Micro cars are soon ready to go flood the European market. After Asia, particularly in Japan with the “Kei car” (40% of vehicles registered in the country), Europe is seeing brands eyeing up growing demand. The success of the Citroën Ami and the Renault Twizy are good examples of this, and the arrival of the start-up Kate, launched by entrepreneur Thibaut Elzière, provides prospects.
But the Franco-French domination will not last long when a Israeli startup by the name of City Transformer has just come out of the silence and is starting a fundraiser of 50 million dollars, we learned from the company on Monday. It would have already selected a location to launch its production on the continent, at the rate of 15,000 annual copies. City Transformer did not provide further location details, however.
On the other hand, we already know more about the first model to be marketed. It is therefore a micro-car, and its size has already been approved for marketing in the European Union as in Great Britain. It is clearly short, with a turning radius of only 1 meter. On board, with a recharge (the micro-car will be an electric car), he will be able to drive no less than 180 kilometers.
Two driving modes will be available. One favoring city driving and the other driving focused on “performance”. Behind this term, it is necessary to imply a top speed which can reach 90 km/h. Do you find that weak? Not so fast, you have to take into account the size and weight of the machine: it weighs no more than a Tesla Model 3 battery (450 kg), as compared by the Reuters agency.
© City Transformer
A strategy of opposition
All young micro-car builders capitalize on the same strategy. This is based in opposition to that of traditional manufacturers and their larger, heavier and more expensive models. City Transformer Executive Director Asaf Formoza said: “Is there a reason why someone like you or me needs to maneuver around town in a car weighing two tons and 600 kilograms of battery?”.
Earlier in the month, the French entrepreneur Thibaut Elzière made a similar speech by promoting Kate, his new brand of micro-cars born from a takeover of Nosmoke. He described the new brand as being “technology at the service of simplicity and intuitiveness. Without gimmicks or overkill. As if you always knew how to use it. Back to basics.”
However, these micro-cars should not be confused with cars without a license for less than 10,000 euros. The tariff prospects lead us rather towards models at more than 15,000 or even 20,000 euros. At City Transformer, the first model will have an entry ticket of 16,000 euros excluding tax. On the Kate side, the model currently on the market (and taken over from the Nosmoke brand), costs 24,590 euros.
