Citicar
| CitiCar | |
|---|---|
 |
|
| Overview | |
| Manufacturer | Sebring-Vanguard |
| Also called | Comuta-Car, Comuta-Van |
| Production | 1974 to 1977 |
| Designer | Robert G. Beaumont, President |
| Body and chassis | |
| Class | Battery Electric |
| Body style | 2-door 2-seat |
| Powertrain | |
| Engine | GE Series DC motor; 2.5 HP (early), 3.5 HP, or 6 HP (late) Battery type: 6 X 6v or 8 X 6v lead-acid |
| Dimensions | |
| Length | 2,437 mm (95.9 in) |
| Width | 1,397 mm (55.0 in) |
| Height | 1,524 mm (60.0 in) |
| Curb weight | 591 kg (1,303 lb) |
| Chronology | |
| Successor | Comuta-Car and variants 1979 - 1982 |
The CitiCar was produced between 1974 and 1977 by a U.S. company called Sebring-Vanguard, Inc., based in Sebring, Florida. Sebring-Vanguard was sold to Commuter Vehicles, Inc., which produced similar vehicles (the Comuta-Car and Comuta-Van) from 1979 to 1982. Its exterior design lives on in the Norwegian Kewet. Accounting for all CitiCar variants, a total of 4,444 units were produced up to 1979, the most since 1945 from a North American manufacturer until surpassed by the Tesla Model S.
Inspired by Club Car's golf cart design and partly in response to the 1970s fuel crisis, a company called Sebring-Vanguard produced its first electric vehicle, the Vanguard Coupe (sometimes referred to as the EV Coupe), in 1974. Company founder and President Robert G. Beaumont, working with designer Jim Muir, came up with the CitiCar after this earlier EV Coupe was not an immediate success. This second attempt was still based on a lot of the Club Car's mechanical features, though.
Produced in its plant in Sebring, Florida, the CitiCar was a small wedge-shaped electric vehicle. Early versions had no extra features and can be considered an experiment in minimalist automotive design; it was as basic a people mover as could be bought at the time. By 1976, enough CitiCars were produced to promote Sebring-Vanguard to the position of being the U.S. #6 auto manufacturer after GM, Ford, Chrysler, AMC, and Checker Motors Corporation; but ahead of Excalibur and Avanti Motors. Production of the CitiCar continued until 1977 with about 2,300 CitiCars produced.
Commuter Vehicles, Inc. purchased the CitiCar design, and renamed the vehicle Comuta-Car. Production of this upgraded version began in 1979 and Commuter Vehicles, Inc. produced an estimated 2,144 Comuta-Cars and Vans. At about 4,444 total C-Cars in all its variants produced it held the record for most road-legal Post War electric cars made in the United States, until the Tesla Model S greatly exceeded that number in 2013.
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Wikipedia