Zoomi Life

If you haven’t noticed, there’s a real popularity amongst 3-wheeled platforms for electric and hybrid electric cars.  There’s a big reason for that: efficiency and the law.  The XR3 is another of these 3-wheelers that is currently available as a kit model that can be built by tinkerers at home.  Soon, it will go into production for limited sales nationally.

Style-wise, this car is a little goofy, to say the least.  What’s with the Sea Cow nose?  The silver Delorean body style is kind of cool, though.  The rear end looks like it should be the front end, but that’s traditionalism on my part.

The design of the XR3 was conducted by Robert Riley, famous for the Aquasub and Try-Flyer hovercraft.  In this one, he wanted to make a plug-in hybrid that was capable of 125mpg and that looked good and was realistically usable by most people.  Plus, it needed to be simple enough that DIY home craftsmen could build it themselves from his kit and plans.

First introduced in June, 2008, Riley’s plans were introduced to be sold on the market.  The car meets all of Riley’s expectations. He’s calling it a Personal Transit Vehicle (PTV) and the car is slated to go into limited production sometime in 2010.

The drive train is extremely unique and uses both a 23hp diesel engine, a lithium-ion battery pack, and an electric motor. The engine is in the front, the batteries slung underneath in the middle, and the motor is on the back wheel.  Yet the engine and electric drive are not computer-controlled to be in-sync, so how does this work?

The answer is where the innovation comes in: a throttle integrator system that can be built for $10.  Of all the things on this car, that might be the largest innovation on Riley’s part.

There are a few possible design flaws, though, not the least of which is the singular, up-swinging fighter-jet door.  These have proven disastrous for many reasons in highway-ready vehicles.

Regardless, this is a great innovation from someone who has gained a reputation for being capable of bringing new ideas to market.

Sources: Wired, RQRiley