V+ Volteis by STARCK: Legendary French Designer Puts His Stamp on an Electric Car [Geneva Auto Show]

French designer Philippe Starck has designed everything from toothbrushes to mega-yachts. Best known to Americans as the man who infused a dash of Euro style into ordinary household products for the retail giant Target, he's now turning his streamlined Gallic vision towards the lowly automobile. Officially named the "V+ Volteis by STARCK," this electric car is a study in space-age minimalism. It will be produced in collaboration with Volteis, a French manufacturer of electric vehicles. Homey touches such as a front trunk made from a wicker basket and spaghetti-string deck chairs mingle with post-apocalyptic austerity; think if Martha Stewart had been employed as the set designer on The Road Warrior. Retail price of the vehicle as it sat on display in Geneva is estimated to be about $40,000. No, you are not reading The Onion. The V+ is a fully realized electric vehicle, born, apparently, from Starck's dissatisfaction with the current state of automobiles: "They're noisy, dirty, anti-social, masochistic and they bring out the worst in people," he says. Thankfully, Starck didn't let his strong opinions prevent him from borrowing some technology form the automotive status quo in the form of disc brakes and a strut-type front and trailing-arm rear suspension. Weighing around 1600 pounds, the front-wheel-drive vehicle is propelled by a 4-kW motor for a top speed of 40 mph and a quoted maximum range of 37 miles. The onboard charger can fully recharge the 11.5kWh battery pack in six hours from any standard (in Europe) 220-volt socket; charging the battery half-way takes two hours. The steering column and wheel, chassis, and seat frames—the latter lovingly crafted by celebrated European outdoor-furniture manufacturer DEDON, natch—all employ aluminum for its structural and stylistic properties. A fabric roof and large windshield offer some semblance of protection to occupants; there are no plans to make doors available. Despite his lofty ambitions and the V+'s considerable price tag, Starck has no delusions of the vehicle's role in the automotive world: "It's not a space rocket; it's more like a kid's soap-box cart with four wheels," he says. Typical customers will be private individuals with vacation homes as well as island resorts that would offer the runabouts as a service to guests. "It's zippy, and you have a little bell to warn people you're coming," says Starck. Basically, the V+ Volteis by STARCK is the Fiat Jolly reconfigured for the 21st century: less whimsy and more lunar rover. The V+ will be sold through 15 stores in France and eventually make its way to outlets in other major cities worldwide. from Car and Driver Blog http://blog.caranddriver.com

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