Business Minister Ian Lucas had a taste of the future of motoring in the UK when he was one of the first people to get the chance to drive GM’s new electric car this week.
Driving the Ampera around on Monday around GM’s testing facilities at Millbrook, Ian Lucas got a chance to experience the capabilities of the next generation of electric vehicles.
The Ampera’s electric battery has a range of 300 miles with the aid of a small petrol engine after the first 40 miles of pure electrical range. The car is expected to be available in the UK in 2012 and the Government is keen to try and secure its production at the Vauxhall Ellesmere Port plant in Merseyside.
The Minister was given a tour of the extensive facilities offered by Millbrook and used by companies all over the world. These range from testing vehicles on different types of handling circuits, carrying out crash tests and rating vehicle CO2 emissions to simulating the road conditions to test military vehicles.
Business Minister Ian Lucas said: “Driving the new electric Ampera was a great experience, and one I hope will soon become a part of every day life for consumers in the UK not just a test track moment. Despite the challenges the auto sector in currently experiencing, investment in new low carbon products like the Ampera is vital to compete for future consumer demands.
“I was very impressed by the range of highly skilled work carried out at Millbrook. Today’s event at Millbrook, with its great facilities and the new electric Ampera demonstrates what we want to see more of in the UK auto sector – low carbon manufacturing and highly skilled jobs.”
