Automotive Journal

Later this week there's an 'exclusive' reveal at a London hotel of the Peugeot BB1 concept (think 'bubble-car' with electric drive, scooter-style handlebar instead of steering wheel) that was shown in Frankfurt last month. The project is not for production, but the fact that the electric vehicle is going on a special parade suggests that PSA is serious about investigating the urban niche for such a vehicle. There is a dedicated website, too.

It is an intriguing concept. The electric motors are in the wheels. Peugeot says its father is a scooter and its mother is a car. If this really is something for 'the future' of urban transport, how far away is that future? Could a productionised version of this concept be five years away? Ten? What about a small and very efficient conventional engine for such a vehicle in order to get the cost down? Oh, yes, that'd be something not unlike the Smart or Toyota's iQ, then.