The 'Colibri' is a one-person light electric vehicle developed by Innovative Mobility Automobile in

Jena Jena () is a German city and the second largest city in Thuringia. Together with the nearby cities of Erfurt and Weimar, it forms the central metropolitan area of Thuringia with approximately 500,000 inhabitants, while the city itself has a po ...

Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...

Vehicle concept

The Colibri's development stems from three general facts of current mobility behavior: the majority of people use individual transportation and on average cars are occupied by less than two people and travel daily distances of less than 55 kilometers (34 miles). Distinct features of the Colibri are the frame made of

magnesium Magnesium is a chemical element with the symbol Mg and atomic number 12. It is a shiny gray metal having a low density, low melting point and high chemical reactivity. Like the other alkaline earth metals (group 2 of the periodic ta ...

, which is considerably lighter than comparable construction types, and an electrically powered seat which is designed to increase the driver's comfort when entering or exiting the vehicle. Five other industrial companies and a university are involved in the development.

R & D Research and development (R&D or R+D), known in Europe as research and technological development (RTD), is the set of innovative activities undertaken by corporations or governments in developing new services or products, and improving existi ...

is subsidized by the

German Federal Ministry of Education and Research The Federal Ministry of Education and Research (german: link=no, Bundesministerium für Bildung und Forschung, ), abbreviated BMBF, is a cabinet-level ministry of Germany. It is headquartered in Bonn, with an office in Berlin. The Ministry provi ...

. In 2012 the prototype was being built, while serial production was scheduled to start in 2014.

2013 World Premiere in Geneva

After successful completion of the prototype phase, the vehicle had its world premiere at the 2013 Geneva Motor Show.

Body

According to the manufacturer, it will be the first vehicle in its class (L7e) to successfully pass the

Euro NCAP The European New Car Assessment Programme (Euro NCAP) is a European voluntary car safety performance assessment programme (i.e. a New Car Assessment Program) based in Leuven (Belgium) formed in 1996, with the first results released in Februa ...

crash test A crash test is a form of destructive testing usually performed in order to ensure safe design standards in crashworthiness and crash compatibility for various modes of transportation (see automobile safety) or related systems and comp ...

– despite the low curb weight of 440 kg (970 lbs) including the battery. With the comparatively low-capacity battery holding 6.5 kWhrs of electric energy, ranges of up to 110 kilometers (68 miles) per charge can be achieved, as well as short recharging time of two hours on a 220 V household socket or less than twenty minutes to 80% capacity on a fast charging station. In addition, the Colibri will offer a fully enclosed cab and hence be weatherproof, unlike its already available competitor, the

Renault Twizy The Renault Twizy is a two-seat Electric vehicle, electric microcar designed and marketed by Renault. It is classified in Europe as either a Motorised quadricycle#Light quadricycles (L6e), light or Motorised quadricycle#Heavy quadricycles (L7e), h ...

. The trunk will offer 180 liters (6.35 ft³) of cargo volume. Industry experts predict a significant market share potential for the Colibri; internationally, the vehicle is drawing some attention as well.

Performance

Due to its low weight, the vehicle is expected to achieve a maximum speed of up to 74 mph (120 km/h) and accelerate to 60 mph (100 km/h) in under 10 seconds. In contrast to comparable vehicles like the

, the Colibri will utilize a two-gear

automatic transmission An automatic transmission (sometimes abbreviated to auto or AT) is a multi-speed transmission used in internal combustion engine-based motor vehicles that does not require any input from the driver to change forward gears under normal driving ...

to reduce energy consumption at higher speeds.

Costs

The planned list price is set at 8,900 € for the base version, including

VAT A value-added tax (VAT), known in some countries as a goods and services tax (GST), is a type of tax that is assessed incrementally. It is levied on the price of a product or service at each stage of production, distribution, or sale to the en ...

but excluding the monthly lease rate for the

lithium iron phosphate battery The lithium iron phosphate battery (LFP (lithium ferro-phosphate), or Li-IP) is a type of lithium-ion battery using lithium iron phosphate () as the cathode material, and a graphitic carbon electrode with a metallic backing as the anode. Beca ...

of 55 €. Assuming an

electricity price Electricity pricing (also referred to as electricity tariffs or the price of electricity) can vary widely by country or by locality within a country. Electricity prices are dependent on many factors, such as the price of power generation, gover ...

of 0.20 € per kWh, total costs per kilometer driven would be 0.17 €, including vehicle depreciation, battery lease, maintenance, taxes, insurance and energy. Compared to the most cost-efficient city car which, according to the German

ADAC ADAC, officially the Allgemeiner Deutscher Automobil-Club (), is Europe's largest motoring association. ADAC is the largest club (Verein) in Germany with around 21 million members. It would be more aptly described today as an individual mo ...

, costs around 0.30 €, a light elective vehicle like the Colibri saves 0.13 € / km. A compact car easily exceeds 0.40 € / km.
German Automobile Club database, accessed on June 1st, 3:56 pm

Notes and References

External links

Official site of the manufacturer
Electric car models Electric city cars City cars 2010s cars