http://www.the-japan-news.com/news/article/0002514527 In the News / Noboru Matsunami / 3-wheeled electric vehicle developer October 28, 2015 Takumi Wakinishi / Yomiuri Shimbun Staff Writer
[image https://the-japan-news-archives.s3-ap-northeast-1.amazonaws.com/preview/entries/142525/materials/378405/DTMANAGE.000000020151023180727952-1.jpg?AWSAccessKeyId=AKIAI7EPFDYX6SSPYKKQ&Expires=1446032119&Signature=CpaQ0wjDqnUDVfluFkdZ4AYhIzg%3D (etrike & Matsunami) ] KAWASAKI — Noboru Matsunami, 67, has revived three-wheelers, which were popular after the end of World War II, as an eco-friendly electric vehicle. He developed a three-wheeled electric vehicle named “Electrike” at a car maker that he founded with 12 employees in Nakahara Ward, Kawasaki, in 2008. The one-seater vehicle type was granted an approval required for mass production by the Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism Ministry in June. The company has received orders for 15 vehicles and delivered one in September. “The day will come again when many three-wheeled vehicles run in towns,” Matsunami said, expecting the spread of three-wheelers in the delivery industry. When he belonged to an automobile club in his high school days, Matsunami rode the three-wheeler Midget by Daihatsu Motor Co., and was fascinated by the vehicle, which was able to smoothly run like a motorcycle, even with loads on it. Matsunami then got absorbed in automobiles, and even became a professional rally driver for a while. He came across three-wheelers again in Thailand. Though he tried to import and sell the vehicles at the age of 39, he gave up this plan due to issues such as exhaust emissions and vehicle performance. Nevertheless, he could not abandon his aspirations for three-wheelers, and proposed joint research for an eco-friendly three-wheeled electric vehicle to Tokai University in 2005, which he used to attend. The vehicle’s Achilles’ heel — it fell over easily — was corrected with separate rear-wheel drive. As government subsidies are available, the price of the developed vehicle is about ¥1 million. Matsunami could not stand the exhaust gas which covered towns in Thailand. He is eyeing expansion of the clean three-wheelers into overseas markets to help improve the environment. [© the-japan-news.com] For EVLN EV-newswire posts use: http://evdl.org/evln/ {brucedp.150m.com} -- View this message in context: http://electric-vehicle-discussion-list.413529.n4.nabble.com/EVLN-Matsunami-s-Electrike-revived-post-WWII-e-3wheelers-tp4678421.html Sent from the Electric Vehicle Discussion List mailing list archive at Nabble.com. _______________________________________________ UNSUBSCRIBE: http://www.evdl.org/help/index.html#usub http://lists.evdl.org/listinfo.cgi/ev-evdl.org Read EVAngel's EV News at http://evdl.org/evln/ Please discuss EV drag racing at NEDRA (http://groups.yahoo.com/group/NEDRA)
