This ultra-compact runabout from Artega is inspired by the 1950s Isetta from BMW.

FRANKFURT: Electric cars are finally becoming more pervasive as people buy vehicles like the VW ID.3 or the electric Opel Corsa.

Carmakers, meanwhile, are a step ahead, looking to make new electric cars that are even smaller.

Compact electric cars with modest mileage and short ranges that suit city traffic could mean more people paying less for e-cars - and leading to a larger market while hopefully making cities more liveable too.



Citroen is the latest to launch a small e-car, the Ami, named after a popular 1960s model. You could say that the French have made a sort of shoebox on wheels, with a plastic body that measures just 2.41 metres in length with a 1.39-metre width.

That means it takes up even less space in traffic than a Smart, and with a teeny turning circle of 7.20 metres, it's even handier, too.

The Ami has an electric motor that allows a speed of 45kph, meaning in some countries, youngsters aged 16 can drive it too with the right licence.

Powered by a 5.5kWh battery, the Ami can travel up to 70km. After that, the car, which weighs less than 500kg, needs to be plugged into a household socket for three hours.

Citroen hasn't revealed international pricing yet, but spokesman Christopher Rux says to look at France to get an idea of the cost. There, the Ami starts at just €6,000 (around RM30,000) and if you're lucky, you'll be able to lease it for €20 (RM99) a month.

Citroen opted for charm in the race for a clean car but two less well known manufacturers are hoping to make it big with cars inspired by the legendary Isetta bubble car.



Microlino, of Switzerland, and Artega, a supplier from Delbrueck, are both planning to launch compact electric cars this year.

Their Artega Karo and Microlino are based on the same idea: an extremely short, nippy little two-seater, with a single door that opens out at the front like a refrigerator.

Technically, too, these cars are similar. For a starting price of €12,000 (RM59,000), the Microlino offers an 11kWh motor with a maximum speed of 90kph, with the options of two battery sizes, for a range of 125km or 200km.

The Artega also promises a top speed of 90kph and identical ranges, with prices in Europe starting at just under €14,000 (RM69,000).

These cars might be somewhere between vehicle and mobility aid but they're already making waves on the road. Just think of the Renault Twizy, an unconventional microcar with a narrow track and free-standing wheels.

If you ask Andreas Radics, a management consultant, for a forecast, he says the new electric interpretations of the Isetta will win the hearts of lifestyle buyers with their emotional design, like the Fiat 500 or the MINI. They'll also win spots in shared and mobility services fleets.



"But such vehicles won't really help electromobility make a major breakthrough," says Radics who works for Berylls Strategy Advisors.

There was scepticism to be heard from Stefan Moeller, too, who works for Nextmove, an e-car rental company. "As niche products for individualists, the little cars will certainly find fans. But we don't believe there'll be a breakthrough in the short term - not least because of manufacturers and politicians."

There's only an environmental bonus for "real" cars - microcars like the Twizy and others are excluded from the €6,000 (RM30,000) subsidy, meaning there's not much of a price difference to a Smart or a VW E-Up, he said.

Electric cars face painful hurdles as the start-up "e.Go" can attest. Its small car Life was praised to the high heavens, but couldn't be made economically and enough models sold with a price tag starting at €22,701 (RM112,000) and a 140km range.

The makers are full of hope but sadly, e.Go has just filed for bankruptcy.

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