All You Need to Know About Pakistan’s First Local Electric Car
Electric cars are the future, however, their high price and unavailability in Pakistan have stopped them from becoming mainstream. That’s about to change now with the introduction of Pakistan first electirc local car called Nur-E 75.
Developed by the DICE foundation, a US-based NGO run by Pakistanis, the electric hatchback aims to break into a market dominated by economy cars like Suzuki Alto. Nur-E’s prototype was officially unveiled on the 14th of August at Beach Luxury Hotel, Karachi around 4 pm.
Nur-E will be sold under a company called Jaxari whose name was inspired by the Muslim scientist Ismail-al-Jazari.
Design
Here’s the electric car in all its glory, images courtesy of PakWheels.
Design-wise it takes cues from Honda E and N-One, with the front looking remarkably similar to the two hatchbacks, giving it a modern yet retro-inspired look with round headlights and a blocky face. Unlike the front, however, the rear looks simple and uninteresting, the prototype looked as if it wasn’t assembled properly as certain elements looked misaligned.
Moving on to the interior, the dashboard has a clean look but seems old as if it was taken from a 2007-era car. The white AC vents don’t seem to be adjustable and the black plastic on the door sides and the dashboard look low-quality. That said, this is a prototype after all, so if DICE improves on the interior a bit and fixes up the back, Nur-E 75 looks like a promising new electric car for Pakistan.
Power and Range
As for the powertrain, the hatchback will be powered by a 107HP/200Nm single electric motor, with a top speed of 127 Km/hr. It will feature a 35 KWhr battery which the company claims will be good for 200KM of range with the AC on. Keep in mind that the range may vary depending on your driving speed and if you use the AC or not.
Charging it will take about 7-8 hours through a regular charger, and around 2 hours from a faster DC charger.
Price and Availability
According to Dr. Khurshid Qureshi, founder, and chairman of the DICE mobile., Nur-E 75 competes with the likes of Nissan Leaf and Honda e which are priced at $35,000 – $45,000 internationally, however, it will be priced lower than that in Pakistan.
When another official was asked about pricing estimates, they said that it will not be available for less than Rs. 2 million. Given these comments, it could be priced around Rs. 3-4 million, though you should take it with a grain of salt as pricing isn’t confirmed yet.
Dr. Khurshid adds that commercial production will start around Q4 2024, with around 60% of its parts produced locally. Localization of its parts will increase to 80% in the coming years, according to the foundation’s chairman.
We’ll keep you posted on any new developments on electric cars and Nur-E in particular.
Feature image via Awam PK
Comments
Post a Comment