Opel has announced that its upcoming Ampera-e battery-powered car will eliminate the need for pulling over and charging your car, as it can travel more than 400 km on one single charge, according to the group’s chief, Karl-Thomas Neumann.
Opel, which continues to have a limited presence in the Iranian market since sanctions were removed in January, is unlikely to have the car enter the local market.
“Opel is democratizing the electric car with the Ampera-e,” Neumann noted on Opel’s main website on September 13.
Under the new European Driving Cycle, the Ampera-e will pass the 400-km barrier without recharging, by a considerable margin, Opel announced. The report notes that BMW’s i3 only has a 300-km range and Nissan Leaf has 250, neither of which is available in Iran.
Ampera-e is a sister model to the Bolt from parent General Motors’ Chevrolet brand. GM said on Monday the range of the Bolt is 238 miles (383 km) as certified by the US Environmental Protection Agency.
GM will start production of the Bolt at its plant in Orion near Detroit at the end of this year. Ampera-e is likely to be built on the same production line, although GM has not confirmed this.
The European group will debut Ampera-e at the Paris Auto Show on September 29, ahead of its launch in early 2017.
The car’s electric drivetrain produces 204 hp and can accelerate the EV to 50 kph (31 mph) from 0 in 3.2 seconds and to 120 kph from 80 kph in 4.5 seconds when overtaking on the highway, Opel said. Its top speed is limited to 150 kph (93 mph.(
Earlier this year, several new Opel models were believed to have entered the local market but have since disappeared from local showrooms.
