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Photo: Felix Happen / ACM
The future of the electric car is underground and lies in the dark.
At least when it comes to Paul Leibold.
Where others set up their start-ups in a garage, the former BMW engineer works two floors down in the locked corner of an underground car park.
But if the small car ACM City One, on which Leibold has been working for years, should actually make it out of the sinking, then it has what it takes to be a global success.
Whether it will succeed is an open question.
Leibold can point to illustrious companions such as the former Opel boss Karl-Thomas Neumann, a partnership with the large automotive supplier Magna for series development, and since December a prize from the German Design Awards.
Nevertheless, the inventor ran out of money.
He had to file for bankruptcy in December and is now looking for new investors.
For Leibold, the ACM City One is a new life's work.
In his previous career, he still had a few rich industrial nations in mind, whose environmental conscience he wanted to ease with the BMW i3, which was as innovative as it was overpriced.
His new project is set to become a global development aid for Generation E: as a simple electric car for affordable fleet applications, the ACM City One is set to conquer the metropolises of emerging countries from 2024, just like the Beetle once did in Mexico or the Jetta and Santana in Beijing.
“Because we also need a turnaround in mobility in Africa, South America and Asia if we want to save the global climate,” Leibold is convinced.
While the BMW i3, which is now being phased out, was a high-tech mini upgraded at a cost of billions, in which customers did not have to do without the usual comfort with all the extras, the City One will be the exact opposite: a robust and rustic plastic box on wheels , which meets all safety requirements, but is only intended to satisfy rudimentary comfort requirements.
Ultra short, but suitable for taxis
Initially designed for use as a taxi, ride-hailing vehicle or city delivery van, the City One, at 3.60 meters in length, is hardly any longer than the VW e-Up that Leibold currently uses to commute to work - but offers significantly more space: the Seat backs thin and steep, the roof high, the body angular and the footwell wide.
So two, even three adults can sit reasonably comfortably in the rear – at least for the duration of a taxi ride.
There's also a simple cockpit with only a handful of switches, a small display and a lot of trendy painted plastic.
After all, at least the prototype has air conditioning, heated seats and even electric windows.
And for the production model, Leibold is also promising front and side airbags.
The drive is also pragmatic instead of ostentatious: the prototype still trundles along with a 13 kW weak electric motor from a used Renault Twizy during the traffic pattern and therefore has a hard time getting out of the underground car park.
For the series, Leibold plans to use its own machine, for example from Schaeffler, and at least promises 20 kW.
But the City One shouldn't be much more dynamic with that either.
At 110 km/h it has to be over
Nor should it, because 80 km/h should be enough in most urban applications and 110 km/h is the limit anyway, says the developer.
But the City One, together with a weight of well under one ton, has an unrivaled low consumption: Where VW reports a standard value of 12.7 kWh for Leibold's e-Up, the electrical development worker should cover the 100 kilometers with less than 10 kWh .
Low consumption is particularly important to Leibold.
Because he cannot afford large batteries for the City One for two reasons.
Firstly, because they would break the announced price of 10,000 euros.
And secondly, because in many places they would overwhelm the infrastructure.
Because where the normal power grid sometimes weakens badly, fast chargers are hardly to be thought of.
That's why Leibold & Co. have developed a two-stage battery concept: The only permanently installed high-voltage battery in the City One is 16 kWh, which is smaller than in most modern plug-in hybrids.
It's not enough for more than 150 kilometers, but it's full again after a night, even when plugged into the Schuko socket.
If you still want to continue driving, there are four exchangeable batteries, each with 2.5 kWh, which can be charged in a trolley at home or used as a power bank for mobile workshop use.
Each weighing ten kilograms and the size of an attaché case, they are simply pushed into the floor of the trunk and extend the radius of action by around 100 kilometers.
That should be enough for two taxi shifts a day, Leibold is convinced.
And if you want around the clock, you can take four more power packs with you in a special roof rack and swap them at any parking space.
One size fits all
In order to lure fleet customers first of all, the City One is particularly variable.
The one in the name should not be understood as the beginning of a model series that will soon be followed by a two or three, says Leibold.
"The one stands for the one car that can do everything: one size fits all." That's why the City One isn't just a car, but can be turned into a small van in two easy steps.
Because when the back seat is flat and the headrest bracket becomes a partition, the Rubik's Cube swallows a fully loaded Euro pallet.
Just a taxi, now a courier truck – this is how the capacity utilization should be increased and the operation should be as economical as possible, says Leibold.
He offers his customers a digital platform to organize the mixed operation.
Another argument for the small Stromer should be its radically reduced operating costs.
To avoid repairs, not only does it look like a Rimowa suitcase on wheels, it's also robust.
The body is made of colored plastic and what can break can be replaced in a few simple steps, says Leibold.
The highlight, however, is the 40-inch display at the rear, with which the small car wants to import most of its costs itself.
According to Leibold, around 3,000 euros can be earned a year with normal taxi advertising.
And with advertising that is displayed to match the location and vehicle, there should be significantly more to earn.
There are several reasons why people like Paul Leibold are not focusing on industrialized nations when it comes to the mobility transition, but rather on emerging and developing countries.
Firstly, individual mobility is a fundamental right there too and we could hardly deny the citizens of Mali or Mumbai what is taken for granted in Munich or Miami, says Leibold.
Secondly, the weal and woe of the climate will ultimately be decided there, studies suggest: “By 2050, twice as many vehicles will be on the road worldwide as today – with almost all of the forecast growth in developing countries, where air pollution in many cities is already represents a major challenge," says Gustavo Fonseca, who wants to advance the mobility revolution in the third world for the international environmental protection organization Global Environment Facility.
And thirdly, the turnaround in mobility can give poor countries in particular economic breathing space, believes Reda Cherif, an economist at the International Monetary Fund: In his opinion, developing countries could achieve considerable macroeconomic advantages.
Refined petroleum products, especially gasoline, make up the largest share of imports in most African countries.
"The accelerated adoption of electric cars that require less maintenance and parts, coupled with a more reliable, renewable-energy-based power grid, would save valuable hard-currency reserves at a time of rising external debt."
Development costs in the amount of an Elbphilharmonie
Leibold could also use a few hard currency reserves now.
Instead of continuing to negotiate with production service providers, especially in Asia and Africa, he is now looking for new investors to find a way out of insolvency.
"The demand for our vehicle shows that the world is urgently waiting for a vehicle like our City One in view of the major climate challenges," says the developer.
Unfortunately, the development of a cheap car is obviously an expensive undertaking: "We're talking about a high three-digit million amount or the equivalent of an Elbphilharmonie," Leibold admits and hopes that things will continue after all.
Otherwise the light in his underground car park will soon go out and the future of the electric car will remain in the dark.
