Meet the electric car B0 (pronounced B Zero and not BEE-OH) - the offspring of a partnership between French industrial giant Bolloré and Italian car firm Pininfarina. It looks oh-so-sophisticated, and has already received a rave review from CarTech, which called it the best looking small car at the 2008 Paris Motor Show.
The four-seater, four-door hatchback has a 153-mile (246 kilometres) range and a top governed speed of 80 mph (129 kilometres per hour) and nifty looking solar panels build into the roof and hood. Originally conceptualized in 2004 as a two-door model, the B0 today has added more doors and shrunken the battery size.
The B0’s secret weapon is its lithium polymer (LMP) battery, which is paired with an ultracapacitor. The latter stores energy and allows for regenerative braking and acceleration capabilities. The battery can recharge in a few hours and, although not confirmed, early pricing reports place it around $23,000 - not including the price of leasing the lithium-ion battery packs.
Best of all, B0 is not a prototype but an actual production model. More will roll out of its Turin factory by the end of 2009.
