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Friday, July 14, 2006

My letter to Reva Electric Car Co.,

To,
M/s Reva Electric Car Co.,
Bangalore.

Respected Sir,

Subject: Need for an advanced electric/fuel cell car.


I am a Bangalorean and like the most of us, I have travel through peak hour traffic everyday. Dodging the unpredictable auto-rickshaw drivers and lethal Bus drivers to get to office and back. Due to this problem the mileage of my two-wheeler has reduced drastically, and is getting increasingly expensive to maintain. It is not just the problem of a Bangalorean but the whole world. With crude prices hitting the roof, there is a need to reduce our dependancy on the crude more importantly on OPEC.

I am aware that you produce a good electric car called Reva and have achieved a commendable milestone of producing the first Fuel Cell prototype in India. I am glad the President Abul Kalam has acknowledged your efforts. And, GM has given you a contract of designing an Electric Vehicle. But, I as a consumer expect a better product from you. The current Reva seats two Adults and two Minors, What happens when the Minors grow up? I am sure you would want sell another Reva to this Family but, most people buy one car in their lifetime and it should serve most if not all of their needs including atleast a 300km range for the vehicle. I feel that this constraint is some what of an aberration and the top reason for people not opting for a Reva. The vehicle should atleast seat 4 adults and should as big as a Hyundai Santro. The second reason is the style Reva scores less in style and I am sure it can perform better if aerodynamics were considered while designing the exterior of the car. Please think of futuristic add-ons such as Bluetooth connectivity for a mobile phone, Backup camera and help, iPod ready, and GPS. Please keep in mind that it only a matter of time Toyota Prius (http://www.toyota.com/prius/) comes to India.



A prospective customer,
Jeevan

2 comments:

Chandan R said...

Good one man.
The toyota prius really looks cool. But its priced at around 10 lacs! Yeah the current Revas look really sad. There is definetly lot of scope for a good EV.

In India when solar heating and lighting systems were first introduced, people were skeptical about its success. But now backed by the government incentives for solar units and their decent design and low maintenance people surely are accepting it as an economic alternative for rising electricity costs.

Lets hope to see a similar success in automobiles as well.

Clickr said...

Thanks Chandan,
Prius is totally cool and fully loaded. Also, I found a review for Reva on Mouthshut.com http://www.mouthshut.com /review/Reva-100619-1.html .
Reva doesn't seem to perform after well 22,000 Km, giving a mileage of just 55-65. If these guys don't do well, they are going down. Remember the Indian government is giving a subsidy of Rs 75,000 on each Reva.