In case you don't know it (and why would you?), EDAG has a client list embellished by some of the world's biggest and greatest carmakers, having had a hand in the
CLK 63 AMG Black Edition, the
Porsche 911 GT3, the
BMW Z4 M and, erm, the Changan Motors CV7. And you thought the EDAG Light Car would be just another fibreglass-bodied, Ford-engined, shoddily-built-in-a-shed low volume supercar with no chance of selling more than four. Shame on you.
No, this has even less chance of falling apart on the ring road, for it is pure show stand fantasy. Still, we wouldn't be wasting our time on it if there wasn't something of note - and there is. But, like a Rocky film, you'll have to wait until the end to get the happy ending you already know is coming: this car will, of course, save the planet.
The chintzy stuff first, then. The Light Car - Open Source - to give its full name - has panels made of a glass-like substance that allows light through, and the front and rear lamps can be shaped by the driver to give the car a unique appearance. The cockpit, too, can be redesigned by the driver in a fashion as easy - according to EDAG - as shifting icons about on a PC. So, fancy shifting where the rev counter is, or how big it is on the digital dash? Just point and click.
It's propelled by four electric motors - one in each wheel - that control the power, braking and suspension, thus liberating enough space for four in the diminutive, four-metre long cockpit. It'll do 150-miles between charges, too. And all the while the rear panel can be used to display all kinds of patronising messages to drivers behind.
Sounds amazing? Well you can see if for yourself on the EDAG stand at the
Geneva Motor Show in March if you want. But the real revelation (and this is the end bit) is what it's made of. Most of the body is constructed using basalt fibre, a material EDAG claims is exceptionally strong, lightweight, in almost infinite supply and, most importantly, 100 percent recyclable. Cars of the future could use it very soon.
Mark Nichol - 22 Jan 2009
