LifeCar

The Morgan LifeCar is a concept car due to be launched at the Geneva Show in March 2008. According to the makers, the LifeCar’s purpose is to demonstrate that a zero emission vehicle can also be fun to drive. The project is a collaboration between Oscar Automotive, Cranfield University, QinetiQ, Oxford University, Linde AG and Morgan Motor Company.

“The combination of performance, range and fuel economy will allow a sporting driver of the future to demonstrate a concern for the environment. Going far beyond the incremental adaptation of traditional car designs as seen in current hybrid vehicles, it will demonstrate that a new step in vehicle architecture is enabled by the use of a fuel cell hybrid power train. The approach is one of whole system design in which the architecture is generated from the characteristics of the fuel cell, in a light-weight vehicle coupled with a high hybridization level. This combination will minimise the fuel cell cost and provide the fuel economy for a 200 mile range.”

Implications - With eco-friendly vehicles more common than ever, environmentally conscious consumers are happier than ever. The less eco-conscious consumers, however, have yet to be sold on the idea; thus, companies are incorporating elements of fun and speed in hopes of converting average adults into eco activists.