Aptera

Aptera Website Gets a Face Lift

We started with a "sketch to reality" theme, added some user feedback, and then gave www.aptera.com some Aptera flavor. The result is a totally reworked website with updated images, more details and a whole lot of answers to your questions in the FAQ.

Additionally, because we know the word "Aptera" always sparks a conversation, we're creating a hub for Apterans to exchange thoughts right on our site. It's in the works and, once it's completed, you'll be able to post insights, send messages, laugh, cry - whatever you feel compelled to share in the name of Aptera.

As Sly and the Family Stone sang, it's a family affair, and this is our meeting place for the Aptera family. We'll keep making updates, so browse the site, play around and please share your thoughts so we can continue to make it better.

Buzz: Aptera Talks About the Big 3 Loan

Forbes.com recently took a look at the Big Three bailout and the affect their bankruptcy would have on emerging vehicle companies like Aptera. CEO Paul Wilbur discusses the impact on Aptera's potential supplier-base and the economy's role in this online video feature.

Aptera Newsletter 12/19/2008

Product Updates: Power in the Front, Party in the Back

We love that the Aptera gets its start from a clean sheet of paper because it allows us to try new things and see what works best. A belt-driven rear wheel was one of those early concepts, but lots of testing proved to our engineers that front wheel drive is far superior for our application. Efficiency and safety come first and, with that in mind, we've decided to use front-wheel drive in all of our production vehicles. Here's the short-list of why's:

Better weight distribution, which, in turn, maximizes stability
Improved traction during acceleration and in inclement weather wet conditions
More efficiency at higher speeds
Increased durability during the life of the vehicle
Improved noise insulation
Increased rear cargo space (without sacrificing front legroom)

Everybody at Aptera is intent on assuring that we live-up to our brand promise to produce the most efficient vehicle possible.

"The initial emphasis at Aptera was on space efficiency, but our list of objectives continues to expand," says chief engineer Tom Reichenbach. "You can ask wheels to do more with front-wheel drive, including better braking, steering and power application to the wheels. We've essentially maintained the same styling while making improvements to the vehicle, which is all part of the process of providing maximum efficiency."

Quick Six Q&A: Tom Reichenbach, Chief Engineer

After spending 26 years at Ford Motor Co., where he developed on-board electronic systems for Ford Racing and the first fuel injection system on a Champ Car, Tom Reichenbach was named chief engineer at Aptera in October. He also previously served as vehicle dynamics supervisor for Ford Racing, providing tech support to Formula One (including three years working with Jackie Stewart Racing), Winston Cup and Trans Am teams, and he was assistant chief engineer on the GTDI program, as well as vehicle engineering manager for the Ford GT.

Question: After nearly three decades in Detroit working in the auto industry, why did you decide to come west to Aptera?

Answer: The state of the U.S. auto industry is obviously not good and, honestly, I was tired of the way things work in Detroit. Additionally, I needed a change. The people at Aptera had been telling me about their company for quite a while, so when I started looking around earlier this year, I had Aptera in the back of my mind. I've always been an efficiency nut and was looking to be involved in green technologies, so Aptera was a perfect fit.

Q: Why do you refer to yourself as an efficiency nut?

A: We use too much energy as a nation and we have to change. I've been focused on this since I did my master's thesis in 1984 on solar energy. I've always had a passion for this subject and it's certainly consistent with Aptera's mission.

Q: You've spent most of your career working with Ford in the motorsports arena. How does what you've learned and achieved apply to your work with Aptera?

A: There are a variety of similarities, including the composite technologies used in building an Aptera and a Formula One car; the low volume technologies that apply are the same as in race cars; and there's certainly leading-edge technologies. The end objective, though, is different - maximum speed vs. maximum efficiency.

Q: As essentially a lifelong Michigan boy, aren't you experiencing culture shock out here in Southern California?

