ELECTRIC VEHICLES ARE REALLY SO OLD HAT!
IF YOU think Elon Musk invented the electric car, think again. The vehicles have actually been around since the dawn of the automobile in the 1800s.
I’ve just had an exclusive drive in a replica of what is believed to be the world’s first rechargeable electric carriage, exactly 140 years after the original’s first outing.
The replica, which took two months to create, pays homage to French inventor Gustave Trouvé, believed to have driven the world’s first rechargeable electric vehicle down Rue de Valois in central Paris in April 1881.
His pioneering invention came about when he attached an electric motor and rechargeable battery to an English-made Coventry Lever tricycle. The only 21st-century elements in the replica vehicle are a modern battery and an electric motor from an e-bike.
The replica was the brainchild of motoring expert Jeremy Hart who persuaded leading electric commercial vehicle specialists Maxus (formerly LDV) to back the scheme.
He also brought on board Victorianreplica cycle engineer Christian Richards to build the reproduction in his North Yorkshire workshop.
The finished cycle was transported to France in an electric Maxus eDeliver 9 van, where the replica followed Trouvé’s original test-drive route in Paris at an average speed of 10mph before returning to the UK.
The three-wheeler is basic in the extreme and runs on solid rubber tyres. Bicycle-style pedals help give some extra help up steep inclines or if the battery gives out.