Go Ape!

Colourful Ape spotted out side the Cafe Bistro Charisma in Mayen, Germany.

Isetta

This Brighton, Sussex built Isetta was spotted at the 32nd edition of the Sandwell Historic Vehicle Show in the West Midlands.

Business smarts 43: Sandwell College, West Midlands, England

Sandwell College

Business smarts 42: Ring Events, Nurburgring, Germany

Business smarts 41: EW Tours

EWTOURS.TRAVEL is the brainchild of its founders, Kiran Rajdev and Herbert Wolf. After having acquired extensive experience in the travel industry over more than two decades each in separate careers, we jointly envisioned a travel service that would specialize in fully customized travel experiences for our clients. Our dream became a reality with the launch of EWTOURS.TRAVEL in 2006. Since then our goal has been to make your travel dreams come true.

Business smarts 38: Hot Wings Grill and Rib House

Hot Wings
563 Queen Street West,
Toronto, ON M5V 2B6

416-359-8860

Business smarts 39: Classic Towing and Storage

Business smarts 37 & 38: Target Park & Reprodux

Target Park operates over 30 Parking lots in the GTA and offers "Park and Wash" and monthly parking rate options.



Reprodux is a full service printing and document management company (scanning, archiving, large format printing, laminating) with eight locations across the GTA.

Photos by RLT

Aixam and Microcar

Aixam - Mega, founded in 1983, is based in Aix-les-Bains, on the shore of Lac du Bourget in France's Rhône-Alpes region. The Crossline [above] and Super Luxe [below] were spotted in the hill town of Mijas, Spain.



Microcar, founded in 1984, is brand of the Bénéteau Group, a yacht and boat-building company with a hundred year of history, based in Croix-de-Vie, a seaside resort on the Atlantic 70 km west of Nantes. Both of these MC1 cars were photographed at Tavira, Portugal.




Although these companies are at opposite ends of France, they have the commitment to making fuel efficient city runabouts in common. Some Aixam and Microcar models can be driven without a license in some European countries.

For more information see: Aixam, Microcar

Pics by RLT.

Three wheels on my wagon

The Piaggio Ape is not the only three-wheeler on Portuguese roads it seems. We spotted these other vehicles - but would we ever find out what they were? I owned a half-share in a Reliant way back when so I was determined to find out.

The first one was on display in a park in Sagres, on the coast, languishing in the salty air on a hot day. It reminded me of the Cadillac Ranch in Amarillo, Texas. I noted that it had a German Zündapp motor. After considerable research on the internet we found out that it is a Famel Tricarro which came fitted with a 50 c.c. Zündapp motor. Famel, based in Águeda, Portugal, was one of the most successful makers of motorized 3-wheelers from the 1960s to the 1980s. After Portugal joined the EEC the company filed for bankruptcy in 2002.




The second one photographed in Tavira, similar but not the same, is a Motalli - thought to be a TR2 model. The Motalli lives on it seems.



Thirdly the one without a cabin is a Casal from Aveiro, named for João Casal, picture also taken in Tavira. The company is defunct, going bankrupt in February 2000.



Words and pics by RLT.

Bellier Divane

Spotted at Le Mans, France by RLT. Photo by Colin Marsh.
Bellier Official Website

Chloride, Arizona

While on holiday in Las Vegas, Nevada we kept our eyes open for smart cars. During our five day tour, the only one we spotted was this 2008 in the ghost town of Chloride, Arizona. Photo RLT.

Business smarts 32: Fat Flyers

Fat Flyers offer a comprehensive design and printing service, specializing in promotional flyer design & print. Whether you require a flyer to promote your club night or small business, Fat Flyers will provide a professional, efficient and friendly service on time every time.

Photo taken in Lewes, East Sussex, England by RLT.

iPhone fizzles at Toronto Autoshow

To Toronto Autoshow where a girl on the smart stand has been hired to take competition entries on an iPhone. After two failed attempts she gives up. We can enter the competition via the web at home, but the system fails to take our entry. We'd like to win the smart car, a prize celebrating the tenth anniversary of the car, but our chances are slim it seems.
The show is generally very quiet on the Thursday, particularly in the Skydome, and experienced stand staff point to reduced attendance and less "buzz" compared to previous years. Every manufacturer is trying to adopt a green pose but with little real justification. For example the Saturn Astra needs a diesel option, like its European counterpart. Hybrids and EVs were everywhere, but you have to wonder about the potential market for these cars. The third-generation Toyota Prius was on show with a Pontiac Aztec like rear-end. I've yet to be convinced that the Prius has ever turned a profit. An example of the electric car trend is the Mitsubishi MiEV shown below.

Words and pics by RLT.

No Battery Required

Smart is a contender in the economy stakes. Tested in the windy city.

US Smart car distributor hikes sales estimates

DETROIT, Michigan (AFP) — The US distributor of the tiny Smart car hiked its 2008 sales estimate for the small vehicle Wednesday as US automakers reel from a sharp sales drop in big gasoline-guzzling trucks. Roger Penske, chairman of the Penske Automotive Group of Bloomfield Hills, Michigan, Smart's sole American distributor, predicted sales would boom beyond an original estimate of 20,000 vehicles. The tiniest car on sale in the US market, accommodates just two adults. It is assembled in Hambach, France.
"We expect Smart sales will come in between 24,000 and 27,500 during 2008," Penske said. The Smart "fourtwo" car went on sale in the US for the first time in January. Penske said surging gasoline prices had helped boost demand for the small, fuel-efficient car. If Smart owner Daimler AG of Germany can deliver enough vehicles to the US, Smart sales could reach between 30,000 and 32,000 units in 2009, Penske said.
View source.
Comment: Roger Penske is "Head of Rationing" at smart in the USA with long wait times of up to a year to take delivery of the car. Smart can currently sell more cars than they can make. The underlying potential for economy cars in the USA is masked by the failure of manufacturers to offer them in sufficient quantities.
The gas-engined smart on offer in the USA claims 43.5 miles per US gallon - a long way off the real-world 57.88 miles per US gallon we are achieving with our 2005 smart diesel. Why not bring the new diesel version to North America, supposedly more economical than 'my' old diesel version? 70 plus mpg anybody? The car would be a humdinger. RLT.

Smart claims World Record

On Friday 4 July, 2008, Rupert Lloyd Thomas, with navigator Annette Lloyd Thomas, drove his 2005 smart fortwo diesel over "The Top of the World" to an altitude of 10,974 feet (3,345 m) through the Beartooth Pass, along the Montana-Wyoming border, in the United States.

This is the highest known altitude for a smart car on public roads. If anybody can better this please let us know.
See previous.

Business smarts 27: Live from the Nurburgring, Germany

Some get it, some don't

Wired for smart in economy stakes. However there seems to be a general air of disappointment in the US about the economy of the gas-engined smart. Diesel anybody?
Update: More comments from the States - lack of grunt, lack of economy - hard to have both.
But the current gas-engined model is neither one thing nor the other - a knockout on economy or competitive with rivals on performance.

No oil required

Renault's new electric Megane unplugged in Israel. More in The Economist.