Do you remember the Opel Ampera? It was far, far ahead of its time. And fell completely through for the same reason. Other electric cars are also short of oblivion.
Right now there are so many electric cars on the market that it is difficult to remember them all.
It is only made more complicated by the fact that several new car brands are constantly appearing. However, some have started to disappear, and are now considering whether to build petrol cars. Read more here.
But what really became of the first such more or less half-hearted attempts to make the electric car the common property that the car type has not actually become yet?
Yes, there are several different explanations – and therefore suggestions – for that. Remember, we can be here for Tesla the first Model S hit the streets with free supercharger charging for life.
READ ALSO: Gas stations will be allowed to dispense special petrol
Opel Ampera – is actually a hybrid car, but…
The Opel Ampera aka Chevrolet Volt is actually a hybrid car because, in addition to the battery pack, there is also a 1.4-litre petrol engine in it.
But the petrol engine was only used to make electricity. The car was never really a success. Maybe because it was extremely expensive. In Denmark, the Opel Ampera cost DKK 590,000. Production stopped after 4 years in 2015.
Audi A1 E-tron – should have been in production
The small Audi A1 hit the streets as a diesel and gasoline car in 2010. Two years later, the Germans toyed with the idea of sending a plug-in hybrid to the streets.
It just never happened. However, at least one concept car – called the A1 E-tron – came out of the effort. The car had a 102 horsepower electric motor and then a tiny 254cc wankel engine (yes, wankel engine!). Audi gave up the range to 250 kilometers, because they abandoned the project.
Mitsubishi i-Miev – is also a Citroën/Peugeot
The little i-Miev is from a time when the PSA group thought they should work with Mitsubishi and vice versa. It was never really a success.
And in 2014, the car, which was also available with a Citroën or Peugeot logo, disappeared from the European market after 4 years of production. Maybe because it was absurdly expensive. The i-Miev was a one and a half meter wide car for DKK 275,000. That would be equivalent to DKK 356,000 today.
Renault Fluence ZE – best known for flopping with BetterPlace
Do you remember the battery replacement company BetterPlace? If the answer is no, you're forgiven. Because the American-Israeli business idea of changing batteries in electric cars on the go never really got off the ground.
The cars were otherwise ready. Renault built the sedan Fluence for the purpose. But in 2013 BetterPlace went bankrupt in Denmark, and two years later Fluence disappeared from Europe.
Volvo C30 BEV Concept – an attempt before and after the Chinese came along
Today, Volvo is in a mad rush to get away from anything that smells even a little bit of diesel and petrol. The diesel engine is already dead for the brand. Read more about it here.
But because the brand was bought by the Chinese Geely, they tried to build an electric car under Ford's ownership. C30 BEV Concept. However, the idea was dropped when the brand had built 250 cars in 2012.
Perhaps because two battery packs were necessary just to achieve a range of 160 kilometers. Today, Volvo is doing somewhat better with the electric cars. Also in Denmark.
It's just not seamless. The Swedish-Chinese brand has just had to recall 72,000 copies of the EX30 because it is affected by a sea of errors. Read more about it here .
Read more exciting news from and about the world of cars right here!
