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Aptera - 300MPG - $30K - 90MPH - 0-60/10sec - Seats 2

bhkad

bhkad

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Aptera - 300MPG - $30K - 90MPH - 0-60/10sec - Seats 2

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YouTube - 300 Miles Per Gallon! Aptera Motors Unveils Ultra Efficient

The Typ-1 is a powerful, yet extremely safe vehicle that is a joy to drive -- even for the most performance-minded individuals.
Click to expand...

Aptera

I WANT ONE!

YOU'LL WANT ONE!

THIS IS THE ANSWER.

And it will be on sale before the end of 2008.

:applaud :rock
 
I am guessing it is going to have a little problems with safety mandates???
lil bummed about the 2 seater, but that should be easily added down the road
I would not use it for scoring whores, but i would commute to work in it

oh, yeah. This can not be. the big 3 are going to buy it and bury it
or the Oil companies are going to buy it and bury it
or either of them are going to have them killed and bury it
there is no way this could be developed without teh Government passing legislation mandating its creation because america is too selfish and enjoys sucking on the ME oil teet
 
DeeJayH said:
I am guessing it is going to have a little problems with safety mandates???
lil bummed about the 2 seater, but that should be easily added down the road
I would not use it for scoring whores, but i would commute to work in it

oh, yeah. This can not be. the big 3 are going to buy it and bury it
or the Oil companies are going to buy it and bury it
or either of them are going to have them killed and bury it
there is no way this could be developed without teh Government passing legislation mandating its creation because america is too selfish and enjoys sucking on the ME oil teet
Click to expand...

SAFETY

How safe is the Aptera? What about the body strength?

With safety being our top priority, we have raised our standard beyond the requirements of a typical passenger car. Nothing is normal or standard for the Aptera so why should we stick to "normal" safety standards? For example, the Typ-1 roof is designed to EXCEED rollover strength requirements spelled out in FMVSS(Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard) 216 for passenger cars. The doors also far EXCEED mandated strength requirements for passenger cars as does our 45" frontal impact deflection and crumple zone. We decided not just to meet many of the requirements for passenger cars, but we chose to exceed them. Industry safety standards are very different for passenger cars and motorcycles; we are choosing to go well beyond the industry safety standard for passenger cars so Aptera drivers can feel safe in any driving situation.

What are some of the safety features unique to the Aptera?

The Aptera's composite safety cage is similar to Formula-1 cars. Our "Eyes Forward" vision system allows for 180 degree rear sight. There is a display panel in the driver's field of view which enhances situational awareness allowing you to keep your eyes on the road. The over-sized LED turn indicators located on the rear and side of the vehicle are easy for other drivers to see, adding greatly to the night and day visibility of the Aptera.

How stable is the Aptera? Can the Aptera easily roll-over?

Unlike many 3-wheel vehicle designs that were abandoned in the 80's due to their instability the Aptera has two wheels in the front and a single rear wheel eliminating any tendency to roll-over. The Aptera also features traction control, a low center of gravity and a wide track width which makes for a very stable platform that increases cornering stability without sacrificing performance.

Will it be possible to turn off the airbag on the passenger side when you have a child on board?

Yes, this will be standard on all Aptera's.

What if an object hits the underside of the vehicle, will I be safe?

The Aptera's monocoque construction or structural skin provides 360 degree protection for the occupants. Monocoque construction was first widely used in the aircraft industry, starting in the 1930's.

Since the Aptera is classified as a motorcycle, do you have to wear a helmet or get an endorsement on my license?

You are not required to wear a helmet to drive the Aptera, nor is an endorsement on your drivers license required. Anything in the state of CA with three wheels does not require a motorcycle license and enclosed vehicles with three wheels do not require the use of a helmet. All this and you also get to drive in the HOV lanes!

FAQs
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After reading their website a little bit I get the impression that they are working from a position of strength.

Look at the commercial in the video. It looks like a Saturn/GM spot. That quality takes bucks.

They also talk about having taken pains to stay out of the limelight and only recently has the Popular Mechanics magazine article on the car kinda lead them to have to start revealing more about the vehicle. They are restricting sales to California because they want to create a regional support network for customers and expand to other states only as they solve any inevitable problems in California.

I really get the impression they were able to find deep pocketed investors who are ready, willing and able to back what they saw to be a winner and they won't need Detroit and the Big 3 may not be buying them off unless GM can mortgage their current assets to do it.

GM just closed 4 manufacturing plants today. If it wasn't for the political events of this day (Obama clinched, Hillary suggested she'd accept a VP role if offered) the GM closings would be the lead story on all the newscasts.

If GM were to buy Aptera I don't think they do so in order to shelve it. No way! They'd bring it to market as quickly as they possibly could.

But, based on my general impressions gained from a cursory skimming of a few of their pages and their YouTube videos, Aptera looks well poised for the long term.

