Yes, suitcases. In June of 2008, Live Luggage brought the world’s first power-assisted suitcase to market. Each wheel of the suitcase contains a small electric motor of its own, developed by PML Flightlink and known as the Nano-Wheel. PML teamed with Mini Cooper in hopes of bringing this technology to the automotive scene, and the Mini QED was created.
Each wheel of the Mini QED contains a small electric motor – each motor is capable of producing 160bhp in each wheel, for a total of 640bhp! Not only does this provide a true all-wheel-drive platform that is not split by differentials, it also means the Mini QED is the only fully electric automobile that is capable of extreme acceleration times and high velocities – 0 to 60mph in 4.5 seconds and a 150mph top speed, to be exact.
The Mini QED is powered only by a battery, and is designed to operate through four continuous hours of urban driving. After the battery is drained, the vehicle can be plugged in to recharge in less than twelve hours. But what if four hours is too short for your cross-country trip to grandma’s house? Engage the quarter-liter (yes, 0.25 liter), 2-cylinder, gasoline-powered engine to recharge the battery while you drive. That’s four hours of operation without gasoline, and an 80mpg fuel economy after that! Continue Reading…
