Aptera › Community › Aptera Discussions › All About Alpha
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All About Alpha
Posted by john-malcom on October 15, 2021 at 5:54 pmGood to see the Luna countdown timer at the top of the forum Aptera Discussion????????
Riley replied 1 year, 9 months ago 23 Members · 39 Replies -
39 Replies
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I’m assuming the time offered is Pacific Daylight Time as this moment but I frankly can’t tell whether they mean Monday or Tuesday at 10 am.
As I make this post, It is after midnight on ‘Saturday morning’ on the east coast but it is still Friday in San Diego suggesting the day increment might drop one in about 1.5 hours.
It would be helpful if someone would clarify.
Besides this confusion, I’m waiting with baited breath and wondering whether this one will be a two-motor or three-motor version.
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Yes, thank you for the Luna timer.
I am wondering what is being developed in the Luna that has slowed down its production? It must be the first one with full solar, maybe the first 1k mile version, or other things not in the other Alphas.
Once we have Luna will we have a Beta timer?
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Thanks John for the heads up. I am not as observant as I would like to believe.
I think they said the Luna might have an upgraded audio system, but that will not be something they can demonstrate very well over U-tube videos.
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Aptera should bring in a recognized and respected audio reviewer. Maybe a reviewer from Audiophile magazine. This would be the next best thing to experiencing the sound upgrade yourself. Could be risky, though. Those folks have incredible ears and are very objective. A not so great sounding system to their ears might be a huge sound upgrade for an auto environment. Maybe a comparison to other known high end auto sound systems would be helpful.
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Just watched the Luna video. Very slick but I was frankly expecting more.
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I agree, Ron. I had been looking forward to today’s reveal. For me it was anti-climatic. Nice feel-good fluff, but short on facts. I was expecting some kind of flashy intro (which the video did provide) to be followed by some tech talk by Chris and Steve with other Aptera team members chiming in with new specifics about batteries, suspension, or interior design.
Oh well, once one or two Beta models are assembled, I’m sure we’ll be treated to some juicy technical tidbits in a future video.
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Exactly Ray. I wanted all those key questions answered, like: Did you trailer Luna to the video site? How many miles did you put on the vehicle during filming? And most important of all – did Luna really have a battery installed or was this the rubber band model?
All kidding aside, I am hoping for a little more ‘meat’ in the future.
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Underwhelming at best. First time I have been disappointed in Aptera.
A month late, a weeks filming and nothing of substance
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Hi Jonah! We’re sorry you feel that way. Keep in mind the purpose of our Alpha launch videos are, in part, to reach a larger audience and expand beyond our early adopters who already know and love Aptera. As far as technical updates, there isn’t much to share because Luna is an Alpha vehicle. However, we’re well into the Beta phase of development and plan to share testing updates and vehicle progress in the future.
To read more on Luna, click through to a recent Q+A with our vehicle designer, Jason Hill, here: https://aptera.us/luna-qa-with-jason-hill/
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Hey, Quincy, can we get sooner rather than later on those technical updates and vehicle progress? I know everyone at Aptera is super busy, but it seems like quite awhile since weāve heard any real news. How about another webinar with Nathan, Steve or Chris? If there is little technical stuff that you can pass along right now, how about a slide show of Luna pictures? And please, especially since this video was targeting a larger audience beyond the enthusiasts, could we get the āwatch nowā banner off of the top of the page so we can get back at ānew postsā? Beautiful video – just not very interesting to the forum crowd.
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We are very working hard to get you those technical updates as quickly as possible! More video content, updates from the team, and webinars are in the works. Additional images and video footage of Luna will be released on a continual basis via social media, email, and the website. Don’t worry, there is plenty more to come!
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To give our future Apterae owners more information on the inspiration behind Lunaās design, we sat down with Apteraās vehicle designer Jason Hill to ask him some questions. Read more here:
https://aptera.us/luna-qa-with-jason-hill/
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Hi, Quincy. Thanks for the link. I noticed you use the word “Apterae”.This is the first instance on the site that I’ve seen that term. I’m assuming this is the plural form of “Aptera” and it is preferred by the company instead of “Apteras”. Is that the official lingo we should be using? Thx.
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Hi Ray! Yes, Apterae is the plural of Aptera. Thanks for asking!
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Glad to finally see the Luna in action. Luna is what I have chosen for my Aptera. I would like to see more, including a layout of what makes the Noir, Sol and Luna unique, other than color.
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No substance here either. Same information available from the release on Luna. Step or steps backward for Aptera.
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https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bEbivoCE4nY
It’s a tough choice between Sol & Luna. Both are beautiful. Want to see both in person before choosing I think.
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I will not get excited about any future videos from Aptera. This video showed almost nothing. There was not a single good look at the vehicle. All shots were of the shadow side of the vehicle or from a distance. I was looking forward to seeing the Luna model and the Codex interior. I can not tell if the exterior is silver or blue. I know it is was suppose to be silver. The video with Kirsten Dirksen was not “slick”, but I enjoyed it more, because I saw and learned more. Who was this suppose to appeal to? Investors? People who hate cars?
Will the future videos be better? Probably not. All the videos made by professionals are slick but hollow. It has been said, the best indicator of future behavior is past behavior. Extrapolating from that saying, the best indicator of future videos is past videos.
Don’t get your hopes up.
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Luna looks great and the interior was chosen wisely. But anyway, it’s not the color of my dreams. There are so many black, white an silver cars on the roads ! Luckily Aptera gives you a choice. The Aptera of my dreams has a dark blue color, like the sky in the early morning and I want to combine this with the orange of the Vida interior, to make it look like a sunrise, the birth of a new star on the roads. So I would call my Aptera the “Aptera Sunrise”.
