REVA Electric Car

The Reva Electric Car Company (RECC) are the manufacturer of the best selling electric road car in the world. Founded in 1994, Reva are based in Bangalore - the Indian 'silicon valley' - and today have electric cars for sale in 24 countries around the world.

Reva regard themselves first and foremost as an ideas and technology company. With over 120 employees working in electric vehicle research and development and 80 million kilometres of electric vehicle data collated over the past eight years, Reva have more experience of electric cars than almost any other car manufacturer.

Reva have recently signed a joint-venture deal with General Motors for building an electric version of the Chevrolet Spark in India, with production starting at the end of 2010.

Reva's first, and best known car, was simply called the 'Reva' or 'Reva City' and sold as the G-Wiz in the UK. Conceived and developed in the late 1990s as an urban city car, the car was originally launched in 2001 in India and 2004 in Europe. The car became a hit in London, with celebrities, business people, politicians and environmental enthusiasts buying the cars in surprising numbers.

Cheeky, quirky and highly individualistic, the Reva G-Wiz is surprisingly fun to drive - especially the most recent models with improved performance and with handling and ride tuned by Lotus - and its success has convinced major manufacturers that there is a real market for small electric city cars, with companies such as BMW, Peugeot and Honda all announcing plans for 'G-Wiz Competitors' in the next few years.

Reva aspires to remain at the forefront of electric vehicle design, bringing new technology to market quicker than their competitors. Today, Reva are developing their third generation electric cars whilst every other manufacturer is working on their first. The company has recently announced two new cars, the NXR sub-compact city car and the NXG two seat electric sports coupe.

The Reva NXR will become available during 2010. It is a full four seat car with all the safety features you would expect from a mainstream manufacturer. Designed as a city car that will be primarily used as an every-day commuter car, it comfortably seats four people, has a range of 100 miles (160km) per charge and has a top speed of 65mph (104km/h).

The Reva NXR can be charged up in 1½ hours using a fast charging station, or charged up far enough to go 25 miles (40km) in just 15 minutes. Owners can remotely monitor their car via their mobile phone, checking charge status or switching on the heating or air conditioning remotely. Optional solar roof panels can be specified, which in the right climate provides up to 1,850 miles (3,000km) of free renewable energy every year.

Reva's unique car construction design significantly reduces the production costs of its electric cars. Thanks to its electric vehicle drive train, Reva cars use around 80% fewer parts than conventional cars making them cheaper and easier to build and maintain. As a result, Reva's electric cars not only have a significantly lower carbon footprint than conventional cars, they can be sold at prices that are comparable to conventional cars: the base price for the Reva NXR City is comparable to conventional city cars built by Ford, Volkswagen and Fiat, and significantly cheaper than any other comparable electric car.

Reva are franchising out the assembly of their latest generation electric cars so they can be built regionally, thereby accelerating the introduction of electric cars around the world. New factories are currently being built in Asia and North America. Their state-of-the-art new factory under construction in Bangalore is being constructed to platinum level LEED Green Building certification standard. The site will be entirely solar powered and incorporates natural light, ventilation and rainwater harvesting, to ensure the carbon footprint of each car is kept as low as possible.

With electric cars being announced by almost every major manufacturer, Reva are unlikely to maintain their status as the best selling electric car manufacturer in the world for much longer.

Yet with fresh new designs, innovative technology, technical partnerships with manufacturers like General Motors, new factories being built around the world and an enviable environmental record that no major car manufacturer can match, Reva are well on their way to becoming the cleanest and coolest electric car manufacturer for the coming decade.

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