My Eyes! My EYES!!!! Protoscar Lampo 2 Revealed Before Geneva

Do you have to make electric vehicles look ugly? No, you don't. The Fisker Karma is quite attractive, and that's even a sedan, but this? This, sadly, is the Protoscar Lampo 2. A Swiss EV that has been highly anticipated by some, but I bet this will cool their ardor slightly.

Protoscar describe themselves as being "CleanCar Shapers", but I really think they should reevaluate their self-image. No, the Lampo 2 is not outright hideous, like a Pontiac Aztek, but it is awkwardly executed and strangely proportioned. In a lot of ways, it is rather reminiscent of various "safety car" studies that you'd see back in the 1970s.

Back then, it seemed to be all the rage (for a while) for car companies to design some sort of car that was as safe as a bank vault. These were things that were designed to be driven into walls at 40 MPH, and you could walk away without a scratch. They were Ralph Nader's wet dream. the only real downsides were that they had the performance of a Model T, weighed more than a Brinks truck, cost 3 times what a Ferrari went for, and were homelier than a mud fence.

The Protoscar Lampo 2 is based on General Motor's Kappa platform. This is the same basis for the Pontiac Solstice, Saturn Sky and, in Europe, the Opel GT. And all of those, if not car designs for the ages, are at least fairly attractive. the Lampo 2 on the other hand ...

Anyway, underneath the bodywork, the Lampo 2 features a powertrain consisting of twin electric motors, one up front, and one in back, meaning that it's all-wheel drive. There's a large-capacity lithium ion battery pack and solar cells on the back deck may help range, but probably not by much.

The total power of the twin motors is a very impressive 408 horsepower and they crank out 472 pound-feet of torque, also impressive. The Lampo 2, which weighs in at a beefy 3,483 pounds can do zero to 60 in around five seconds and top out at 124 mph. Which is not bad.

Protoscar's real claim to fame though is their recharging options. One is allegedly a fast charger that offers up 100 kilometers of range after a 10 minute charge via an off-board DC rapid charger interface. OK, so it's got that going for it.

Source: AutoBlogGreen