Electrifying ride
revolutionary Electric Vehicle Alternative, or reva, the brainchild of Chetan Maini, managing director of Bangalore-based Maini group of companies, is not another smoke belching fossil fuel guzzler. The noiseless piece of machinery, first developed in 1996, is electrically driven.
reva , India's first electric car, has been much delayed in its launch. But now the manufacturers are upbeat about the car and have finally brought it out for sale at Bangalore. They are also going to launch modified versions of the car, targeting different niches of consumers, such as taxi operators, resorts and large corporations. The company has appointed 90 dealers across the country, out of which 40 are based in Bangalore.
But will reva catch the customer's eye, especially, considering it's tagged at about Rs 2 lakh? Vijay Chandy, senior vice president at Reva Electric Car Company ( recc ), says: "We have launched the car in Bangalore. Next we will roll it out in Chennai, Mysore, Hyderabad and Coimbatore in a phased manner. We are initially targeting the smaller towns and planning to make it a success story there before marketing it across the nation, which is likely to take place in the first quarter of 2002.'
Produced under a joint venture between the Mainis and Amerigon, a us -based company, the car boasts of a running cost of Rs 0.40 per km. The Maini group, which controls 67 per cent stake in recc , has invested Rs 80 crore. With an installed capacity of 10,000 units per annum, the company expects to break even by selling a mere 3,000 units of reva per annum. The company expects to sell 1,500 units in the first year of operation and later hike production to 3,000 units in the second year. The company chairperson Sudarshan Maini espouses plans to export the car to England as well.
The two-door hatchback can carry two adults and two children or a payload of 227 kg and achieve a top speed of 65 kmph. One full charge of the battery lasts for 80 km. Eight six-volt tubular lead acid batteries, especially developed for reva 's power pack, have a life cycle of approximately 40,000 km.
The 48 volt, 200 ampere hour tubular lead acid batteries pack is neatly tucked below the seats. With a six-hour charge, one can drive the car to 80 km. The battery pack is charged through the usual 15-ampere socket found in each household. A