Sunday, January 16, 2011

Protoscar Lampo 2

Earlier this month, Swiss "CleanCar Shapers" (their term, not ours) Protoscar offered up a little teaser of its new Lampo 2 electric sportscar, which is headed for the Geneva Motor Show early next month. Now that we've got a whole series of images to gaze upon, we feel comfortable in saying that it's more than a little funky. Based on General Motors' Kappa platform, which underpins the Pontiac Solstice, Saturn Sky and, in Europe, the Opel GT (may they rest in peace), the Lampo 2 features oddly shaped bodywork wrapped around a powertrain consisting of twin electric motors – one for each axle to give it all-wheel drive – and a large-capacity lithium ion battery pack. Solar cells mounted out back may help range an infinitesimal bit.

Total combined output comes in at 408 horsepower and 472 pound-feet of torque, enough to push the 3,483-pound EV to 62 miles per hour in around five seconds with a top speed of 124 mph. Not exactly Tesla Roadster-slaying performance, that. Neither is it as attractive as the Roadster, in our not-so-humble opinions.

Protoscar's claim to fame may be in the Lampo 2's recharging options, including one that offers up 100 kilometers (60 miles) of range after a 10 minute charge via an off-board DC rapid charger interface



















Protoscar Lampo 2