Words About Things

Like most automotive companies Volkswagen are looking to the future and designing electric vehicles. Unlike most Volkswagen already have a design classic under their belts in the form of the iconic Beetle. The Volkswagen eUp! (complete with unessential punctuation) owes a debt to the Beetle in terms of style and ambition.

The eUp! aims to have widespread appeal in order to become “the Beetle of the 21st century”. This should come as a surprise from a company whose name translates as ‘the people’s car’.  By the time the eUp! comes out in 2013 there should be quite a lot of competition in the electric car market although it may have the stats to make it stand out:

The range is expected to be up to 130 kilometers (80 miles) on an overnight 230-volt charge for the five hours when electricity is cheapest while you’re asleep. Charged in this way, the E-Up! could be driven 100 kilometres for just two Euros in electricity costs (about 14 Euro cents per kWh). This would be the equivalent of driving 62 miles on $2.97 worth of electricity at $0.20 cents a kwh (McMansion Californian electric rates), or about like buying gas for $1.50 in a 31 mpg car.    – gas2.org

The eUp! is the smallest VW to date at only 3.19 meters long and 1.64 meters wide. Hopefully this vehicle will lead to Volkswagen creating other, larger electric vehicles across their range. With van emissions being clamped down upon we need more electronic vans for sale.

A one-of-a-kind Rolls-Royce looks set to become the world’s most expensive car when it goes up for auction next month. The Roller, which belongs to private collector Hans-Gunther Zach, is expected to sell for up to £8.5 million when it gos on sale alongside 24 rare Rolls-Royce’s and three Bentleys.

The previous record holder was a 957 Ferrari 250 Testa Rossa which sold or £7.2 million in May of this year.

The car was built for the Maharaja and was named the Star of India when it was built in 1934. It was well ahead of its time and even features headlights which track the movements of the steering wheel.It was previously displayed in Zach’s Rolls-Royce museum in Muhlheim, Germany.

I’m tempted to put in a bid, you could make a lot of money renting this out as a hire car for weddings if only it wasn’t worth more than the GDP of a small country…

Boris Johnson has spoken of his aims to make London the ‘electric capital of Europe’ by introducing an electric car hire scheme to the city. Johnson has shown support for measures to reduce the amount of damage done to the environment by private transport in London. Last year he announced his plans to launch a bike hire initiative similar to Paris’ Vélib programme.

The car rental program would be similar to the Autolib scheme which is due to launch in Paris in 2010 following on from the success of the Vélib scheme. The cars would be released using a credit card or a pre paid subscription card. So far there are 60 charging points in Westminster but thousands more will be needed across the city if the initiative is to succeed.

Thisislondon.co.uk says “One target group is young couples with children who occasionally need a car to shop or travel but cannot afford to run their own. Tourists would also enjoy the freedom of having a car available without having to worry about it when not in use.” The scheme will target similar potential customers to the car rental services aimed at those who do not wish to own a car but would rather rent a car when it suits them.

Johnson has previously been criticised for failing to use public transport himself. After a recent meeting Boris and other members of staff spent £1000 of tax payers money on Taxis to get home. A spokesperson said “Staff safety is paramount, the venue is at least a 15-minute bus ride from the nearest station.”