Gallery: TRANSPORTATION TUES: The SAM ...

This sprightly three-wheeled vehicle packs some great sustainable features into a pint-sized package. Created by the Swiss company Cree, the award-winning SAM car seats two in an agile body that is 90% recyclable, has a maximum speed of 85 kilometers per hour, and touts an emission-free 15 kilowatt electric motor that charges fully in just 6 hours. The design was recently re-tooled by Impact Automotive Technologies in preparation for a limited release of 500 cars in September, with 5000 units targeted for 2009.

Cree‘s goal in designing the SAM was “to create an outstanding product in terms of price, driving pleasure, safety, and recyclability, in addition to low investment, production, and operating costs”. The car’s highly efficient engine consumes about 5kwh per 100km, and it converts kinetic energy from breaking, rolling to a stop, and driving downhill into electrical energy. A prototype has been freeway approved and is currently undergoing testing in Zurich and Basel in a limited circulation of 80 vehicles, but production will be ramping up later this year with a projected price point of 6,600 Euros.

+ Cree

+ Impact Automotive Technologies

Via NOTCOT.org and AutoblogGreen