The cars
Guerbet's first car, the electric prototype of 1974, was identified as the Mini 1, and also as the Soubrette
The Midinette followed in 1975, and by 1979 had been put into production. It was powered by a 1.2 kW electric motor.[1] Top speed was given as 50 km/h (31 mph), and the range as 60 km (37 miles). The car offered space for one and the plastic/polyester body was accessed through a sliding door on the car's left side.[4] The Midinette was 1800 mm long and 880 mm wide.[4] The body was fitted on a small tubular chassis and there were three wheels, the single wheel being the one at the front. Despite its rather basic nature, the price quoted for the car was 9,540 francs. (At the 61st Paris Motor Show the previous October the entry level Citroën 2CV was priced by its manufacturer at 9,980 francs.[7] The Citroën was also a rather basic proposition, but it could seat four in reasonable comfort at a speed (just) above 100 km/h (63 mph).[7])
In 1981 the Midinette was replaced by the Cedre 1000. Top speed was quoted as "around 40 km/h" (25 mph) but the quoted range between charges was now increased to 120 km (75 miles).[8] A recharging device now enabled the cars to be recharged overnight using a standard domestic power socket, and suitable public recharging points were also beginning to appear at car parks in one or two French cities (though, like the electric cars themselves, the public charging points were at this stage still very rare).[8] The Cedre itself had now grown to a length of 2000 mm, though it was still really only a one seater.[8] The quoted price was now 23,500 francs, so that, as before, a one-seater electric Cedre was advertised for very slightly less than the price of a basic entry level Citroën 2CV, now priced by Citroën at 23,850 francs.[9] Cedre customers could now specify, as an option extra, solar panels on the roof of the Cedre which increased "driver autonomy", on a sunny day adding around 20 km (12 miles) to the distance that could be covered between charges.[8]
There was also a model for which maximum output was given as 5 kW.[2]
A special model was presented called the 5x5 Solaire.
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