Tata Motors may be well and truly underway into their #MadeOfGreat program, but they have been setting the bar with their automotive concepts since their early days. Turn back the clock four years ago, to 2012. It was the 82nd edition of the Geneva Motor Show and Tata Motors were there in full strength. City-specific cars & Hybrid propulsion systems had been common concepts internationally, but for domestic car folks in India, it was all part of auto-exotica. Imagine the delight & joy then, as Tata cars took the wraps off the Megapixel!
Conceptualized as a range extended electric powered vehicle or REEV, the Tata Megapixel, was designed to seat four. It used a lithium ion phosphate battery pack that was quite advanced for its time along with a petrol driven generator that’d make sure the Megapixel would be charged up for every drive.
Tata Cars had visualized the Megapixel as the smart choice for environment aware motorists around the globe. Perfect for stretching the energy miles, the car was said to be capable of astounding fuel efficiency figures that went as high as the magical 100 km/l mark. A range of over 900 kilometres and a CO2 emission rating of a scant 22 gms/km rounded up the rest of its environmental consciousness chops.
A car for future megacities around the globe, the Tata Megapixel was a rolling technological showcase for the manufacturer. It used a ‘Zero Turn’ drive system that Tata had showcased a year earlier at the motor show in Geneva, Switzerland. Combining independent electric motors along with turning capabilities at each wheel, the Megapixel could manoeuvre itself into the tightest of parking spots, thanks to the 2.8 metre turning radius.
The charging mechanism too was futuristic. While mobile phones of today speak about induction & wireless charging capabilities, Tata Cars had designed the Megapixel to be charged in a similar fashion. Specially developed induction charging pads could be installed at home, and owners would merely have to park over it, for the car to charge while they unwound after a long day at work.
From flowing lines on the outside to special functional touches like a pillar-less design working in tandem with a double-slider door, the Tata Megapixel was the complete package when it came to marrying form & function in one desirable automotive package.
