Pininfarina B0 (B Zero) guest of honour at Dream
The Pininfarina-Bolloré electric car in the spotlight for a whole weekend during the exhibition dedicated by TWDC to the car of the future.The Pininfarina B° is to be the undisputed queen of the Dream show for two whole days. On Saturday December 13 and Sunday December 14, the exhibition dedicated to dream cars and the concept cars of the 1950s will host the electric car concept which Pininfarina is developing in a joint venture with the French group Bolloré. This will be the first appearance in Italy of the project since its world debut in October at the Mondial de l'Automobile in Paris, where it elicited substantial interest industry and public, demonstrating how the car paves an innovative path in the right direction, years ahead of the competition.
Dream, which is part of the calendar of initiatives organised for Turin World Design Capital 2008, brings together 54 unique examples and hundreds of other exhibits including scale models, sketches, drawings and projects. The exhibition will remain open at the Torino Esposizioni expo centre until December 28. Featuring among the examples chosen to celebrate the history of creativity in car design in Italy and in the Piedmont area in particular are a few of the most iconic of all Pininfarina concepts and prototypes, namely the Ferrari Modulo, Studio CNR, Ferrari Mythos, Honda Argento Vivo, Metrocubo, Citroen Osée, Nido, Maserati Birdcage 75th and Sintesi. However, for the entire weekend of December 13 and 14, the real star of the show will be the Pininfarina B° (pronounced B Zero), the car designed and engineered by Pininfarina to introduce a pilot programme of vehicles which will be unveiled between late 2009 and 2010, and will subsequently enter production at Pininfarina's own plants in Italy.
"By hosting the B°, which represents one of the pillars of the future of Pininfarina, Dream could not have paid us a more welcome homage, especially after already dedicating the entire event to my brother Andrea" said Pininfarina president, Paolo Pininfarina. "Everyone today is talking about electric cars, but Pininfarina and Bolloré showed extraordinary foresight by believing in their potential over a year ago, testifying to how innovation has always been a part of our DNA. Dream is the perfect backdrop for the B° as it illustrates the relentless mutation of tastes, aesthetic canons and technological content. The greatest strength of our electric car is unquestionably its range. However, it is also a car with exquisite styling that expresses sportiness and dynamism, promising excellent driveability and representing the ideal solution for the large city, an elite automobile destined to create new trends".
The B° is a compact four-seater monospace with automatic transmission and powered by LMP electric batteries (Lithium Metal Polymer), complemented by a supercapacitor energy storage device manufactured by the Bolloré plants at Quimper (France) and Montreal (Canada). The LMP battery may be recharged from a standard household power outlet and will offer a range of 250 Km. This battery stores five times more energy than a conventional battery of the same weight and may be recharged in just a few hours. The battery is completely maintenance-free, has a lifetime of approximately 200,000 Km and offers unparalleled safety. Housing the battery in a dedicated space between the axles and under the platform also makes a lower centre of gravity possible, giving the car remarkably good handling qualities. Additionally, an electric car emits no gas or fine particulate. LMP batteries therefore contribute to reducing both atmospheric and noise pollution. In terms of performance, top speed will be electronically limited to 130 Km/h while acceleration will be brisk (60 Km/h from a standstill in 6.3 seconds). Solar cells on the roof and bonnet will contribute to powering electric utilities.
