Lumeneo Smera, new French electric car, on sale for 24,500 euros
Lomeneo Smera - click above for high-res image gallery
First introduced at the Geneva Motor Show in 2008, the Lumeneo Smera has been making small appearances around France and Monaco. The next appearance of the tiny 1+1 seat electric tilting vehicle will be at the 15th Sport & Collection Weekend near Poitiers, France. Organized by the France Ferrari Club, the weekend features a lot of Ferrari cars and will raise money to fight cancer.
If you don't remember, Lumeneo claims the Smera can go from 0-60 in eight seconds, has a top speed of 80 mph and has a range of about 90 miles from a 144 volt lithium ion battery. If my French can be trusted, the company says you can buy the car today in Paris for 24,500 euros, about $33,000 US (see details in French here). Starting in 2010, Lomeneo says that it will have Lumeneo shops in the "main European cities." In the meantime, you can go to the company's website and watch a video of the car in action. Thanks to matteo for the tip!
Gallery: Lumeneo Smera
[Source: Lumeneo]
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
Mark 11:47AM (5/17/2009)
Wow! With all the other EVs that are now going on sale it are truly entering the beginning of the EV age. Late 2009 and 2010 are going to be exciting times.
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jharlan 12:14PM (5/17/2009)
$33 thousand dollrs for a motorized roller skate! Yea, sign me up!
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Tohe 12:57PM (5/17/2009)
I like it, looks good and on paper seems very capable. For the US, the price needs to come down to below the 20,000 mark, it can't compete with a 20,000 Honda Insight or a Prius. Perhaps Government subsidy could apply and drastically bring the price down. Personally I would chose this over any hybrid simply because it meets my needs without polluting, but others may have a different set of needs and values.
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Marie 2:13PM (5/17/2009)
Tohe, Unless the battery is being charged by solar or wind power, electric cars still pollute. We just don't see it at the source. I really like electric cars, but let's not forget they're typically powered by coal or nuclear stations instead of gas.
http://www.projectearthblog.blogspot.com
Tohe 2:44PM (5/17/2009)
@Marie:
In my area our electric power company offers energy from renewable resources, you just pay a higher rate for a guilt free conscience. But that is besides the point, electric motors are 80% efficient (they apply 80% of the energy they use) while internal combustion engines are only 20% efficient (they loose 80% of energy as heat).
In the event that you draw all of your electricity from a coal plant, said plant will always be more efficient at burning coal than ICE cars will be at burning gas. Besides coal plants never stop working, therefore off peak hours present an opportunity for electric cars to use electricity that would otherwise go to waste.
Throwback 2:40PM (5/17/2009)
Has anyone outside of the company actually driven this car?
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Gabe 3:48PM (5/17/2009)
It says sales started in February, delivery starts in June.
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Jon 4:54PM (5/17/2009)
Although subsidies, reduced fuel costs, lower road tax, free parking in some places, etc, will reduce the long-term cost of ownership compared to a petrol-powered car, people only tend to look at the initial cost when purchasing.
So this car probably won't sell well until its price drops.
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Paul 2:23AM (5/18/2009)
The site is in English as well as French
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Chris 12:18AM (5/18/2009)
Looked good until I saw how thin it was. Why not make it as wide as a Smart Car?
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rogwild 8:14AM (5/18/2009)
Too bad that it is a 4-wheel 'tilter', and will currently be classified as a CAR not motorcycle in the US. I doubt that it will ever see the USA under current regulations.
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Zeph 8:52AM (5/18/2009)
It looks nice, just a tad smaller and a bit more expensive than I need or can afford. But it's a step in the right direction, and it looks like a lot of fun :)
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NeilBlanchard 10:57AM (5/18/2009)
Hi,
Is this car a single seater? It looks very similar to the Tango, which has two seats.
Sincerely, Neil
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Tim 10:59AM (5/18/2009)
I like it... for around $12K.
Has is been crash-tested?
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Tom 4:25PM (5/18/2009)
Anyone remember the Elk Test?
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Elk_test
Potential epic fail
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