Moped Car ???

[Rob Dobie]

 This is from the Axiam web site. http://uk.aixam.com/
 From 19th January 2013 the UK will adopt the European AM (Moped) License allowing 16year olds to drive our range of light weight (L6e) vehicles on UK roads.
This offers a common licence throughout Europe and a graduated entry into driving both 2 and 4 wheeled vehicles.

[marcus]

Interesting. I wonder how many will sell here.

[Rob Dobie]

Here's some of their history. http://uk.aixam.com/en/corporate/history

[marcus]

I have seen a couple of Aixam cars on the road in London and 1 or 2 regularly for sale at Mac Motors at Tooting (apt?!)

Their Mega and Multitrucks are still rare, but becoming more common than the cars. Sometimes see one or two in Southwark Park and over much of London. Saw one Multitruck doing small parcel deliveries just around the corner recently and stopped for brief chat about it with driver. It was electric and he said acceleration OK but top speed only about 30-40 mph, so only really useful around town. On A roads it would be overtaken by many a 1950s bubble car! Progress eh?!

[Chris Thomas]

Dear Rob

Good to see you have been reading Rumcar News from cover to cover

Remember you read it first in Rumcar news

Chris Thomas

[Barry]

I was at Cunningham's Garage near Long Stratton in Norfolk yesterday.
They are the agents for Secma (Q-pod)

I was thinking of 50cc Q-pods for my three boys who will be 16 next June.
It turns out that they have not been made for years and Cunninghams did not really recommend them.

They showed me a 400cc diesel four wheeler that would be road legal for 16 year old in January.  A real sports looking car.
Has to be limited to 45kph and below a certain weight 350kg???

Cunningham's were very helpful and easy going, showing me many different Secma cars including their own creation which had a very high powered Honda motorcycle engine in it.
The engineering of the whole car was first class.  It had shown off the Arial Atoms at Snetterton recently.  Not bad for a plastic tub...............

[Rob Dobie]

Chris,
 As there are many bods on the forum that don't take Rumcars I thought it would be suitable to put this thread on listing their web site.
Rob.

P.S. But what do you think of having kids having passed their test on a moped/scooter at the age of 16 and then Mummy or Daddy buying one of these cars for them to rush around in?

[Chris Thomas]

Dear Rob

People who do not read Rumcar News do not know what they are missing. But we do!!

My feeling is that there should be an extension to the moped basic training course for these now vehicles as moped controls with handlebars are quite different to car controls with right foot controls and a steering wheel. Whilst it would not take a novice long to learn the different controls. They need to learn them off road first.

Think back to when we were kids, having a go on a friends bike at 15 or driving a friends car in a field at the same age. You have to start sometime and we are all different. ( thank god).

Dear Barry

I was in the Qpod Garrage back in August and I was trying to persuade them to go to the National as was on their doorstep, but unfortunately they did not turn up. I get the feeling they are focused on the racing side and the agricultural side of their vehicles rather than the road going side. I explained about the changes that will take place next year and at that time they were ignorant of the changes and said they would speak to Secma. It seems that Secma have their own agenda, which all agents follow.

I think the Qpod could be developed into a good little vehicle, but as yet they have not quite hit the spot in the UK.

During the summer I was in Nice and saw the new Aixam at a small exhibition and they are very sophisticated (?) little cars, ideal for city runabouts. They also had a see through model made with clear tinted plastic body panels, so you can see all the structure and internal components. A good sales tool. Watch out for the Microcar equivalent, what one does the other one follows. It will be interesting to see if any of the other French manufacturers follow.

Chris Thomas

[Big Al]

On A roads it would be overtaken by many a 1950s bubble car! Progress eh?!

Supremely!

That is a hard question. Better for youngsters to weave around on mopeds or have a small car bought for them. I can see many parents who can afford it feeling the car is a safer option. As we have kind of established, these slower small vehicles are fine in urban conditions as that is mostly restricted or roads where you cannot drive fast. The more out of town and rural drivers will need to re learn a few facts of the road however. In France you can fall across one of these jobs anywhere and are more attuned to look for the signs. They do not have a great problem now they upped the speeds, over a decade ago, to around 45 mph. Certainly no more so than horses on roads. The unspoken conflict is going to be with trucks I think. The two classes need to have a harmonised road speed limit or big trucks are going to get impatient and attempt manoeuvres to pass. If our roads get blocked by to many of these cars our cost of living will rise as the net speed of traffic, particularly freight will drop. The Government are flirting with a lower speed limit in the country already so I think I can see where this is going 'for our own safety'.

On the other side of all this it means driving our Microcars might become a slightly easy activity if traffic is slowed down and they average driver is more aware that there might be small slow cars about. So I am torn as I also enjoy a blat round the lanes of the Down or Cotswolds in something more powerful when I feel like it.

Times change and I think driving as a purely recreational pastime is dwindling due to cost and congestion. Folk now normally need a reason to be driving somewhere. Track days and the like are getting more popular for the responsible speed freaks. Could the MIcrocar return in a slightly different niche? As Bob has found, the GWhizz does what he needs and the same might be true of the better designs of these small cars which get co opted for shopping trips etc out of convenience and cheap running costs once bought for a slightly different reason of gaining a youngster early driving access.

I wonder if we will see some areas renting out the more fun versions in areas more attuned to tourism?

[marcus]

Al, I almost wrote "supreme progress, eh?" 

[Rob Dobie]

Think back to when we were kids, having a go on a friends bike at 15 or driving a friends car in a field at the same age.
Chris Thomas

Thought back to 1959 to when I was a 15 year old kid. I had just started working so had no time or friends that had a (motor)bike or a car to go driving around fields. Bet the farmers were happy? I wasn't even interested in motorised transport. Had a sheltered childhood!