Dyson confirms electric car will be launched by 2020
Engineer criticises car makers over air pollution
JAMES DYSON has ended growing speculation after confirming that he intends to launch an electric car.
Announcing investment of £2bn in the project and a 2020 launch date for the Dyson car, the inventor and engineer said that for the past two decades, it has been his ambition to solve the problem of air pollution and criticised governments and car companies over their failure to tackle the issue themselves.
Dyson, 70, who made his fortune by inventing a bagless vacuum cleaner, explained that as long ago as 1993 he was trying to tackle pollution from diesel vehicles.
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Dyson created a cyclonic exhaust filter that captured harmful particulates from engines.
He even demonstrating the device on Blue Peter, the BBC television show. However, he claims that industry figures told him “…that ‘disposing’ of the collected soot was too much of a problem! Better to breathe it in?”
He criticised large car companies, saying, “Major auto manufacturers have circumvented and duped clean air regulations. As a result, developed and developing cities are full of smog-belching cars, lorries and buses.”
A team of 400 people is working on the project. Driving.co.uk had already reported on how Dyson had hired executives from Aston Martin and Tesla. The project has received £174m of investment from the government, as part of its National Infrastructure Delivery Plan.
The entrepreneur would not reveal details of the new electric car. He said: “The project will grow quickly from here but at this stage we will not release any information.
“Competition for new technology in the automotive industry is fierce and we must do everything we can to keep the specifics of our vehicle confidential.”
Dyson joins the likes of Tesla in trying to steal a lead in the electric car market over existing car companies. In the UK, all new cars sold from 2040 will have to be electrified.
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