The company can trace its history back to the establishment of Arola in 1975, which was acquired by Aixam in 1983 out of administration. In 1984 Aixam launched the new 325D, followed by the 400D in 1985.[2]
In 1992 they started making a range of standard sized cars under the Mega brand, but by 2002 this brand was just being applied to a diesel and electric range[3] of microvans and light utility vehicles.
The company currently produces the Aixam A.7xx series (where xx is a two-digit number), a microcar comparable with the Smart Fortwo, and powered by diesel engines from Kubota). A notable difference is that some of the smaller models are restricted to 45 kilometres per hour (28 mph) and can therefore be driven without a driving licence in some European countries (including Belgium, Estonia, Germany, France,[4] Portugal, Slovakia, Spain, and Slovenia).[citation needed]
In Britain they are classified as a category L7e quadricycle (quad bike) because of their weight and power output.[5] This requires a category B1 licence to legally drive them.[6] In January 2013, the law changed such that special restricted low power versions of the car (Aixam 400) can now be driven by full AM licence holders in the UK.[7]
In 2006 Mega launched the electric "Mega City" at the British International Motor Show and in 2009 acquired the assets of NICE Car Company, which had gone into administration in 2008.[8]
Aixam mechanics
The Aixam 400, 500 and 500.5 are very basic vehicles mechanically by today's standards. There were a variety of engines offered over the years. The diesel is fitted with a Kubota Z402 two-cylinder 400 cc industrial engine rated at 4 to 6 kW (5 to 8 PS). The petrol versions used a Lombardini 505 cc twin-cylinder of approx 20 PS (15 kW), later petrol cars were fitted with fuel-injection.
Steering is by rack and pinion and has a comparatively low ratio. MacPherson strut suspension is used at the front and semi-trailing arms at the rear. Brakes are by disc and single-piston calipers at the front, with drums at the rear also serving for handbrake function, via cables.
Transmission is by a continuously-variable transmission (CVT) made and supplied by CVTech-IBC[citation needed]. The reversing gearbox and combined differential unit of 8:1 forward ratio, is supplied by the Italian company COMEX, which also supplies many of the other running-gear, steering, suspension and braking system components[citation needed]. The gearbox is designed for small town runabout or delivery van of less than 8 PS (6 kW) and limited to 30 mph (48 km/h).
18,300 vehicles (2022)
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