Eolo, the goddess of air .
It was supposed to enter production between late 2001 and early
2002, at a factory in Nice, and almost
simultaneously in Italy as well, in Rieti. It seemed like a dream: 110
km/h, a range of 200 kilometres, 10 hours of uninterrupted operation.
And no fuel. Just compressed air in the engine, stored in
a couple of cylinders. And above all,
no polluting exhaust. Again, just air, which
emerges from the exhaust pipe at a temperature of −30°C.

But for 6 years Eolo, a futuristic and ingenious people carrier conceived
by Formula 1 engine designer Guy Négre,
disappeared into thin air. Until the Indian automotive giant
Tata Motors decided to produce it in series, signing a
contract with MDI (Motor Development International), the
company belonging to Guy Négre and his son.

The compressed-air car will appear on the market
within a year and a half. As the original patent provides,
it will be possible to fill up "DIY-style" in around 4 hours,
by connecting Eolo to an electric generator. Just 3 euros' worth of
electricity for every 100 kilometres travelled.

There are also technological improvements, developed quietly
during these 6 long years. Such as, for example, the fact that the car
produced by Tata Motors will have a
hybrid engine, half compressed air and
half gas. This will not only allow for a greater range
(500 kilometres on a full tank instead of 200) and a higher
top speed (150 km/h), but will also guarantee the
vehicle's operation even when compressed-air recharging is not possible,
making use of the gas stations
already present on our roads.

The price is, all things considered, affordable: the car
will cost around 12,000 euros, only slightly more than
an ordinary people carrier. Eolo, in short, takes us into the future. Fast
as the wind.

Chiara
Boracchi