This past week while chatting with The Courage Group's urban planner Ray Gordon, who writes a blog Courageous Futures, I had the good fortune to meet Howard Levine, founder and COO of Persu Mobility. Formerly Venture Vehicles, the company is working on producing a PHEV, similar to the U.K.'s Carver, yet using a totally new platform significantly more advanced and specifically engineered to OEM-type standards, making it street legal in the USA.
Powered by a hybrid power plant, the company's ULV or Urban Life Vehicle is rated at 75 miles per gallon (the actual figure is expected to be closer to 100mpg) with a top speed approaching 100mph, and at about four feet wide, it also can maneuver in traffic much like a motorcycle, while the enclosed cabin keeps the elements at bay.
The 3-wheeler uses a patented Dynamic Vehicle Control system or DVC™ tilting technology, utilizing a combination of hydraulic and mechanical technologies, thus eliminating the stability issue inherent in non-tilting three wheel vehicles and providing high reliability and quick response. The advantage of these vehicles is that they are lighter weight, use less materials and smaller batteries, and are more aerodynamic.
It's low drag coefficient and plug in capabilites provide an all electric range of at least 20 miles and a total driving range at least 400 miles on a six-gallon tank of gas, and has a rumored price tag of around $25k.
The company remains in stealth mode as it works to solve it's main challenge: engineering the vehicle's production methods to achieve U.S. reliability and durability standards in volume.
You see, it's incredibly expensive to build a vehicle to U.S. standards. We Americans sometimes forget the millions of dollars it takes to tool a plant for precision metal fabrication, or other materials for that matter, for seamless fit and finish, let alone the R&D costs.
Two key elements to the company's success came when Gov. Schwarzenegger signed a bill giving their vehicle HOV lane access in California and President Obama’s stimulus package that includes a tax credit (against income and alternative taxes) for consumers who purchase 2-wheel or 3-wheel plug-in hybrid or electric vehicles having an onboard battery capacity of at least 2.5 kilowatt hours. The credit is for 10% of the cost of any qualified vehicle up to $2500. This is a significant policy step for the advancement of alternative vehicles and 3-wheel plug-in hybrids in particular.
With a projected debut in 2012, we'll be waiting and watching to learn more about this ULV, a vehicle I already LUV.
For more info: Visit the company's website www.flytheroad.com or to sign on to their preregistration list (at no cost) to learn more about their future plans.
Comments
Cool article. It's interesting how, as the Big 3 U.S. carmakers fail, small start-ups like this one, Tesla and Aptera are showing good old fashioned ingenuity and innovation.
I agree Jim--and what I think is happening is this fragmentation, allowing all these niche brands to come in. If you ask me, in 20 yrs, that is what the auto landscape will be--niche brands and no longer a "big 3." Because when you think about it, buyers of these niche vehicles aren't buying a GM, Chrysler or Ford, which has to eat into their market share. And when these big companies post $6BB losses and these small companies show a profit, what is the better business model?
What an amazing vehicle. I'm looking forward to seeing it. Thanks for the info, Matt!
Great article... and you hit the nail on the head regarding the boost that alternative energy autos will get from recent legislation... which was still only on the horizon when I first blogged about the Persu.
As battery technology improves, we will see an explosion in these types of vehicles - small, nimble, efficient personal vehicles. They're especially good for the millions of short trips made in urban areas!
Keep up the solid reporting!
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