Aptera’s 1,000-mile solar EV is closer to reality than ever, thanks to the interest of investors and drivers.
The San Diego-based startup behind the intriguing three-wheeled battery-powered vehicle, Paradigm, recently announced that it accepted $ 4 million during its Series A financing round. While that may not be much money for some automakers, it leaves the company closer to production, which is scheduled to start later this year.
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After the financing round, Aptera says it is now supported by collective financiers, private investors and automotive leaders, including Sandy Munro of Munro & Associates, Inc. “The industry needs more creative engineering like this to make progress,” the expert in automotive engineering said in a statement. “I’m happy to help Aptera as they go into production and go further.”
But the company is not just seeing investor interest. The same press release reveals that the company has accumulated more than 7,000 bookings for the standard Paradigm (which starts at $ 29,900) and the top of the line Paradigm Plus ($ 46,900) since the EV made its official public debut in December. Although the details of the models have not been revealed, the company said that orders total more than $ 250 million.
It’s easy to see why people are so intrigued by the futuristic tricycle. Although it only has room for two, the EV looks like something from Jetsons and is powered by a battery configuration that makes the Tesla Model S Long Range Plus and Lucid Air look inefficient. A combination of 100 kWh battery and integrated solar panels will allow Paradigm Plus to go up to 1,000 miles on a single charge. Better yet, the vehicle can travel up to 45 miles a day (and 11,000 miles a year) on solar power alone, so you won’t even have to worry about charging it in a few days.
Aptera also announced that it has moved to a new production facility in the Sorrento Valley neighborhood of San Diego. It is here that the production of Paradigma and Paradigma Plus is scheduled to start later this year. The startup expects to have 10,000 copies on the road next year. You can book yours now through the Aptera website.
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