOLO hasn't been set, it will likely compete with the Tesla Model S and the range-extended Fisker Karma. It will seat enough to be a family car and get better than 100mpg, so what's to argue about?
Availability - both vehicles from Velozzi will be available within 2 years, which is before most competing cars will have come to market.

What we don't

No Physical Prototypes - so far, physical prototypes for both Velozzi vehicles have not been publicly shown. It's expected that the Supercar will be shown at the X-Prize in the next couple of months, however.
Safety Testing - the largest delay for Velozzi with both of these concepts would probably be crash and safety testing. With no prototypes yet, it's questionable how soon they could have a production prototype for testing.
Price Ambiguity - with it being so soon to market for both vehicles, it would seem appropriate to have announced pricing already.

Conclusions

Publicly, neither car is in prototype stage yet, though privately it's likely that the Supercar and possibly the SOLO have already seen physical form for testing. Both vehicles are extremely innovative and, if they come to market as promised, would be some of the first practical electrics on the road today.

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