Aptera announces it has taken 7,000 pre-orders for its new $25,000 electric car.
The Aptera electric car is actually a trike (with three wheels) and looks like something out of a Batman movie. It's super-aerodynamic, covered in solar panels and represents another interesting option for a cheap, convenient daily run-around - and expects to start delivering its cars to customers by the end of the year from its production and design facility in San Diego.
It can be plugged in for rainy days or nighttime but, unlike basic EVs, it needs just 15 minutes of charge to drive 150 miles without stopping. Even the simple act of leaving it parked in the sun for a day can provide 40 miles of range all on its own.
Aptera's tapered backside, aerodynamic body, and arched, dolphin-like undercarriage are all designed to reduce drag. It’s through this ultra-efficiency that solar power, a relatively limited form of electricity generation, can actually become a useful feature for powering a car. The company points out that a typical vehicle you uses 60% of its fuel just pushing the air out of the way at highway speeds; so if you could take that aerodynamic drag down to 0, you’d instantly get 60% better fuel economy.
Aptera have also taken advantage of 20 years of innovation in battery and electric drivetrain technology. Want to know more? Here's the company's promo video: