JAPAN’s Cocoa Motors will take pre-orders for what it claims to be
the world’s smallest electric vehicle, on Kickstarter from October.
During July, the Tokyo-based company invited test rides on what it
described as an A4-sized electric car, but what we call a sawn-off electric
skateboard.
Officially, this tray on wheels is called the WalkCar.
A company video demonstrates how this laptop-sized board fits into
a carry bag.
To ride it, the driver slips the WalkCar out of the bag, places it
on the ground, steps onto it and leans
forward. Weight sensors activate the motor. To slow down, the rider leans back.
forward. Weight sensors activate the motor. To slow down, the rider leans back.
To turn, the rider has to lean into the turn to put more weight on
the inside wheels.
The WalkCar’s top speed is 10 km/h and Cocoa Motors claims
12 kilometres, with a three-hour charging time.
To stop, the rider just steps off the board and it stops.
To avoid a collision, a rider can jump off, and the WalkCar will
stop immediately.
What next? Well, right now the WalkCar is your typical front wheel drive vehicle. For us fans living in cities with cratered sidewalks and dirt roads, Cocoa Motors can make the all-wheel-drive, all terrain ClimBerg, although riders will then have to tilt the board like a skateboard to steer.
What next? Well, right now the WalkCar is your typical front wheel drive vehicle. For us fans living in cities with cratered sidewalks and dirt roads, Cocoa Motors can make the all-wheel-drive, all terrain ClimBerg, although riders will then have to tilt the board like a skateboard to steer.
Details of the motor and battery are still to be confirmed, but as
a screen grab from the company video shows, it is powerful enough to carry a man
who is pushing a trolley loaded with boxes, up an incline. (Presumably, the
boxes are not too heavy.)
