AC Propulsion the push behind modern electric cars.

 

A small company has done more for the electric vehicle, EV than any other, AC Propulsion.  This company has been incrememntal in shaping the future of electric cars of this world.

AC Propulsion deservedly has its place set in the history of electric vehicles, EV.  Having been around for over 15 years, they are regarded in the industry as the first ones to introduce a working electric super car with amazing and promising results, the Tzero.  The best part of it, it is still functioning, a decade and a half later.  The Tzero's lightweight could propel it from 0 to 60 in 3.6 seconds, effectively blowing out of the toughest competition internal combustion engine, ICE cars of its time.  Yet, its 220 horsepower electric engine behaved in a very civilized way under traffic condition.  AC Propulsion knew there were onto something.  That had reached that perfect balance.  Now they only needed to manufacture it or find someone to buy the technology.

The T-Zero, the original electric vehicle from AC Propulsion that accelerated from 0 to 60 in slightly over 3 seconds.

How did it all start?  As with many EV stories in the U.S., it all started with GM's which inevitable points to the ill-fated  EV-1.  Alan Cocconi worked on the original GM prototype project called the Impact. He originally developed the drive system.  He designed and built the controller/inverter for the Impact that was introduced at the 1990 LA Auto Show which evolved into the EV-1.  He them decided to create AC Propulsion in California in 1992 whose mission is to develop, manufacture, and license technology for electric propulsion vehicles.   Indeed, AC Propulsion designs, engineers and manufactures electric motors, inverters, battery chargers, battery monitors and other hardware and software necessary to create the complete system that makes an electric car go.

How successful are they? Guess who licensed their technology to build another incredible electric super car that grabs the vast majority of headlines?  The Tesla Roadster.  Other companies who found their technology remarkable enough include, the Zooop from Courreges Design, the amazing Wrightspeed X1, the Attack, the Volvo 33c concept, Venturi's Fetish, and more.  By now, you get the picture, AC Propulsion has the know-how and knowledge.  Their the track record and the logical progression makes them experts in today's electric world.  It also explains why BMW licensed their technology for the upcoming MINI E.

What does it feel driving AC Propulsion's Technology?  I was able to test drive their eBox, a rolling, producible platform for their electric drive system and got a great kick out of it.  It's strange but not matter how you talk and explain how it feels, nothing will do until you actually get to drive one yourself.  It's that different from gas cars.  It's that surprising.  You have to experience the continuous boost of an electric engine in order to understand it.  I could flush you with charts but the feeling is undescribable...  100 unadulterated torque , all the time.  Period.  But don't let this fool you, the eBox is very civilized and we had fun driving it in Santa Monica, California traffic.  What was it like?

Joshua Allan from AC Propulsion, Vehicle Product Engineering Manager.

The Test Drive.  The eBox is a Scion, so nothing much to say here.  The only visual difference inside are that other gages have found their way on the dash, such as the amp meters.  What was surprising was pressing the accelerator and feel the car just go without delays or fuss.  A traditional gas engine needs to go up in revs and then starts to move the car, but it isn't so with an EV.  It has a linear power curve and the start was very smooth.  In fact, the harder you press, the harder the car pushes...  and it is relentless.  You need to be feathered foot or else you can easily find yourself driving 120 miles an hour with little efforts.  The eBox has regenerative breaking, which means release the pedal and the vehicle slows down and eventually comes to a stop.  You quickly learn to stabilize the speed of the EV, if you let go of the accelerator, it will slow down the EV by using its electric engine drive to slow it down while pumping electricity back into the battery pack.

Once on the road, easing in and out of traffic is very relaxing, very easy in fact.  This is the hard thing to explain, how it feels to drive such a car but it's almost noiseless.  The roar of the engine has turned into a faint whiz and the difference is almost a Jetson's experience.  One can quickly get used to it, even after have conventional gas performance cars.  In fact, the electric engine won’t stop until you either ease off or it maxes out at 13,000 rpm at over 120 mph, in the case of the eBox.  Imagine stepping on an accelerator with a car that delivers instant power and doesn’t run out of juice, all puns intended.  Imagine stepping on it, and it goes, step on it more, and it still goes, step in it even more, it continues to deliver a smooth acceleration, and on and on and on…  No, we didn’t do that in the streets of Santa Monica, though tempting it was.  I had heard much about the electric engine's amazing torque but nothing had prepared me for that and it took me by surprise.  For those of you who have driven golf carts, you might be familiar with the feel of accelerating and it goes.  Imagine a car that does the same thing and ups the performance level?  The eBox might be a great performance car but what won us over was its ease of use.  It is civilized.

My overall impression was that this is very well engineered car.  You can feel it in the way it drives and how well integrated the electric drive system is.  It is tight, the response in instantaneous and the performances match the expectations.  It requires a little getting used to, especially in regards to keeping an even pressure on the accelerator.

The numbers, 0-60 mph in 7 secs, 95 mph, with a range of 120 to 150 miles depending on how you drive it, city or highway, etc.  The full charge is done in 2 hrs on fast mode, 220 volts, or 5 from a standard 110 volt socket.  The engine is AC, putting out 120 Kw, about 160 hp with 50 kw in continuous mode.  It uses a lithium-ion battery pack that only weighs 600lbs.  The list of feature is rich, with AC, NAV, cruise control, power windows, steering and brakes and most important V2G.  V2G is a very smart way to send back electricity to the grid and get paid for it by communicating with the utility.  Theoretically, if you have solar panels and wind turbines, you would pay nothing for the electricity that drives you around and actually get paid by your utility.  Last impressive fact is that driving full speed with the AC blasting will only take away 2 miles of the total range.

The Future.  What does the future hold for AC Propulsion?  So far it looks very bright, the company has already received massive recognition and push by mainstream manufacturers, worldwide.  Obviously AC Propulsion has the most experience in this field.  They have worked hard to be ranked as the top contenders in electric drive system.  Oh, the price?  You bring them a Scion xB and they'll convert it for $55,000.  Is it worth it?  Absolutely.