Veeco: The portuguese attempt in "sports cars"

Updated: 29 Nov 2024

Called Veeco RT, this is the first electric sports car made in Portugal. I mean, sports car? Well, ok. At least it looks great (in the front).

alt text

Talking about it, this car has been in production for some years, and it is already approved to walk and roll with style on the roads. (Forget that style part, please)
This project borned in the mind of João Oliveira, a guy that is passionate by automotive competition. Everything started in 2005, when he started working on an electric roadster, inspired with a sporty design. More than think and build a car that is efficient and has low consumptions, the main purpose of this project was to prove that was possible to make a car in Portugal, in this case supported by the Superior Engineering Institute of Lisbon (Instituto Superior de Engenharia de Lisboa), with a total budget of 2 million euros (around 1.4 million GBP).

This vehicle has the autonomy of 250 miles (around 400km) and a top speed of 100mph (around 160kph).

This car has been being developed through the years, gaining the actual styling and design: a very lightweight car, supported by three wheels - a decision that guaranteed a faster homologation, because of the reason that it is registered in tha class of motorcycles. In Portugal, it means that the version of 15kW can be driven at the age of 16. (The legal age to drive cars in Portugal is 18.)

alt text

The company herself, aims to the necessity of those who need to make daily trips, in small distances.
The car offers 2 seats, and the battery fully loaded can make around 250 miles, in the most advanced version, while the basic version only makes half of that. It can be charged in a regular jack, like those you have in the walls at home.
The company estimates that the costs are around 0.70£ per 60 miles (1€ per 100km).
The assembly line was installed in a company called Fibrauto, located in Vila Nova de Gaia (Oporto). This company was the responsible to develop the bodywork too.