In case some of you forgot, the concept City Slicker is named (of course, with a plural) after that early 90s comedy movie about New Yorkers getting a lesson in cowboy hardship. Now, we do have a feeling that this jaunty one seater vehicle will have the potentiality to spurt breezily through the urban ‘hardships’ like congestion and pollution. Conceptualized by designer Sasank Gopinathan, the ultra petite vehicle will be driven by low emission electric motors, while its diminutive features are to cope well with the daily constraints of an urban commute.
One seater vehicles are not exactly new in overall city commuting scheme of things, with bantam vehicles like Reva and Smart One already in the hatchback market. Their relatively small bearing (both in form and spatial volume) provide numerous advantages in conjunction with the fast paced, individualistic lifestyle of a majority of city dwellers. We are talking about smooth handling in congested traffic conditions, while also facilitating much better road grip (along with greater turning radius) during blind turns around cramped tight corners. And of course, on a generalized basis, these vehicles are more cost effective in comparison to their much bigger cousins like sedans and SUVs.
In this respect, the designer has taken all of the above considerations, and seemingly fused them with his own innovations. The car is touted to be an aerodynamic city EV with a reclined driving position. In strictly visual sense, the composed lines are accentuated by the compact chassis, while the head lights mounted atop the wheel frames (rather than at the frond end) emanates an unobtrusive essence to the aerodynamic flow of the body. And since we are talking about its outer streamlined form, the overall spunky demeanor along with the vivacious color scheme will certainly appeal to the younger customers.
Coming to the design element, according to Gopinathan, the dimensions of the vehicle will be 1800mm (length) x 1100mm (width), with around 1253mm of height. Going by the figures, the car will certainly fall into that ultra diminutive category. In this compact form, the designer has envisaged the drive train (comprising of the battery pack and low emission motor) to be located below the driver seat. This battery area can be accessed through two small doors (on either side), which will be well fitted along the smooth body.
Considering the case for user convenience, the car will incorporate two separate trunks (storage) spaces. One of them can actually be detached and used as a fashionable hand bag by the driver. Now, all of these are to be incorporated within the tight frame of the vehicle. But that doesn’t mean the designer has sacrificed accessibility. In this regard, there will be two doors for approach, and both of them can be removed to create an open buggy-styled vehicle for the summer.
Finally, coming to the most important aspect of City Slicker – and that is its low emission electric nature. Going by the excessive trends of an urban automotive culture, it is the bantam yet adamantly green nature of such vehicles that can prove to the sustainable solution of our very future.
Source: GrabCad
