Italdesign Unveils Climb-E Autonomous EV Concept With 200-Mile Range and 75 MPH Top Speed

Owned since 2010 by the Volkswagen Group (through Audi and Lamborghini), the design and engineering company in Moncalieri, Turin, Italy, has been a staple of automotive styling for more than half a century. No less than 55 years (to be more precise), since its heritage traces its roots to the 1968 establishment of Studi Italiani Realizzazione Prototipi S.p.A. by Giorgetto Giugiaro and Aldo Mantovani.

Well, the iconic designer Giugiaro is no longer part of the brand since 2015, but Italdesign continues to try and set novel benchmarks across various automotive sectors. For its 55th anniversary party that kicks off at CES 2023 in Las Vegas, Italdesign has chosen to start the celebrations with Climb-E, an autonomous transportation prototype that looks quirky yet “can guarantee a seamless private travel experience.”

Following in the footsteps of other innovative mobility solutions and projects such as the Pop.Up and Pop.Up Next from 2017 and 2018, respectively, the Italian company moves on with its quest with an evolution toward “continuous sustainable urban mobility.” What that means, more precisely, in this case, is that Climb-E pods can be used both on the streets as well as deliver services up to people’s doors because it has the “capacity to integrate into next-gen and future civil and residential building structures,” initially with help from Schindler.

The concept is less than four meters long and is developed around two main components – the ground module (3,969 mm long – 156.25 inches yet only 930 mm/36.61 in. in height) and the capsule, which is 3,669 mm (144.44 in) long and 2,180 mm (85.82 in.) tall, plus equally wide as the ground module. Together, they also integrate with a fully electric powertrain that has a peak power of 80 kW (107 hp), with an electric motor in each wheel, and a maximum range of up to 200 miles (322 km) from the 65-kWh battery pack.

The latter can be recharged at up to 250 kW thanks to its 800V platform, and a fast 10 to 80% charge takes as little as 15 minutes. Performance credentials only include a 75 mph (120 kph) maximum speed, but there is also a wireless battery charging standard and that one is also speedy, with Italdesign promising a 30-minute window of opportunity.

Thanks to its autonomous driving system, the Climb-E pod can drive both ways, and everything centers around the interior atmosphere – where there are just two seats arranged “perpendicular to the two directions of travel.” Plus, special attention has been paid to color and trim choices, as well as passenger safety, with the company including the “entire Easyrain safety ecosystem” into the pod design.