Back in 1997 I got to drive Professor Hiroshi Shimizu's Luciole two-seat electric car. The passenger sat behind you and I had the distinct feeling I was siting in a fighter plane. I remember it as being a fun, exhilerating drive that helped win me over to the notion that electric cars would, someday, become our vehicles of choice.
Just a couple years later, the good professor rolled out the KAZ, a eight-wheeled paradigm-buster with a top speed of 310 km/hr (192 mph). He and his students at Keio University in Japan soon followed it with a more stylish design dubbed Eliica, pictured above. All three vehicles have two things in common: they are wicked fast and propelled by electric wheel motors.
Yet, desite years of favorable publicity, Professor Shimizu's efforts to commercialize this technology has made little headway until now, that is. This month he formed his own company, SIM Drive whose missions is to "popularize In-wheel Motor-Drive Electric Vehicles."
What sets Professor Shimizu's approach apart from others is that the SIM Drive system can be offered in 2WD, 4WD and 8WD, all building on a common architecture in which the batteries and other components are housed in a skateboard-like chassis with the electric drive motors outboard of this, somewhat akin to GM's Autonomy concept vehicle. This allows a variety of sizes and vehicle types to be mated to the SIM-Drive including existing vehicle platforms from small urban commuters to taxis and deliver vans, as well as "from-the-ground-up" electric vehicle designs. In fact, the ability to be adapted to exisiting platforms and new one is the center piece os SIM-Drive's business plan, according to their newly launched web site. The company has a capitalization of ¥44 million (US$470,000) and its shareholders include, among others, Clean Craft Co., Ltd.,Gulliver International Co., Ltd.,Nano-Optonics Energy, Inc., Benesse Corporation, Marubeni Corporation and Keio University.
Professor Shimizu explains the rationale behind forming SIM-Drive after more than 30 years research and with eight ground-breaking electric vehicles to his credit
Getting this technology out into the world and in widespread use as quickly as possible is crucial for the future of the planet. To this end, we decided to create a company that will refine the technologies developed up to now, perfecting them for full reliability, durability, safety, and mass production viability, while at the same time working to have the results widely adopted in the automotive industry.
The purpose of our company is not to manufacture electric vehicles ourselves, but to provide the highest level of electric vehicle technology and information, at the lowest cost, to all those involved with electric vehicles.
Our aim is that as a result, electric vehicles will soon come into wide use both in Japan and throughout the world.
We ask for your support and cooperation.
Will we ever see a Luicole or Eliica in America? It's hard to say. There are lots of aspirants like Professor Shimizu, but few with his credentials and 300 km/hr track record. If SIM-Drive can cut the cost of electric car technology, while retaining its exciting performance, there's always a chance. I am certainly pulling for him.
