British companies team up to create Auera elecctric concept car
Meet the lockdown sports car. This is ‘Aura’, an electric concept built by a group of British companies during lockdown last year and revealed today. It’s the answer to the now ever-present question of ‘what does the future of driving for the sake of driving look like?’.
It’s been built using natural composite fibres and woven fabrics, fashioned into a roofless, windscreen-less two-seat roadster with rear wheel coverings. Oh, it’s rear-wheel drive, too: up front where an engine would normally sit lies one of two battery packs and the motor, while the second battery pack is bolted to the chassis.
Each pack kicks out 44kWh of power – a total of 88kWh, maths fans – for a claimed range of 640km. We’re told this layout “improves driver dynamics and engagement for the driver due to the neutral weight distribution”. There are large, low-rolling-resistance wheels and tyres, too.
It’s been kept deliberately minimal inside – so as to not distract the driver from their important business of Driving – and thus you’ll find a self-levelling wheel-mounted display with the key information presented to the driver. Elsewhere there’s a 10in touchscreen in the centre, Android Automotive OS, and sustainable vegan leather. We’re told the range readings are accurate to within 0.5 per cent.
The entire project was funded by the Office for Zero Emission Vehicles through the Niche Vehicle Network, and the four companies who designed and built it are Astheimer Design, BAMD Composites, Conjure and Potenza Technology.
And you thought your lockdown project was special…