Microlino, the tiny electric that will make you love corks.. Microlino, the tiny electric that will make you love corks. The highlight of the show? The moment of the opening of the large tilting front door ! An operable maneuver, without any handle, simply by pressing a button on the right side and which gives access to a bench seat that can accommodate two adults . Even the trunk has its share of surprises in store with a loading volume of 230 litres , more than a thermal Fiat 500 !
Another care taken inside, a small touch bar used to manage the ventilation, the opening of the trunk or the setting of the on-board instrumentation. And a door closing aid, as on the most luxurious models . In short, the Microlino is much better finished and more premium than the other electric quadricycles with which it perhaps shares only one thing, the portable speaker for music.
Almost a real car.
For the rest, the Microlino is closer to a classic car. Its chassis is not tubular as on the Citroën Ami and the Renault Twizy but in steel and aluminum. For more security and lightness too. With 530 kilos on the scale , the small pot of Swiss yogurt therefore meets the regulatory requirements for quadricycles even if its first models produced require a B license to be driven .
It must be admitted that with 17 horsepower (and 89 Nm of torque) sent to the rear wheels, even with a featherweight, it is difficult to hurt yourself. But the small accelerations (0 to 50 km/h in 5 seconds) and the maximum speed of 90 km/h are more than enough for urban use . Especially since the absence of ABS, ESP and airbags or the very firm damping (after all, the driver is almost seated on the front axle) and the whistling of the electric motor too present in the interior will invite you to stay in the city center .
Downtown where its size logically works miracles. Whether it’s to weave through traffic jams or to park . Be careful not to park too close to the car in front, otherwise you will never be able to get out. And if you risk parking perpendicularly, slightly exceeding the space (2.52 meters) , you risk a fine for parking in the way.
A truly premium price.
Another proof, if necessary, of its appetite for the metropolises, its three – small – levels of batteries offered. Located under the floor, the battery is available in 6 kWh (96 km range), 10.5 kWh (175 km range) and 14 kWh (230 km range) versions . All rechargeable thanks to a 2.6 kW on-board charger allowing you to fill up with electrons (5 to 80%) between 3 and 4 hours .
For the intermediate battery, it will rather be necessary to count on a range of 140 km in real winter conditions (it was 5 degrees in Turin) or a small consumption of 7.5 kWh per 100 km . What to move quietly without fear of breaking down.
All this has a price, that of the premium claimed by Microlino. Its prices therefore vary between €17,000 and €23,000 depending on the version , our test car (the Pioneer launch series) being the most expensive. The 45 variant, without a license and more stripped down, planned for next year should however be less expensive.
00:00 Microlino, the tiny electric that will make you love corks.
00:51 Almost a real car.
02:17 A truly premium price.
