You might not have heard of them before, but Roberto Velozzi is no stranger to what the future holds and how to go about getting it. He worked for years on fuel cells for NASA. The Velozzi Range-Extended Electric Cars are a bit of an enigma? Why, because their hybrids are a true wonder as their hybrid means everything. When they say everything they mean everything. Let’s see that would be Biodiesel, Diesel, Butanol, Methanol, Biodiesel, CNG and of course electricity, Right? Yep, Hence the term “Range-Extended”, you can top it up with any of the fore mentioned. They’re really fast and furious model is aptly named, Supercar, which has an electric propulsion system. It can shoot from 0 to 60 in just 3 seconds. Its Lithium-ion battery can last 4 hours on a 110 volt outlet.
The battery range is 200miles to 1000 miles total with any of the other fuels. The Supercar can reach a top speed of 200mph. The Solo is similar to the Supercar as it uses any fuel type. It has the same range and battery recharge time. The Solo can accelerate from 0 to 60 in 6 seconds. It can reach speeds of up to 130mph, not 200mph like the supercar. But maybe they should also call the Solo “Super”, “Super car 1” and “Super Car 2”. Velozzi explains their decision to use C65 and C30 Microturbine by Capstone. It produces much lower Nox Emissions than CA Grid and The average Grid used in the US. The Microturbine produces 65kW of power and the AC-induction electric motor thrusts out a whopping 770hp. The Solo will cost around $40,000, and hopefully when the electric cars start rolling out of production, the price will decrease another $10,000; The more competition the better for us. So what inside? As the saying goes “clothes make the man” the battery makes the electric car. Velozzi knows batteries but do they know the consumers, what the driver wants and what the driver needs inside his or her second living room.
It’s true; cars are an extension of our homes. The machine, combustion or electric becomes our baby; we sometimes give them names– Like “Gloria”. I’ve seen the outside, I need a peek in the inside, don’t show me any makeup mirrors, although they could use a magnifying one, accompanied by eyebrow tweezers. I would say I was joking, but I’m not. I think that would be something worth showing, instead of that cheap mirror they show me after they convince me to get in. I’d love to see what comfort, convenience and safety features are offered in the affordable Solo. I’m sure they’ll surprise me.
With Velozzi teaming with impressive names like Bosch, Pirelli and Bayer, there’s no mistaking that at least the supercar will take on most of its competition including the Tesla Model S. I see the Solo as a possible contender among cars like Nissan and costing at least $80,000 less than the Audi e-Tron. But what will the Supercar cost us? I’m sure we will find out the answer soon enough, which will include one too many zeros.