Maybe this will become the first beta ?
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Unfortunately I have to agree about the video being “slick and hallow”. I thought that about the earlier one by the beach also. That said, I’m not a marketing person. However I think it might be good to balance out the cutesy fun stuff with a video that emphasizes the groundbreaking, brilliant, inspiring, timely design that is Aptera……maybe even throw in a little science!
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For those asking for clearer pics I hope these help. I think the car looks great in Luna! I appreciate the video that was put together. Itās not the first artistic car video thatās been put out there. I think it did a good job capturing the values of Aptera.
For those who are critical or wanted more technical detail, Iād ask you to be patient. We are being allowed a view into the very early stages of the development of these cars. We are seeing how the sausage is made. Very few of us even knew the typical development cycle for a new vehicle or what the difference was between an Alpha or a Beta prototype before Aptera took us behind the curtain. How many established automakers allow this kind of early look and have open feedback channels during the development cycle?
All that said, we are one step closer to cars on the market and in our driveways.
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Thank you for the construction pictures. They allow us to see the meat and bones of this thing.
I thought the bodies came out black from the molding process. This appears to be wrapped in a color already. Are molded and then wrapped before assembly starts?
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Perhaps the black you see in the interior is the composite black?
Yes āthis one is wrapped in these picturesā
Only an Alpha vehicle so ā I supposeā final production steps are not defined yet
Maybe at this early stage and crazy supply times it may come down to what is available and who is available to get this unit done?
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I was hoping to see a shiny silver – not a battleship gray. Hopefully more standard color options in the works.
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All of the wraps – black, white and silver – have matte finishes. I believe the Luna is a metallic silver, not a flat gray as it appears in the photos. Watch the videos of it on a large screen – I think you’ll see that it’s more silver than gray when you watch sunlight reflecting off the surface.
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The second picture shows a front exterior view of the “firewall”. It appears to be a gray color. I assume the inner shell is black (first picture) and the outer shell is gray. Thus a scratch on the wrap would expose the gray outer shell, making scratches less noticeable.
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In the alpha prototypes, the interior “floor”(from “firewall” to tail) is a one-piece insert. You’re not looking at the interior of the outer body.
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This video was posted on YouTube today (2/4/22). It’s a 7 minute ride from the passenger’s seat; a drive around the neighborhood near Aptera’s headquarters in San Diego. It’s a fun ride! Bumpy and squeaky at times but, hey, it’s an alpha model! Can’t wait for more!
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Grrrrrr of course we are all envious!! Looks like you need a Gsuit to ride in it because of the acceleration. Good to see the side and review cameras and Aptera interpretation of a glove box. Too excited to notice the squeaks and rattles. Looks like you edited out the throngs of people assaulting the vehicle to see more of it when you were stoppingš
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Hi John, To give credit where credit is due (belatedly), the video was posted by “Aptera Ambassador” (PK Khetapal) on YouTube (and also on his Facebook group as noted by Oz Man. Unfortunately, neither PK nor the driver identified themselves in the video nor did he indicate when it was recorded (but, apparently, it was a while ago). Some sleuth may be able to figure it out by careful inspection of the video. š
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The split window isnāt as bad as I thought still good visibility, I do hope they move the rear view camera to the upper portion of the car and only use the lower backup camera on the main screen the visual disconnect is disorienting looking up and seeing whatās actually lower.
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The “rear view mirror” camera is in the roof, above the rear hatch. The “back up” camera is below the license plate on the rear of the vehicle. “Back up” cameras are required to show the area behind and beneath the rear bumper (children, animals and other obstructions not visible in rear or side-view mirrors).
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– Ride & road noise need refinement;
– Rear view cameras totally work
– Oh steering on wrong side, please fix
Noddy
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Thx
Yes only the Alpha, the second built, before the suspension enhancement mentioned with the beta models. Of course those are open models ā so farā. So not able to understand improvements that relate to less rattles, etc , right now.
My ride in June 2021 was in Sol, with a lot less miles on it, and I was ONLY in the headquarter parking lot.
As John mentioned, I too was āso impressedā and I may not have noticed rattles for that same reasonš
I am not sure where they had the microphone attached during this ride and if a *window was opened slightly, all which may factor into what we watched ( *The cross traffic noise louder than expected.)
It might be nice to have the driver or passenger wear a helmet camera for a realistic experience, securing the microphone in a static central roof area, if not presently there.
I recall the whine of the wheel motors more outside the Sol when it accelerated away, when I was outside in the parking lot, awaiting my ride,
Rememberā¦the Sol is ā¦
šonly the FWD ( 0-60 in 5.5 sec š®, which is more than most need )
š The solar is not on the hatch ( no models so farā ) I imagine that will obscure / reduce reflection/ glare on the screens. ( I have all my side and back windows tinted in my cub cab truck, in sunny AZ, and glare on my large center mounted screen has never been noticeable.
I reserved full solar.
I will tint the side door glass of my Aptera to max allowed state tint percentage ( important in AZ ) And my tint Specialist canāt wait to apply on an Apteraš
š¤ I may even have him apply the tinted stepwise, first- applied to top section of each door then test drive around assessing inside results and outside appearance before committing to the full side door glass
The fact that the side view and rear view mirror camera lens will not be behind the tint film itselfā¦should be good for that vision system
Last I heard⦠driver side will have a camera plus the ^mirror( that seems may be ^needed to comply )
I am use to do my present viewing through tinted window and the Aptera’s side view inside screen should pop/ be nice to view being shaded from our intense sun.