this post was submitted on 29 Mar 2025
174 points (96.3% liked)

Technology

68187 readers
3932 users here now

This is a most excellent place for technology news and articles.


Our Rules


  1. Follow the lemmy.world rules.
  2. Only tech related news or articles.
  3. Be excellent to each other!
  4. Mod approved content bots can post up to 10 articles per day.
  5. Threads asking for personal tech support may be deleted.
  6. Politics threads may be removed.
  7. No memes allowed as posts, OK to post as comments.
  8. Only approved bots from the list below, this includes using AI responses and summaries. To ask if your bot can be added please contact a mod.
  9. Check for duplicates before posting, duplicates may be removed
  10. Accounts 7 days and younger will have their posts automatically removed.

Approved Bots


founded 2 years ago
MODERATORS
 

Aptera Motors has shared another exciting progress update video, giving us our best look yet at its production-intent solar EV out in the real world. The SEV startup recently completed the PI build’s first-ever road trip, traveling over 300 miles using an all-electric battery and free energy from the Sun.

you are viewing a single comment's thread
view the rest of the comments
[–] Tehdastehdas@lemmy.world 0 points 4 days ago (10 children)

I'll start respecting it the moment they add the fourth wheel.

[–] frezik@midwest.social 21 points 4 days ago (8 children)

They won't, because then it's legally considered a proper car that has to have air bags and crumple zones and such. They can only make it small and cheap because it's three wheels.

[–] Tehdastehdas@lemmy.world 0 points 4 days ago* (last edited 4 days ago) (7 children)

That law is lawfare from the traditional car industry and has to be changed.

Trikes are only good for saving pennies at the cost of driveability and usability - they should not be incentivised by law. Four-wheelers are more stable and should be under the same law as trikes.

collapsed inline media

Aptera is stupidly shooting itself in the foot with an awkward three-wheeler instead of making a good, light, safe, illegal car and attacking the harmful law with it. A quad could have a cargo space or back seat between the two rear wheels.

Riversimple Rasa

collapsed inline media


Renault Twizy

collapsed inline media
collapsed inline media
collapsed inline media


HP Velotechnik Scorpion

collapsed inline media

Trikes are less stable than 4-wheelers, slow and teetery around curves, unless very low centre of gravity.
Trikes can't have a cargo space or back seat between the one rear wheel.

https://www.quora.com/When-a-3-wheeled-car-is-being-designed-how-will-it-be-calculated-if-the-car-will-topple-How-will-the-maximum-turning-speed-and-radius-for-safe-turning-be-found-out/answer/Harri-K-Hiltunen

Sabotage through lawfare is being done to velomobiles / pedal cars:
https://www.quora.com/Why-do-you-think-the-Sinclair-C5-one-person-battery-electric-velomobile-failed-to-take-off-during-the-1980s/answer/Harri-K-Hiltunen

https://xfwnofqagsnmdxuf.quora.com/Lawfare-against-tiny-cars-velomobiles

[–] MBech@feddit.dk 5 points 3 days ago

Sounds like a pretty good idea though to have airbags and crumblezones in something that supposedly can drive 162 km/h (101 mph), and accelerate from 0-60 mph in 6 seconds. You couldn't pay me to drive something as unsafe as this thing.

load more comments (6 replies)
load more comments (6 replies)
load more comments (7 replies)