Photo: LVEC
London Electric Vehicle Company (LVEC), the manufacturer of the London black cabs, will expand starting this year its operations into Norway as well, planning to make big money with their new electric version of the iconic car. In an attempt to sweep the Norwegians off their feet, LVEC gave up the equally iconic black paint of the car in favor of the red, white and blue of the Norwegian national flag.
The vehicle presented on Thursday at the Nordic EV Summit in Oslo is based on the TX six-seater, which entered operation in London last week. For Norway, some adaptations had to be made, as the cabbies in the country are used to driving on the correct side of the road (left, of course).
The electric taxi uses a battery electric powertrain coupled with a small petrol generator to help the car not run out of power in the middle of a fare. LVEC says that its vehicle is good for 640 km (400 miles), only 128km (80 miles) of them in all-electric mode.
“To ensure significant fuel savings for drivers, a key part of encouraging them to make the transition to a range-extended electric vehicle, LEVC has combined our eCity technology with a lightweight aluminum-bonded structure. This extends vehicle range and significantly reduces fuel costs for drivers and operators,” says LVEC.
When out of juice, the cab can be charged to full capacity within 20 minutes on a rapid charger, two hours with a fast charger and a lengthy ten hours on a trickle charger.
LVEC was until recently known as The London Taxi Corporation. It is owned, just like Volvo, by Chinese group Geely, which was the main driving force behind the producer turning electric. Back in 2016, word was the Chinese were planning to produce 36,000 vehicles each year and send them on the streets as taxis. Electric ones, obviously.
The electric taxi uses a battery electric powertrain coupled with a small petrol generator to help the car not run out of power in the middle of a fare. LVEC says that its vehicle is good for 640 km (400 miles), only 128km (80 miles) of them in all-electric mode.
“To ensure significant fuel savings for drivers, a key part of encouraging them to make the transition to a range-extended electric vehicle, LEVC has combined our eCity technology with a lightweight aluminum-bonded structure. This extends vehicle range and significantly reduces fuel costs for drivers and operators,” says LVEC.
When out of juice, the cab can be charged to full capacity within 20 minutes on a rapid charger, two hours with a fast charger and a lengthy ten hours on a trickle charger.
LVEC was until recently known as The London Taxi Corporation. It is owned, just like Volvo, by Chinese group Geely, which was the main driving force behind the producer turning electric. Back in 2016, word was the Chinese were planning to produce 36,000 vehicles each year and send them on the streets as taxis. Electric ones, obviously.
Google News