This Electric Car From 1975 Was Really Bad And Ugly

As modern EVs give us waves of torque and nearly silent speed, many of us may have forgotten an electric car used to be really bad a few decades ago. For example, the Citicar of  Sebring-Vanguard (1975) which appeared on the Aging Wheels' YouTube channel.

That vehicle is just terrifying every way. But according to the video's host, Sebring-Vanguard sold more than 2,000 of that vehicle before selling off the car design to the company Commuter Vehicles. Then they sold an extra 2,000 units. Then the design of this car arrived at the hand of a company in Norway thus keep that car production from the 1990s to 2010s under the name Kewet.

Citicar's structure

Citicar is a riveted-together and small plastic car with a not very high build level. Technically speaking, it features the power of four lead-acid car batteries of 12V so the total amount is 48 volts. The car design is kinda like a cheese wedge we often see in cartoons.

Citicar's original "advanced" throttle system has a three-stage classic switch instead of the progressive, smooth rheostat. The setting of the first switch is like the low gear and would start two batteries together with the resistor to control the electric current running to the car's motor. The 2nd position will turn off that resistor while the 3rd position will utilize all the 4 batteries which supply the car with 48 volts.

How to cool the car?

In Citicar's HVAC system, there is a NACA-style conduct lying on the car's nose, leading to the cabin. The HVAC system also includes a fan that blows air over the electric motor. If it sucks air over the electric motor, it will provide cabin heat, then reverse the fan, coll the motor.

Shockingly, Citicar was the most produced electric car in the US since 1945 until the Tesla Model S took over its position.