Motoring

TAKING A CAB TO THE FUTURE

In the days when a 31-year-old government servant could buy a flat in central London, I lived in a quiet street in which the only early-hours noise was the familiar diesel knock of a taxi dropping someone off.

It was reassuring, a mechanical town crier indicating that all was well with the world; normality reigned. My successors in that flat may still experience such reassurance but not for long: the new TX London cab is electric and will soon be seen rather than heard in London streets – and many others.

Now in production in Coventry, it looks like a longer version of the old one. Seating six rather than five, it is powered by an electric motor wrapped around the rear axle and by a range-extending 1.3-litre, three-cylinder petrol engine developed by Volvo. The one-third-tonne battery is spread beneath the cabin floor, giving a range of seventy to eighty miles. Since most cabbies do roughly 120 miles a shift, they’ll either recharge during their break from one of many (yet-to-be-- installed) charging points or they’ll switch over to petrol for a total mileage of 377.

Early reports are that the TX will be not only quieter and cleaner but more comfortable than current models. Body and chassis score highly on torsional rigidity because of the extruded aluminium and composite construction techniques they share with Lotus and Aston Martin. Turning the small wheel is light and easy, and the circle is still within the mandatory 8.5 metres. Speed is governed at 80mph; the taxi has onboard Wi-fi, USB ports and room for wheelchair-users to face forward. It’s apparently so quiet that you’ll have to whisper if you don’t want the driver to hear your sweet nothings.

Cost is £55,599, up £10k from the old model, but most drivers will lease for about £177 per week. Estimated fuel savings are about £100 per week.

The Coventry maker, LEVC, is owned by Geely, the Chinese conglomerate that also owns Volvo, and initial plans are to produce 150-300 a week. Since there are only about 21,000 London cabs, production estimates are predicated upon the TX becoming a world cab, not just British. That’s why it’s been tested in Arizona heat and Arctic cold, and why the Coventry plant has the capacity to produce about 24,000 vehicles a year, including light commercials based on the TX.

All of which is good news but I shall regret the passing of that familiar diesel knock. Not all is lost, however: the current model will be with us for some years yet and, as they are retired (compulsorily after 15 years), there will be more for private owners to buy.

You can get them from a few hundred to around £4,500 for recently plated, serviced examples. A commuting friend uses one as his station car, finding it robust and roomy, unwanted by car-park thieves and with the advantage that you can shut off family hubbub.

The driving position is not the best – the seat in one I drove years ago could be moved only vertically, though later ones have some horizontal adjustment – and they’re slow, noisy and bumpy, but you get used to that.

If you’re not frightened by 400,000 well-maintained miles and want something a bit different, they’re not a bad proposition. The Duke of Edinburgh had one for travelling around London incognito. I heard of another owner who kitted his out as a mobile office with Wi-fi, desk etc. It’s an allowable business expense, saves on business rates and means he can work from anywhere. There’s even room for meetings, if you keep them small. Worth a thought?