Narrow Vehicle...

 In the early 1990s, while working at the GM Advanced Concept Center in Newbury Park, we did a project called the "Narrow Lane Vehicle" which was very similar to the basic concept of the vehicles in the article below.

The concept vehicles were tandem seating and were very stylish.  We built low speed drivable versions (using golf cart type of hardware) and took them to the GM proving grounds in Mesa, AZ to experience driving such a small vehicle amongst other vehicles in a safe testing environment.

We drove them next to and around other cars and vehicles, such as pickup trucks, as large as a big school bus (the old style wit a very long body that seats probably 50+ kids).  I got to drive the school bus (with air brakes), which was actually pretty fun!  Of course we did all this in the middle of summer and it was crazy hot there.  Had to go into an air conditioned trailer to recuperate and take in fluids after about 20 minutes of any activity.

The project was supposed to be a joint activity with Aerovironment but we ended up doing everything pretty much alone.  The only thing we did together was wind tunnel testing of 3/8 scale clay models in the Cal Tech wind tunnel.  I spent several days there trying out minor changes to improve the aero numbers (I think Cd and lift numbers).  It was surprising how small changes to the rear of the vehicle, in terms of how sharply the side surfaces transition to the rear surface (kinda of like how a Kamm tail works) made a significant difference.  Also, a small spoiler on the top of the rear and going around and down the side of the vehicle at the top made a significant difference.  Some tweaks around the side view mirrors and the shapes around the mirror also made a difference but not as much as the changes at the rear of the vehicle.

Of course, like nearly all of the stuff we worked on, it didn't go anywhere...

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Bizarre Vehicle Category in China: Ultra-Narrow Low-Speed EVs

Regulations say they must be less than five feet wide

By Rain Noe - July 28

These days in China, you're more likely to see one of these on the roads than an actual electric car:

Those are low-speed EVs that max out at 70 KPH (43 MPH), do not require a driver's license to operate, are regulated to be less than 1.5 meters (4' 11") wide, and exist in a legal grey area, according to Bloomberg.

 "Quite frequently, grandparents use them to ferry their grandkids to school while parents are working. It's not uncommon to see handwritten signs affixed inside their rear windows stating 'this car is used to pick up children' — perhaps to dissuade other motorists from coming too close but also in the hope of some leniency from traffic police in the event of being pulled over.

 

"These little low-speed electric vehicles typically start from around $1,600 — about the same price as an iPhone 12 Pro Max in China — and their small size, affordability and convenience has made them ubiquitous. According to estimates from China's Passenger Car Association, more than 6 million of them plied the roads last year.

"That's a pretty startling figure, especially considering it eclipses the some 4.9 million electric cars in China that are legal."

Well, being electric they must be good for the environment, yeah? Not exactly. They run on lead-acid batteries, which pose some environmental problems.

Looking at the photos above, it's tough to get a sense of how tall these things actually are. Looking at the photo below, I can't decide: Is this guy height-challenged, or do these things offer lots of headroom?