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General Motors and Segway unveiled today a prototype all-electric vehicle intended for city driving. Dubbed Project PUMA (Personal Urban Mobility and Accessibility), the two-seater vehicle balances on two side-by-side wheels like Segway's stand-up personal transport.
Its top speed is 35 miles per hour (so it can't go on highways), it can travel 35 miles on a single charge, and recharges in 35 minutes. The vehicles can turn in place, and has two smaller sets of wheels, one in front and one in back. When stopped, the vehicle rests on the front set; the ones in the back are there to prevent it from tipping over.
The prototype shown off in New York this morning ahead of the New York Auto Show is the bare-bones skeleton of what the vehicle will look like, and the companies are expected to show off a fleshed-out version later this year.
The announcement was lacking in details on how much and when the vehicle would come out, two issues closely linked. Estimates put the release of PUMA as far out as 2012, with the price hovering between one-third and one-fourth the cost of the average vehicle.
Larry Burns, GM vice president of research and development and strategic planning, was quoted as saying the vehicle would be one-quarter the cost per mile of typical vehicles and its efficiency would be equal to as high as 200 miles per gallon.
The vehicle also boasts features intended to make city driving easier and safer, with a docking station for a smartphone that turns the phone into the vehicle's dashboard. PUMAs could then network and communicate with one another, and Burns said that the vehicles would be able to use transponder and GPS technology to drive themselves and automatically avoid people and vehicles.
While he was also quoted as saying the vehicles would ideally never crash on their own, and would therefore not need most safety features and have safety belts only for "comfort purposes," that doesn't take into account the possibility of other, non-PUMA vehicles hitting them.
The PUMA announcement comes at a time of uncertainly for the future of GM, since it now has less than 60 days to develop a restructuring plan to present to the White House, showing it has a viable future.
Freaky! But cool!
I think what we are seeing here is the type of transitional vehicle to a "smart" pod-type "people-mover" transport of the future (without rails). As weird as this thing looks, it has some positive features worth noting. The "safety cage" design will appeal to many consumers. The small footprint of these vehicles will be great for anyone with scarce/expensive parking.
Too much of our landscape is tied up in paved impervious surfaces in support of the automobile and parking. Vast wastelands of parking lots surround and isolate the "suburban" developments. It will be innovations like this which may re-invigorate the urban landscape for a sustainable future, by enabling more dense developments which retain and enhance quality of life and environmental amenities.
I could imagine something like this working in a "car share" situation where your i-pod tracks your personal usage and fees.
Nevertheless, I still like my bicycle for personal fitness, convenient silent and non-polluting urban transport, with zero carbon footprint. But for the couch potatoes who don't like to sweat, an electric scooter or something like this could be just the ticket!
EV revenge.
Well guys, too late now.
You had the greatest chance of your lives with the project Impact/EV-1 and you have dumped it in favor of the the gas guzzlers.
The revenge of the electric vehicle is happening now.
This is a great design!
Kudos to Segway and GM for coming up with the 21st century version of a rickshaw. With its extremely small footprint, you could park alot of these on the side of roads and even sidewalks. Like the previous posters have said, low cost is going to be particularly important given its diminutive size. As consumers, we have to stop thinking in the old "it can't be done" attitude and keep an open mind about what makes sense for CITY driving, not highways.
they wont price it right
The segway is almost 6 grand. it would be a great product on its own if people could afford it. My guess is 10 grand for this mutt. Good luck with that
a motorcycle designed by a committee
How will they overcome the "goofy factor". It looks like a motorcycle designed by a committee. Then again, if priced right, they will come.