2010 REVA Car Series
The REVA is a small 3-door hatchback measuring 2.6 m (8 ft 6 in) long, 1.3 m (4 ft 3 in) wide and 1.5 m (4 ft 11 in) high. The car can accommodate two adults in the front and two children in the rear. The back seats can fold down to provide cargo space. The maximum passenger and cargo weight is 270 kg (600 lb).
The REVA is exempt from most European crash test rules, because its low weight and power registers it in the European “heavy quadricycle” category instead of the “car” category.
The UK Department for Transport found “serious safety concerns” after crashing a now discontinued G-Wiz at 56 km/h (35 mph) into a deformable barrier on 24 April 2007,which is the normal test for cars. Likewise, a test commissioned by Top Gear Magazine that followed the Euro NCAP crash test specifications found that the occupants would suffer “serious or life-threatening” injuries in a 64 km/h (40mph) crash.
As a result, the current REVA i and REVA L-ion models include several new safety features such as front disk brakes, a collapsible steering column, and a much revised and reinforced chassis that has been successfully crash tested in India by ARAI. A 40 km/h (25 mph) frontal crash test video of the new model is available online.
The REVA Electric Car Company (RECC) claims the car has an excellent safety record: “In over 40 million km of Reva usage, there has not been a single fatality or serious injury”. Indeed, because of its limited range and top speed, it is mostly driven in slow urban traffic where hazardous situations requiring advanced safety features are less likely.
Tags: reva car, reva electric car, reva electric car company, REVA i, REVA L-ion models