I'll make a prediction. There's an Aptera in many of our futures! :yes:
 
WOW!!! Such an easy fix!
Everyone who wants to committ suicide and people that want to drive drunk should buy one of these. At least they will only be killing themselves and no one else.
-
There is NO WAY that the word Aptera and SAFE should ever be said in the same breath or sentence.
-
There are many 'safe' autos but remember, they are ONLY SAFE against another vehicle that weighs within 250 pounds of each other.
-
They want to drive THIS on streets in the U.S.A.?????
:2rofll::2funny::2funny::2funny:
Their kidding, right?
:2funny:
 
Sergeant Stinger1 said:
WOW!!! Such an easy fix!
Everyone who wants to committ suicide and people that want to drive drunk should buy one of these. At least they will only be killing themselves and no one else.
-
There is NO WAY that the word Aptera and SAFE should ever be said in the same breath or sentence.
-
There are many 'safe' autos but remember, they are ONLY SAFE against another vehicle that weighs within 250 pounds of each other.
-
They want to drive THIS on streets in the U.S.A.?????
:2rofll::2funny::2funny::2funny:
Their kidding, right?
:2funny:
Click to expand...
i dont know
they are claiming their safety standards exceed current mandatory minimums
I would prefer being in a lighter weaker car if it had a roll cage and better mileage
I avoid more accidents than i am in
 
Trust science, the NHTSA and IIHS are on their game.

Sergeant Stinger1 said:
There is NO WAY that the word Aptera and SAFE should ever be said in the same breath or sentence.
Click to expand...

Even if they meet and exceed the safety standards of the NHTSA and IIHS? :roll:

How do you feel about motorcycles?

Sergeant Stinger1 said:
There are many 'safe' autos but remember, they are ONLY SAFE against another vehicle that weighs within 250 pounds of each other.
Click to expand...

And which safety standard is that? Source for that claim? You do know they test cars against solid brick walls in crash tests, and not other similar cars, right?

This is no different than the alleged safety risks of the Smartcar... there is a reason there are safety STANDARDS, and the boys @ the NHTSA and IIHS know what they're doing.

bhkad said:
I WANT ONE!

YOU'LL WANT ONE!

THIS IS THE ANSWER.

And it will be on sale before the end of 2008.

:applaud :rock
Click to expand...

I for one think its a remarkable piece of engineering as well as pretty aesthetically pleasing, and if proven safe; pretty damn awesome.

Heck I'd trade in my new Accord just to be an early adopter.
 
Last edited:
Sergeant Stinger1 said:
WOW!!! Such an easy fix!
Everyone who wants to committ suicide and people that want to drive drunk should buy one of these. At least they will only be killing themselves and no one else.
-
There is NO WAY that the word Aptera and SAFE should ever be said in the same breath or sentence.
-
There are many 'safe' autos but remember, they are ONLY SAFE against another vehicle that weighs within 250 pounds of each other.
-
They want to drive THIS on streets in the U.S.A.?????
:2rofll::2funny::2funny::2funny:
Their kidding, right?
:2funny:
Click to expand...

They're not kidding.

Face it. You are in a horse vs. horseless carriage (car) kind of revolution.

Progress waits for no one.
 
.......I can already see this thing hitting an SUV and both driver and passanger in this vehicle dying. Don't get me wrong. It's an amazing vehicle(you had me at 300MPG) but I'll keep doubting it until I see some actual crash videos that tell me different. Right now this just looks like a souped up T-Rex.
 
While the website does say that the vehicle exceeds certain safety standards for passenger vehicles, it doesn't say it exceeds all of them.

Of course I'm not a real safety person on vehicles or I'd be trying to keep pace with the neighbors ever increasingly huge SUVs. (Does anyone else think of the cold war when they think of SUV's?) At the right price/performance/ride I'd probably buy one. Certainly would be cool to test drive one anyway. :)
 
I'd love to be in this thing with an 18 wheeler 10' behind me going 65 mph....

NOT!
 
It would be ok around town, but doesn't exactly look like a road trip vehicle.
 
didnt trikes get pulled from the market for flipping??????
and a 3 wheeled car is different how?

and this will really **** with the AAA's One Tank Roadtrips :lol:
 
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Gill said:
I'd love to be in this thing with an 18 wheeler 10' behind me going 65 mph....

NOT!
Click to expand...

I think you'd be higher on a Civic then you would in this thing....I personally would love to see some crash test videos.
 
Hatuey said:
I think you'd be higher on a Civic then you would in this thing....I personally would love to see some crash test videos.
Click to expand...

So would I. I wonder how many front wheels are going to get smashed by little old ladies trying to park next to it at the grocery store. Those front wheels have got to be practically invisible to another driver.
 
Gill said:
So would I. I wonder how many front wheels are going to get smashed by little old ladies trying to park next to it at the grocery store. Those front wheels have got to be practically invisible to another driver.
Click to expand...

It's a shame though at 300MPG - I'd drive from my house to NYC and have enough gas to head to Montreal and then back home again.
 
Hatuey said:
It's a shame though at 300MPG - I'd drive from my house to NYC and have enough gas to head to Montreal and then back home again.
Click to expand...

True... but I have faith in the ingenuity of the business world, so I'm sure a practical vehicle will be developed with similar gas mileage.
 
Gill said:
True... but I have faith in the ingenuity of the business world, so I'm sure a practical vehicle will be developed with similar gas mileage.
Click to expand...

And this is the same auto industry protesting that making their cars go 25 mph is too much?
 
Why should we bother to post links if some won't bother to read them but then say silly things which require remedial instruction that wouldn't have been necessary had the posters simply read what was made available as a way to inform them?

We sometimes wonder what makes for a person's point of view in life. May I suggest that for some it might be a habitual failure to get the facts, followed by a reactionary but frequent need to defend one's previous shortcoming?
 
Hatuey said:
.......I can already see this thing hitting an SUV and both driver and passanger in this vehicle dying.
Click to expand...
Is that an arguement against the Aptera or an arguement against SUVs?
 
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