The proposed electric vehicle (EV), that uses a range-extender engine to achieve high distances between fuel stops, is the development of Red Automotive Technologies (RAT), a sister company to design engineering firm Applidyne.
RAT founder and managing director Paul van de Loo this week told GoAutoNews Premium that it was frustrating that the funds available to the two departing Australian car-makers, Holden and Toyota, had been withdrawn by the federal government and were not available for start-up businesses.
“It is very hard to raise money and it’s a very frustrating process,” he said.
“We need to have a working prototype before people will invest and we haven’t reached a stage of being able to fund a working prototype.
“There is no government money around. I have spoken to investors but very fe
w are even interested unless there’s a working product with a commercial application.
“The South Australian government is sympathetic and while the federal government had money that was used to help the three local car makers, it has been returned to general revenue.”
The Automotive Transformation Scheme, which is supposed to continue until 2020, is only designed for producers of vehicles or engines with a minimum of 30,000 units a year. It has about $785 million left in the fund.
There was also a $100 million fund announced by the federal government in May to allow manufacturers to diversify their business. Mr van de Loo said RAT did not qualify “because we are not diversifying”.
“There is nothing in Australia for new ventures,” he said.
“At the moment we are funding everything ourselves and that is not only financially difficult but also greatly slows the progress of our work.
“Yet we are ready and lined up to produce a vehicle. We just need the funds to make the first prototype and then we believe we can start building our marketing.”
He said it may cost about $3 million to produce the prototype and a further $30 million to get it to market.
The project is a four-wheel-drive vehicle powered by an electric motor that uses a patented transmission and a range-extender engine that charges the onboard batteries. The engine does not drive the wheels, so the system is similar to the BMW i3 with its optional range extender.
It has a theoretical electric-only range of 200km and a total range of 1200km, should be able to sprint to 100km/h from rest in about seven seconds and has been designed to have a 3500kg tow rating.
The current plans are for the drivetrain to be grafted into a donor vehicle that Mr van de Loo said was a prestige dual-cab 4WD ute. He would not name the brand.
“We believe that in 10 years time, we could be making 12,000 vehicles a year,” he said.
“We also believe we can move from using a donor vehicle to building one in Australia from the ground up.
“The market is good in Australia but we are also aiming at the US, Europe and the Middle East. Anywhere that needs an electric vehicle but there is a fear of range anxiety is where our vehicle will work.”
RAT has received a donor vehicle that allows us to build the vehicle and appraise the technology, much in the same way that Tesla did when it used a Lotus Elise as the basis for its first cars.
Mr van de Loo said the aim of the business was to make and sell premium vehicles, including dual-cab utes and SUVs, and also license the intellectual property including the innovative transmission system and the ability of the vehicle to power the home.
The electric system is designed so it can charge a home or send power to the electricity grid and is one of the key elements of Mr van de Loo’s intellectual property that he sees as being an important component of the business case.
By Neil Dowling
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