CARLSBAD — Fortuitous timing and skyrocketing gas prices are the opening salvo for a unique, emissions-free vehicle set to go to market later this year.
Carlsbad-based Aptera’s three-wheeled, solar-powered vehicle looks straight out of “The Jetsons,” featuring an aerodynamic design as if a plane were driving on the road. Legally, the vehicle is not a car, which gives Aptera more freedom from certain regulations and the ability to streamline engineering, production and delivery.
Still, co-founders Steve Fambro and Chris Anthony have spent the past four to five years refining the vehicle in painstaking detail to produce a product worthy of their mission. They developed a proprietary technology for the solar panels, which cover the vehicle’s hood and roof, combined with a robust battery, to give their customers a range of 400 miles per charge and up to 40 miles of solar-powered driving per day.
