Well known former head of design of BMW, Chris Bangle has revealed his latest project designed at his independent design house – the Redspace electric city car. The car will be produced by Chinese EV lorry manufacturer, CHTC group.
Being over 800mm shorter than the original Mini, Redspace stands at a length of 2,970mm long, Redspace aims to maximize cabin space while taking little space on-road. Redspace is taller but narrower than the Smart Fortwo, despite which it has a smaller turning circle radius than the latter. The car has been designed to be used for city driving in China’s megacities with a four-passenger capacity.
According to Bangle, the car is production-ready and not just a concept. Its production is expected to begin in a short time, although said time frame has not been specified, yet. It is a full-functioning prototype, and has passed promising crash tests in its initial stages – attributed to an aluminium spaceframe, which surrounds the battery pack.
The car will lead its class in acceleration from standstill to 50kph – a feature relevant to its urban-living Chinese market. The car has also been designed to be useful, even when stationary – hence the 17.0-inch infotainment screen. The comfortable rear bench can be used for various purposes, such as sofa or a baby changing station. The driver’s seat can also rotate 180 degrees to face the rear passengers and a drop down table for this seat is under development.
Redspace batteries are charged conventionally; although it will also get a roof-mounted solar panel – the latest in its class. However, we don’t have any specified range, as yet.
Vice President, CHTC, Wang Jinan, revealed that the company chose LA to first showcase the car, due to Californians being good opinion leaders in mobility. The firm is taking notes of the feedback of the LA show visitors to make the potential changes in the car, ahead of its production date.