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According to him, the Shifeng e-car costs only Rs. 1.8 million with VAT whereas a conventional car of the same size would cost Rs. 2 million which means that a customer is making a very valuable saving of over 10%.
“This is ideal for Sri Lankan buyers who are looking for a luxury driving experience but also cost-effective solution whilst cutting down on harmful emissions, creating a more sustainable environment for our future generations. Leopard Motor Company introduced this novel concept to the industry to keep such harmful effects away and to make a change in the trend of automobile manufacturing,” he added.
Leopard Motor Company Ltd., which strives to become the best inspired solution for electrically powered vehicles in the Sri Lankan transport sector; is the local branch of the China’s well-established international automobile manufacturer – Zhejiang Far East Leopard Motor Co., Ltd and is a BOI registered company engaged in part-assembling and marketing of electric motor vehicles in the Sri Lankan market.
“Introducing a totally eco-friendly and zero emission range of electric bikes and cars, manufactured by one of China’s pioneering automobile giants we are quite confident of changing Sri Lanka’s transportation landscape,” said Leopard Motor Company Director Pan Lin Lin.
The company which has its registered office at the World Trade Centre has its own part-assembly plant in Kelaniya and is slated to open its Main City Showroom and Marketing Office at No. 482, T. B. Jaya Mawatha, Colombo 10 in the very near future.
Leopard Motor also highlighted the importance of turning Sri Lanka’s attention towards mitigating the increasing air pollution which is suffocating Colombo and suburbs.
“Just as we are developing our townships, we must focus on cutting down air pollution which is alarming at an increasing rate. If we go on at this rate air pollution will increase and not only us but our children would have to bear the brunt of it. Another risk which has to factored is that once air pollution sets in, it cannot be removed seen in many developed cities of South East Asia which are suffocating with vehicle emissions. Twenty or 30 years down the line, this will reduce the living standards of our next generation as during the last 50 years, we have failed to identify the vital need to keep our air clean.”
According to the company, the Shifeng Electric Car is ideally for day-to-day running in Colombo and suburbs. “The saving per km is close to Rs. 4. Our car will only cost around Rs. 6 per km whereas conventional car will exhaust over Rs. 10 of fuel per km. Where a conventional bike traversing 60 km costs Rs. 162 on petrol, our bike will cost only Rs. 15 for the same distance. So this is a major saving for both the consumer as well as the economy.”
The car can go up to 100 km on a full charge with air conditioning within traffic and is run on 72 volt (12 X 6 volt) 200 Ampere batteries. Another advantage of electric vehicles is that there was no regular need for engine servicing.
“We just need to check the terminals. There are no major engine servicing needed. So that too is major saving for the Sri Lankan consumers as there are no three month engine services, for example. We are committed to be the leading eco-friendly transport manufacturer with optimum social responsibility. Although this is a new product, we have got a superb response for this. Even in other markets this has been received well. If you talk about the global market, this has been the latest growing trend. China has been the largest manufacturer and exporter of green vehicles and now the country has turned out be the leader in the electric vehicle industry,” opined Leopard Motor Company Chairman Heming Zhu.
“We have four of own showrooms – Colombo City Showroom, Kelaniya, Anuradhapura and Trincomalee and seven dealers currently serving, including in the north and east. Our dealerships are located at Panadura, Mannar, Kurunegala, Bakamuna and in Jaffna. Another important aspect is after sales. We offer door-to-door after-sales service and wherever possible reach our customers within 48 hours. Furthermore we are giving a two-year warranty on both our cars and bikes. Another advantage is that there no emission tests are needed.”
As of June 2014, the global stock of plug-in electric passenger cars and utility vans was over 500,000 units, marking a dramatic increase of 278% up from just 180,000 units in 2012, due to immense popularity of green vehicles.
