I presently have a 2011 Nissan Leaf (#712 still on original battery) and still enjoy the car immensely. I'm presently thinking that once I see Aptera actually delivering their vehicles will probably then sign up for one (hoping to replace my Leaf and Harley Davidson motorcycle - I use for long trips) given that I am getting old. One stupid question I have is that I don't see any windshield wipers on the car (are they recessed/hidden)? The other question I have is: I've read is that Toyota is coming out with solid state batteries next year in their EVs and wonder if Aptera might be looking into those given their advantages?
The Aptera Forum
To see this working, head to your live site.
Search
They have hidden wipers. Most information I've gathered from interviews is that they will use the current 2170 cells, ideally from tesla. If i were you I wouldn't wait to submit your 100$ deposit, they currently have 6,000+ preorders and plan to deliver
220 in 2021
1,500 in 2022
3,000 per year after that.
If you want to reserve your car for 70$ fully refundable you can use my referral link. http://i.refs.cc/ReG3Ve2x?smile_ref=eyJzbWlsZV9zb3VyY2UiOiJzbWlsZV91aSIsInNtaWxlX21lZGl1bSI6IiIsInNtaWxlX2NhbXBhaWduIjoicmVmZXJyYWxfcHJvZ3JhbSIsInNtaWxlX2N1c3RvbWVyX2lkIjo2ODU0OTkzNDd9
If you are not from the USA, you must first check if the vehicle dimensions are legal for a tricycle in your country.
The current pre-orders are around 11.000 units.
Then you can calculate until when you will get an Aptera. Assuming that the annual production figures do not increase significantly. By the time you get an Aptera, you can expect to have the latest battery technology, with the advantage that the batteries weigh only half as much and have three times the capacity.
Riley, Where did you see those delivery numbers? I read that the plan is to ramp up to produce 10,000 Aptera per year after the 1st full year, 2022.
@Harry Parker Here's the link to the thread with the video that those numbers are extracted from. https://www.aptera.us/forum/general-discussions/do-the-numbers-pencil-out-here-s-a-video-that-the-believers-will-enjoy However this guy is not Aptera and these are his estimates, "Comparisons to actual timelines may and probably will vary widely." (At least until Aptera starts to put in an update page and lets us know what's happening.)
Toyota has claims. We will see what happens when that deadline is actually reached. My hope: Aptera makes battery upgrades easy, rather than messing with their own release schedule to accommodate other possible
Aptera already has 60% more range capacity per pound of battery.
Or you could say it has a 60% lighter battery for it's range.
Also 60% faster charging.
So there's 60% less gain when switching to future tech.
How'd you manage to stay on the original battery? I have a 2011 Leaf, maybe the second shipment from Japan, and mine seem to wear out sooner. I always run in the eco mode. I don't usually run it out to the bottom, but I do always charge it to 100% of what they allow. I spoke to someone else who said he always charges to 100% and his battery seemed to be lasting longer than mine too. It would be nice to know especially if I can somehow change my habits and make the battery last longer.
dtmattijetz, The heat of Summer is the big killer for Leaf batteries. Where do you live? I'm guessing a place with hot Summers.
I live in Southern California but the car is in a garage. I still get mid sixties miles on the battery and it still fully charges all bars. I've never left the car charged at 100% for more than a few hours and 95% of the time I use the 80% charge setting. Guess I was lucky with my battery. To be honest since it is all short trips I haven't put that much mileage on the car (just over 10k). I've always left the battery charge level low when it isn't driven for over a week. The car has never been charged with the 440V Chaedmo connector. I'll probably get another couple of years on the battery.
I live in Southern California too, so we do get some hot summers, but not like the desert. My car is always in the garage except when I use it. I rarely use the DC charger, but it has happened a handful of times just to get me farther down the road, usually just a few percent. Ugh, I wish I knew. Oh yeah, I have about 50k miles on it. Or maybe I should say 25K on this battery pack. A full charge gets around 40 to 50 miles even though it predicts about 70 to 80. I don't get it.
@dtmattijetz Yeah, I have a friend with an older Leaf near here and he's quite disappointed in its range. How fast and hard you drive makes a big difference, and so does the temperature and use of the heater and the AC.
On a slippery Aptera high speeds will make much less of a difference.
& Aptera draws 60% less aging, heat-inducing current at the same driving speed & harshness. Also it will be either liquid-cooled or convection cooled, while Leaf is reportedly un-cooled (enclosed in a heat-retaining case), & with such high range it will have much shallower, gentler depth of discharge.