Leaf's Grandfather

by Bertel Schmitt

Published: February 27th, 2012

While strolling around in Nissan’s Tech Center, looking for secret cars, I lucked into this: Nissan’s first EV. Along with its Chief Engineer. Both retired.

After World War II, oil was very scarce in Japan, but electricity was plentiful. The Japanese government did the same certain governments do today: It promoted the manufacture of electric vehicles. Shepherded by Chief Engineer Tanaka-san, the “Tama” was built in 1947.

A big battery gave it a cruising range of 96.3km and a top speed of 35.2km/h. The Tama was used as a taxi and in similar roles until 1950.

#BertelSchmitt #Japan #Nissan #Tama #Tanaka

Bertel Schmitt

Bertel Schmitt comes back to journalism after taking a 35 year break in advertising and marketing. He ran and owned advertising agencies in Duesseldorf, Germany, and New York City. Volkswagen A.G. was Bertel's most important corporate account. Schmitt's advertising and marketing career touched many corners of the industry with a special focus on automotive products and services. Since 2004, he lives in Japan and China with his wife <a href="http://www.tomokoandbertel.com"> Tomoko </a>. Bertel Schmitt is a founding board member of the <a href="http://www.offshoresuperseries.com"> Offshore Super Series </a>, an American offshore powerboat racing organization. He is co-owner of the racing team Typhoon.

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2 of 21 comments

Wmba on Feb 27, 2012

Man will discover a decent battery for the EV at the same time the species discovers the cure for the common cold.

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Ryoku75 on Feb 28, 2012

How did their styling go from this to the Juke?

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