Introduction

The growing demands for original electric/hybrid cars are definitely on as many automobile companies are joining the green campaign. Our ailing planet is crying for help and these car companies are doing their share as they venture out to electric vehicle technology. One of these companies is Venture Vehicles; a Los Angeles based automotive company who formally announced their plans to unveil their latest design. The company is made up of creative teams that are responsible for its research and development, design, mechanical engineering and hybrid technology.

In today’s modern technology, a zero-emission car is not enough for most consumers. Today’s buyers are more educated and they definitely know what they want. So the million dollar question is, what do consumers want in an electric vehicle? Studies shows the consumers nowadays are very choosy in terms of picking their own electric vehicle. Almost 36 percent of buyer’s decision is based on fuel-economy and the rest are based on the car’s design, fun to drive, maintenance and cost. So for most car companies who aspire to be on top of industry then expect to have a stiff competition. For Venture Vehicles, this company is up for a good start as the world waits for its new electric car.

VentureOne Concept

The company’s first vehicle is the futuristic three-wheeler electric vehicle that you can plug into an electrical outlet. Venture’s development of this revolutionary car didn’t come easy for it undergoes a series quality control before it was introduced in the market. The Venture’s VE is a two-seater that can accelerate from 0-60 in 6 seconds and it has a top speed of over 100 mph. The car can be used as a pure plug-in electric or plug-in hybrid petrol-electric powertrain. Designed and built in California, the VentureOne’s design is based on Carver’s three-wheeler existing design which is now available in Europe.

The VentureOne may look like a car from outer space but it has more in common with a conventional car. Though the car has a single front wheel driving this beauty is arguably safe. It comes with a fully enclosed cabin, gear stick, foot pedals, steering wheel and upright seating position. If you are familiar with a MINI Copper, then this car has the same height and length but the driver sit is higher than the MINI and it’s more like the BMW 3-series. It’s out of the box design makes this car a total hottie. One look and you know that this car will make waves in the automotive industry. Using the Carver’s tilting technology is an absolute genius, the EV is safe to drive and awesomely efficient. Chic with a quite power, the VentureONe was introduced at the 2008 New York Auto Show.

Though the car has a narrow form it is very stable and going around is never a problem because of its tilting feature. This feature has an astounding ability to tilt the driver and passenger over as it goes around the bend. Pretty amazing, isn’t it? Thanks to Carver Engineering, this hybrid is all pimp out with the finest feature. Moves like a motorcycle, the VentureOne has no “overturning torque” on the wheels. This three-wheeler hybrid is the first vehicle that pioneered the tilting design which enables the car’s front wheel and both of its passengers to tilt up to 45 degrees while taking a turn. While cornering, the cars two rear wheels are also tilting since it is attached, and remain firmly on the ground. The cars tilting capability is a superb features that sets it apart from its mainstream rivals.

The VentureOne Concept is a flex-fuel hybrid model that will initially offer two propulsion packages – the hybrid E50 and Q100, and the all-electric Venture EV model. These propulsion systems are series of hybrid designs that consist of a small combustion engine attached to a 15-20 kW generator. It also comes with two in-wheel 25KW electric motors, a 3 kWh Li-Ion battery pack and a four gallon fuel tank. Offering all zero-emission cars, Venture Vehicles is all about innovation and ingenuity.

Another crucial aspect of the Venture One design is the car’s safety. Armed with a steel “safety cell”, the VenturOne offers an overall protection plus additional standard features that includes safety airbags for front and side protection, and a standard rear bumper. Officially classified as a motorcycle, the company is not obliged to have safety features on its cars but because it is a right to do they managed to include it. In fact, they spent considerable amount of resources to come up with these safety features. Venture Vehicles approached TAKATA-PETRI to help them design an integrated solution for passenger’s safety. After a series of physical crash testing and calculated simulation, TAKATA-PETRI is featuring its comprehensive restraint system. This safety restraint includes a capture collar, steel roll cage, collapsible steering column, side impact rails, driver’s airbag, collapsible engine mount and engine shield.

Talking about how great this EV is, the VentureOne is sporting a small sensor in its fuel system that can detect a relative amount of ethanol in the fuel. The sensor adjusts the injection volumes to suit whenever there is ethanol in the system. Also to keep the fuel lines and engine temperature at a minimum, the company is planning to use the airflow from the battery cooling system to avoid any start-up problems due to cold weather.