A: I grew up in Bay City, Michigan and did my undergrad work at Michigan State University. I did, however, do my grad work out-of-state (at University of Kentucky, where he was working for IBM). I guess you could say I was a typical engineer, though. During all of my years at Ford, whenever I'd receive an offer to work elsewhere, I'd look at the pros and cons and ultimately stay put. What an idiot I was. I love it out here in Southern California. The culture, people and weather are all fantastic. Did I mention that the weather is great?

Q: Has your family moved to the San Diego area yet?

A: My wife, Nancy, moved out here at the start of December. All of my kids are busy elsewhere. My two daughters live in New York City - one is a lawyer and the other's studying for her masters at Columbia. My son is still in Michigan working for Ford while studying for his masters at the University of Michigan.

The Founders Mind: Thoughts from the Pen of Steve Fambro

With the temporary low price of oil and gasoline, there's a lot of talk questioning the value of electric cars. Specifically, do we still need electric cars at all? The answer is an unwavering YES!

There are actually several reasons for this assessment, and they might not be what you expect. For example, the driving experience in an electric vehicle is absolutely incredible. It's a premium experience. Even though some folks may still assume a proper electric vehicle is similar to a golf cart -- slow, underpowered and of limited utility - efficiently designed electric vehicles like the Aptera 2e are quite the opposite. They are powerful, smooth and quiet.

In fact, the 2e is like a magic carpet, briskly whisking you from the starting line and launching you to top speed at the same rate of acceleration the whole time. No loud buzzing engine, no vibration, no clunky shifting; just smooth, powerful torque with the hint of a jet engine-like sound. Most people are unprepared for how quickly and smoothly the Aptera accelerates, and customers are going to find it delightful.

Another aspect is the long-term energy and economic security created by electric vehicles that could help the United States achieve energy independence overnight. This year, Americans will send almost one trillion dollars to foreign governments (many of which have long- term strategies antithetical to the U.S.) all so we could put gas in our tanks. That's ONE TRILLION DOLLARS.Yet, all across this great nation, most power plants have extra capacity that goes unused and wasted at night. There's just no easy way to store the energy generated from that extra capacity... except in a battery from an electric vehicle!

A paper written by the Department of Energy (citation 1 below) shows there is enough night time reserve capacity in the nation's power grid to power 70% of all passenger vehicles, trucks and SUV's - that's over 150 million electric vehicles. The simple reason for this is most power plants run at capacity during the day and shut down at night. Since it takes a long time to start and stop, it's easier for the power companies to let them run all night instead of re-starting every day.

So what are the details of such a plan? The first thing is the U.S. doesn't have to make any overarching improvement to the grid to support such an endeavor. Second, because the report was written with standard 'cars' in mind, it did not account for the extraordinary efficiency of the Aptera 2e. This has profound consequences for our country because, while our current grid can only support 150 million conventional electric vehicles charging in the off hours, it can support more than 600 million all-electric Aptera 2e's. Stated another way, the excess capacity contained in our nation's power grid could power 88% (citation 2 below) of the world's electric vehicles, if the world drove Aptera 2e's. It could also power every Aptera in our hemisphere and have some power to spare.

So the next time you hear someone question the usefulness of electric cars, tell them these vehicles give us freedom from oil and the Aptera empowers us to pick where we get our energy - whether we purchase renewable energy or install solar cells on our rooftops. Tell them electric vehicles allow us to put almost $1 trillion back in our home economy and there is enough capacity in the nation's grid to power more than 600 million Aptera 2e's, which is almost enough to replace every vehicle on earth. Tell them that electric vehicles put our nation's future back in our hands and take it away from countries that don't really care for us. And then tell them to go to Aptera.com to find out how they can meet the challenge.

1) IMPACTS ASSESSMENT OF PLUG-IN HYBRID VEHICLES ON ELECTRIC UTILITIES AND REGIONAL U.S. POWER GRIDS, PART 1: TECHNICAL ANALYSIS
Michael Kintner-Meyer, Kevin Schneider, Robert Pratt
Pacific Northwest National Laboratory(a), November, 2007

2) Approximately 651 worldwide vehicle registrations - NPN International