Brace of Aptera spotted in the wild, dimensions measured!
by Domenick Yoney on Feb 3rd 2009 at 3:17PM 
While waiting to make its public debut tomorrow at the Technology, Entertainment, Design (TED) conference tomorrow, the pre-production Aptera 2e was chillin' with its Typ-1 prototype brother in a nearby parking garage. Coincidentally, an Aptera fan named Josh just happened to be hanging out in the same garage with a camera and a tape measure. The birds in question were being watched by a security guard with strict orders not to let anyone touch them. Luckily, no one mentioned photography or measuring tapes and so the fancier went to work, careful not to come into physical contact with the vehicles.
As you can see from the many photos in the gallery below, the newer 2e is quite a bit, though subtly, different than the original. The nose is closer to the ground while its back seems to have a sexier curve that's amplified by the window that extends further down its spine. As far as the measurements go, the interloper recorded a width of 91 inches (7 feet 7 inches). The other measurements couldn't be taken as precisely but the height of the 2e seemed to be about 52 inches with a length of approximately 14 feet, 10 inches. We suspect video of the craft may appear soon, since we've heard rumors that Aptera fans will be hiding behind grassy knolls along the demonstration ride route.
Gallery: Aptera Typ-1 and 2e together
[Source: Josh at Aptera Forum]
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
Chad 3:34PM (2/03/2009)
Josh Posted some more photos as well with Aptera staff. Just a few min ago.
http://apteraforum.com/showthread.php?t=2192
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PeterG 4:41PM (2/03/2009)
Yikes that is a 1.5 feet wider than your typical sedan. I can see a lot of front wheel damage as the pods get snagged by the driver or people in other cars.
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Chris M 6:24PM (2/03/2009)
About 26" wider than my Prius, an extra 13" each side. Yes, you would have to be extra careful, but that 7 foot 6 inch span still fits in a standard 12' lane with room to spare. There are some trucks on the road that are even wider, you'd have to get over 9' before you'd need to get "wide load" signs installed!
GoodCheer 6:55PM (2/03/2009)
And half a foot wider than the original HUMMER H1, which had an exterior body width of 86.5".
http://www.cars.com/go/crp/research.jsp?section=features&crpPage=features.jsp&makeid=363&modelid=6148&year=2003&myid=&acode=&mode=&aff=national&defaultSelection=true
I still want one, but drivers will have to pay attention.
Snowdog 8:45PM (2/03/2009)
Not just the width it is the pods separation from the main body that makes me think they will be getting snagged on things.
kballs 1:16PM (2/04/2009)
I bet these will commonly be seen driving over curbs, bouncing off curbs, smacking into cars in parking lots, tripping people in parking lots that park next to them, taking out garage door frames, and taking out mailboxes and landscaping features (lighting, posts, walls, flowerbeds), heh.
I think most of the issues are going to be experienced at low speeds, not on the freeway.
The one thing that mitigates the insane width is the fact that the driver can see both wheel pods, if they so choose to pay attention to their whereabouts.
vic 8:04PM (2/04/2009)
No kidding. I can see bicyclists getting scooped up between the wheel and the body!
And it will just barely fit in a parking spot. Man, there's going to be a lot of repair work done on these, people just aren't used to driving something that wide.
Chris M 9:16PM (2/03/2009)
The most noticeable differences between the Typ1 and Aptera 2e are the side mirrors, the extra windows, and the larger rear window. More subtle is the larger rounder "nose" on the 2e, giving more room "under the hood" for the front wheel drive motor and batteries. The rear air exhaust ports are further apart on the 2e, leaving more space around the license plate.
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Rain 6:04AM (2/05/2009)
I was at first glance put off by the styling s of the Aptera,rather made Me think of that hoax of the Moller MX400.
But,I have to say now that it is firming up,it kind of makes me nostalgic for the fuselage bodied Chrysler cars of the early 70's.
I want to be optimistic about the Aptera and the Moller,its just that We've been led around for so long by the Larry Lightbulb types that the optimism has turned to skepticism.
I really,really,really want these to come to market and do well.
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