Rinspeed Dock+Go Concept

Swiss tuner and concept car specialist Rinspeed released first pictures of its Rinspeed Dock+Go concept car, an eye-catching solution to address the limited range issue of electric vehicles.

Based on a smart fortwo electric drive, the Dock+Go comes with an attachable rear trailer complete with its own set of wheels. It holds an energy pack with a combustion engine/range extender, thus being able to substantially increase driving range.

If a driver is only going to undertake a short journey, then the energy pack can be removed and the car’s standard all-electric range remains. Rinspeed’s creator Frank M Rinderknecht calls this charging range-extending system a ‘vario-hybrid’.

And thus the first Vario-Hybrid, as Frank M. Rinderknecht refers to his range donor, is born. In the garage at home the batteries of the energy pack are recharged with solar power from the roof, making living and driving without any CO2 emissions a reality.

Rinspeed plans to release the important technical details when the concept debuts at the 2012 Geneva Motor Show.