Karsan of Bursa is aiming at penetrating the metropolises of the world such as New York, Dubai, Istanbul and London with the “Taxi of Tomorrow” it has designed. The company will put the Turkish-made taxi concept in to mass production with a US$ 150 million investment.Mavi Boncuk |
Karsan, the Turkish company whose taxi design is one of three finalists in New York’s Taxi of Tomorrow competition, showed off the first prototype of its body at a press event in Manhattan on Wednesday.
Currently circulating on the city’s streets are 16 different taxi models, but beginning in 2013, a single taxi design will be on the road and will carry the designation for 10 years, with annual sales of 2,650 vehicles. The Karsan V1 is in competition with the Ford Transit Connect and Nissan NV, although the Taxi and Limousine Commission has said it may not chose any of the three. Karsan appeared to be staking much of its bid on the V1’s ability to load and carry a passenger with a wheelchair without modification.
William Wachtel, president of Karsan USA, said that the V1 would be in compliance with the Americans with Disabilities Act, adding that the vehicle had the advantage of being a purpose-built taxi and not a modified preexisting design. Today, only about 300 of the city’s estimated 13,000 taxi cars can accommodate wheelchairs. At Monday’s event, Karsan representatives demonstrated a wheelchair ramp mounted under the taxi’s body, which could be deployed to either side of the vehicle. The V1’s doors can also open to 90-degree angles. Mr. Wachtel declined to provide a price for the taxi. But he did pledge to bring the V1 into the country at Brooklyn’s South Brooklyn Marine Terminal.
The price for developing, testing and manufacturing an entirely new design for a total run of 30,000 vehicles was high, acknowledged Jan Nahum, the managing director of Karsan and a member of the family that controls the company. Karsan plans to control costs with rolling-form fabrication methods instead of traditional stamping and body parts formed with composite materials, Mr. Nahum said.
The Karsan model is shorter than a Ford Crown Victoria, the mainstay of the city’s taxi fleet, and slightly taller than its Ford Transit Connect and Nissan NV rivals. Rear legroom tops 40 inches, nearly double that in the Crown Vic.
A Checker Marathon was on hand for purposes of comparison, but it appears to be the taxi benchmarked by Karsan’s designers. Mr Nahum referred to the Checker as “instantly recognizable,” continuing, “this is an opportunity for New York to adopt an iconic taxi design.” The Karsan brings back the Checker’s jump seat, allowing for a total of four passengers. It also offers room for bicycles, strollers and large packages. Perhaps its most distinctive feature, however, is its panoramic glass roof, which Karsan hopes visitors would use to appreciate skyscraper vistas.
The Karsan’s rear-mounted powerplant, a 2.4-liter 4-cylinder, is built by an American company Mr. Wachtel declined to name. The taxi can also reportedly accommodate a hybrid or purely electric unit and can run on compressed natural gas. Karsan was founded by Mr. Nahum’s father, Bernard Nahum, in 1966, and builds trucks and other vehicles in Turkey for Peugeot, Citroën, Renault and Hyundai. The company hopes to have its first running prototype by summer and six by the end of the year.
Currently circulating on the city’s streets are 16 different taxi models, but beginning in 2013, a single taxi design will be on the road and will carry the designation for 10 years, with annual sales of 2,650 vehicles. The Karsan V1 is in competition with the Ford Transit Connect and Nissan NV, although the Taxi and Limousine Commission has said it may not chose any of the three. Karsan appeared to be staking much of its bid on the V1’s ability to load and carry a passenger with a wheelchair without modification.
William Wachtel, president of Karsan USA, said that the V1 would be in compliance with the Americans with Disabilities Act, adding that the vehicle had the advantage of being a purpose-built taxi and not a modified preexisting design. Today, only about 300 of the city’s estimated 13,000 taxi cars can accommodate wheelchairs. At Monday’s event, Karsan representatives demonstrated a wheelchair ramp mounted under the taxi’s body, which could be deployed to either side of the vehicle. The V1’s doors can also open to 90-degree angles. Mr. Wachtel declined to provide a price for the taxi. But he did pledge to bring the V1 into the country at Brooklyn’s South Brooklyn Marine Terminal.
The price for developing, testing and manufacturing an entirely new design for a total run of 30,000 vehicles was high, acknowledged Jan Nahum, the managing director of Karsan and a member of the family that controls the company. Karsan plans to control costs with rolling-form fabrication methods instead of traditional stamping and body parts formed with composite materials, Mr. Nahum said.
The Karsan model is shorter than a Ford Crown Victoria, the mainstay of the city’s taxi fleet, and slightly taller than its Ford Transit Connect and Nissan NV rivals. Rear legroom tops 40 inches, nearly double that in the Crown Vic.
A Checker Marathon was on hand for purposes of comparison, but it appears to be the taxi benchmarked by Karsan’s designers. Mr Nahum referred to the Checker as “instantly recognizable,” continuing, “this is an opportunity for New York to adopt an iconic taxi design.” The Karsan brings back the Checker’s jump seat, allowing for a total of four passengers. It also offers room for bicycles, strollers and large packages. Perhaps its most distinctive feature, however, is its panoramic glass roof, which Karsan hopes visitors would use to appreciate skyscraper vistas.
The Karsan’s rear-mounted powerplant, a 2.4-liter 4-cylinder, is built by an American company Mr. Wachtel declined to name. The taxi can also reportedly accommodate a hybrid or purely electric unit and can run on compressed natural gas. Karsan was founded by Mr. Nahum’s father, Bernard Nahum, in 1966, and builds trucks and other vehicles in Turkey for Peugeot, Citroën, Renault and Hyundai. The company hopes to have its first running prototype by summer and six by the end of the year.
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