Manufacturer Gurgel Class city car | Production 1975 Body style 2–door sedan | |
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Assembly Rio Claro, São Paulo, Brazil Electric motor 3,000 W (3.0 kW; 4.0 hp), 120 V | ||
The Gurgel Itaipu E150 is an electric car, produced by Gurgel. The Itaipu was presented at the Salão do Automóvel in 1974, with an intended production start in December 1975. Only a few of these cars were produced, as it was of poor quality and drivability. Top speed was a mere 50 km/h (31 mph). While about twenty pre-series cars were built, it never truly passed the prototype stage to hit the showroom floor. Nonetheless, it was the first electric car built in Latin America. The car was named after the huge hydro-electric dam and power plant on the border of Brazil and Paraguay.
The cars design was unique, a very compact trapezoidal two-seater. The car itself weighed a mere 460 kg (1,014 lb), with the remaining 320 kg (705 lb) consisting of batteries. The name "Itaipu" was brought back for a larger commercial vehicle in 1980, called the Itaipu E400. This was based on the Volkswagen-engined Gurgel G800.