Though the Auto show at Gandhinagar, Gujarat was not that exciting, the prototypes of the 'green sports car' stole the attention of one and all. It was a one-off model displayed amidst other known manufacturers like Maruti Suzuki, BMW, Honda, Rolls-Royce, Tata Motors, Hyundai and Mahindra.
The electric sports car prototype is named Supernova Electric Vehicle (SNEV) and claims to cover 1,000 kms in a single charge. It can do a top speed of 150kmph. The production version of the car will be offered with a choice of three batteries - lead acid, lithium ion and super-capacitors. The lead acid battery supposedly has a charge time of eight hours, the lithium ion batteries two hours, while the super capacitors have a claimed charge time of less than five minutes.
The SNEV was developed by Ahmedabad-based Golden Arrow Wireless Pvt. Ltd. at the company's plant in Aslali in Gujarat. The manufacturer has signed a memorandum of understanding with the Madhya Pradesh government to set up a manufacturing plant in 50 acres of land near Raipur in Chhattisgarh.
Shashi Vyas, founder of Golden Arrow Wireless, said, "We are, however, looking at setting up plants at multiple locations including Delhi, Mumbai, Bangalore, Raipur and also somewhere in Gujarat. We would need around Rs 2,500 crore to set up the manufacturing sites. We already have around 250 bookings, and can deliver them by the end 2015 if the ARAI approval comes through."
Source: Business-Standard
Image Source: bt.com
