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The Citroen Ami – tiny electric car with no boot, 28mph top speed, 46 mile range

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111–120 of 363 posts

Re: The Citroen Ami – tiny electric car with no boot, 28mph top speed, 46 mile range

#111
post #63

It's nice to see that the Citroen Ami weighs around 500 kg. In a crash with a person/vehicle/building, it's going to do less damage than a typical sedan weighing ~1500 kg. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Citro%C3%ABn_Ami_(electric_veh...

Can’t be used to hurt people. Downside, people can carry it, for example move it when it’s misplaced, or steal it.

> people can carry it, for example move it when it’s misplaced

This can be an advantage when a misparked car is blocking a tram. https://youtu.be/wRPnSHDp3HI?t=34

Re: The Citroen Ami – tiny electric car with no boot, 28mph top speed, 46 mile range

#112
post #26

> the £7,695 tiny electric car that has no boot, a 28mph top speed and range of just 46 miles I live in Paris and do everything with an e-bike that also has no boot, no passenger seat, a top speed of ~20mph, a range of ~30 miles... but cost me around €1,200 (since I built it myself). It now has over 7,500 miles. In day trafic it's probably much faster than the Ami, and it can also be put on a train. Couldn't be happi…

If it’s raining/snowing, or too hot, or too cold, I’d much rather be in an small enclosed car than exposed to the elements on a bike. The Ami has a primitive heater but no air conditioning, but there’s no reason that these limitations are inherent to a vehicle of this size. I imagine an Ami-sized car with creature comforts of a regular vehicle would sell extremely well in cities. Biking is great when the weather is a…

The weather is only as bad as your worst clothing. I did invest in Shimano neoprene overshoes to catch the crap my super-low muguards don't, but only because my gf objected to plastic bags (which were admittedly, a nit of a pain. On very cold days i put bubble wrap inside them for added wind-breakage/ windsulation. For my hands, I absolutely refuse to not wear washing up gloves, with liner gloves inside, though.

Re: The Citroen Ami – tiny electric car with no boot, 28mph top speed, 46 mile range

#113
post #109

Earlier quoted context omitted.

That 'raining, snowing, too hot, too cold' argument keeps coming up. You know, we humans are perfectly capable of dressing up appropriately and just enjoying the fresh air, whether it's warm or cold. In fact, it makes you feel alive! Get the nice warm gloves and raincoat out for winter, or the super light and loose shirt with sunglasses for summer.

Good luck convincing people to give up their cars and go to work soaked in a raincoat every day.

I'm an American visiting Paris and have noticed many folks on scooters and ebikes have these skirts that are fabric covers that cover the bike seat and also the legs of the rider when they ride. They also have these mitten like things that attach to the handles that allow you to operate the bike but also protect your hands from the elements. Between those two things, and a decent rain jacket (which you need anyway) it seems to protect folks well and allow them to do just about anything one would do with their car. It's not that far fetched.

Re: The Citroen Ami – tiny electric car with no boot, 28mph top speed, 46 mile range

#114
post #3

If this was half the price, say £3,500, I'd probably get one. The price seems wildly out of line with what you get. Also I wonder about modding - larger battery, a roof rack and a bright orange paint job to compensate for lack of safety features.

It would probably cost close to that range just for the battery, but it begs the question who this is for. If your budget is £7k there are plenty of used options around that would involve sacrificing much less than this for about double the range (thinking early Leaf/Zoe/Ion). It’s neat, but it reminds me of the Twizy. Just too many compromises to still make sense.

It is https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JGDhgAUeBL8

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JxTZkSj_qV4

Range 200 miles, top speed above 100mph, street legal all for $6000-7000 by two dudes in some garage who make it up as they go along..

Re: The Citroen Ami – tiny electric car with no boot, 28mph top speed, 46 mile range

#115

Earlier quoted context omitted.

If it’s raining/snowing, or too hot, or too cold, I’d much rather be in an small enclosed car than exposed to the elements on a bike. The Ami has a primitive heater but no air conditioning, but there’s no reason that these limitations are inherent to a vehicle of this size. I imagine an Ami-sized car with creature comforts of a regular vehicle would sell extremely well in cities. Biking is great when the weather is a…

That 'raining, snowing, too hot, too cold' argument keeps coming up. You know, we humans are perfectly capable of dressing up appropriately and just enjoying the fresh air, whether it's warm or cold. In fact, it makes you feel alive! Get the nice warm gloves and raincoat out for winter, or the super light and loose shirt with sunglasses for summer.

Except when you go to work and have to spend the day with your pants and shoes drenched. And if you have glasses, you quickly can't see anything.

Re: The Citroen Ami – tiny electric car with no boot, 28mph top speed, 46 mile range

#116
post #63

It's nice to see that the Citroen Ami weighs around 500 kg. In a crash with a person/vehicle/building, it's going to do less damage than a typical sedan weighing ~1500 kg. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Citro%C3%ABn_Ami_(electric_veh...

Can’t be used to hurt people. Downside, people can carry it, for example move it when it’s misplaced, or steal it.

…it’s 500kg. I don’t think you’re picking it up and walking away with it.

Re: The Citroen Ami – tiny electric car with no boot, 28mph top speed, 46 mile range

#117
Our post service uses this car to deliver parcels in our neighborhood along with a fleet of electric motorbikes. They take around the same space and move around at about the same speed, but I’m sure the postman using the car is a much happier fellow when it rains.

Re: The Citroen Ami – tiny electric car with no boot, 28mph top speed, 46 mile range

#118
post #109

Earlier quoted context omitted.

That 'raining, snowing, too hot, too cold' argument keeps coming up. You know, we humans are perfectly capable of dressing up appropriately and just enjoying the fresh air, whether it's warm or cold. In fact, it makes you feel alive! Get the nice warm gloves and raincoat out for winter, or the super light and loose shirt with sunglasses for summer.

Good luck convincing people to give up their cars and go to work soaked in a raincoat every day.

[deleted]

Re: The Citroen Ami – tiny electric car with no boot, 28mph top speed, 46 mile range

#119
post #90

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> If it’s raining/snowing, or too hot, or too cold, I’d much rather be in an small enclosed car than exposed to the elements on a bike. Yes and no. I have a three wheeler cargo bike I use for most of my commuting or city riding and very rarely do I opt for my car, particularly when the weather is bad. The main reason is that since where I live I basically cannot find parking and when the weather is bad, the roads are…

I don't even have a driving licence, mostly go by subway / bus or scooter and right now if I go over 20kph on a scooter my face freezes, do you use a bike helmet (full face shield) when it's cold outside or are you just used to it?

I used to bike year round in Canada. In the winter I would use a neck warmer to cover my face as I also had problems with my face getting cold. You'll adapt to the cold a little bit but even now when I go for a walk outside at < -10C and there's a slight breeze I need to cover my face.

Re: The Citroen Ami – tiny electric car with no boot, 28mph top speed, 46 mile range

#120
These cars are carbon positive in most cities as they increase pollution. These slow moving vehicles are slowing down traffic behind them. I see similar vehicles in and around my city in India and they end up clogging the lanes. As most of us are on ICE vehicles, we end up spending more time driving and increasing pollution.
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