TEHRAN - Residents in Tehran have spotted an unusual sight as the first Iranian-made electric car drove through the congested streets of the megacity of some 12 million.
A picture of the eco-friendly sleek vehicle, named Yuz after the critically endangered Asiatic cheetah surviving today only in Iran, on the streets of Tehran became one of the hottest posts on social networks and attracted a lot of attention from virtual users.
Reports said its manufacturers, a startup named Parax Motors, have just obtained a license plate and other certificates for driving in public.
The two-seater car is equipped with an electric motor in the rear axle that is capable of producing 20 horsepower or 15 KW and takes about three and half hours to charge.
Once charged, it can travel up to 100 km on a normal road, but on urban trips in a city like Tehran, it can cover only 60 km. The car weighs 480 kg and can withstand a weight of up to 250 kg.
Its small size and easy driving comes with other advantages, the most obvious of which is that it results - like with other electric cars - in a significant reduction in air pollution and greenhouse gas emissions.
According to its manufacturers, the French version of the car has a price tag of 7,000-8,500 euros depending on its options, but efforts are being made to produce Yuz at lower prices in Iran.
In Tehran, cars produce at least 4,400 tonnes of air pollutants a day, according to a study by Iran’s Air Quality Control Company.
In the past, Iran has sought help from China in making electric vehicles that will cut air pollution, with officials saying they had reached agreements with the Chinese to cooperate in building electric buses and minibuses, but nothing has been firmed up yet.
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Iranian automakers produced more than 501,000 new cars in the seven months since March, figures published by the Comprehensive Database of All Listed Companies showed this week.
Their cumulative production was up 1.1 percent against the same period of 2020, during which 496,095 cars were manufactured.
Iran Khodro was the top automaker, accounting for more than 247,000 vehicles produced. Even so, its production was down 2.8 percent compared with the corresponding period in 2020.
Saipa was the No. 2 manufacturer, with 192,628 vehicles produced during the period. The group exported 1,291 cars, up 2.2 percent from the same period in 2019.