Throughout the history of the automotive industry, both engineers and designers have created an immense variety of unique proposals that have caused a sensation for different reasons. Although we are currently witnessing the rise of electric cars, this technology has existed for many decades and was already used in vehicles that not only amazed by their incorporation, but also by their surprising aesthetics.
This is the case of the vehicle baptized with a name as graphic as L'Oeuf Electrique (which in French literally means The Electric Egg). It is true that it is a strange name for a car, but also quite appropriate, considering its peculiar shape. Designed in 1942, the vehicle offered a vision of a world where anything could be imagined and brought to life, no matter how extravagant and unconventional it might seem at first glance.
Its creator was the French multidisciplinary industrial designer Paul Arzens, who initially pursued a career as an artist. Later, in the 1940s and 1950s, he became interested in engineering and design. It was at this time that he acquired a great reputation as a designer of locomotives and train cars.
L'Oeuf Electrique was a compact electric car with a rounded shape and had three wheels, without overlooking the fact that it had an aluminum body and a plexiglass windshield.
It must be taken into account that in the spring of 1940, in the middle of World War II, German troops invaded France, occupied factories and gasoline was scarce. That was one of the reasons why Arzens considered developing an electric vehicle that could reduce dependence on fossil fuels.
This minimalist two-seater vehicle was, without a doubt, one of the most extravagant automobiles of all those created on our continent during the 1940s.
A type of plexiglass bubble that surrounded the aluminum body offered the driver and passenger great visibility while driving. The aforementioned body, molded by hand, narrowed at the rear to cover the third wheel and also integrate the electric motor. Everything was supported by a tubular chassis made of a stainless steel, aluminum and magnesium alloy, designed to resist use and corrosion.
The car incorporated rear wheel suspension to optimize handling. The lightness of the vehicle was extraordinary since, for example, between the body and the electric motor it barely weighed 90 kg, while the total weight of the car was 350 kg. The motor was powered by five 12 V batteries.
In terms of performance, L'Oeuf Electrique could reach a maximum speed of 70 km/h with only the driver on board, or 60 km/h with two occupants inside. The five batteries gave it an approximate range of 100 kilometers. Although it was never mass produced, it was a pioneering car in the automotive world due to its compact design, its lightness, its electric motor and its excellent visibility.
