1970s · Transport · Prototype
Sarmis electric microcar
Justin Capră
The idea
Capră’s Sarmis series explored compact battery-powered motoring with unconventional controls.
The Sarmis EM 4K placed batteries in a lightweight experimental vehicle. Politehnica’s biography describes the model and its control system: a Romanian electric-car prototype, not the origin of electric cars.
Try the idea
Follow the electric drive
Move the control to connect a battery, a motor and the wheels in this simple electric-drive diagram.
A simplified principle to explore. This illustration is not a historical replica or a measure of speed or range.
A life behind the work · 1933–2015
Justin Capră
Capră grew up in Prahova and began making mechanical objects as a child, including moving wooden figures driven by part of a broken watch. His adult work ranged across small vehicles and unconventional flying-machine projects. Among his named transport experiments were the compact Soleta car, the Sarmis vehicle with unusual controls and the Oroles electric motorbike. He also explored other electric vehicles, including Oblio and Troty. His machines are best approached as a varied programme of prototypes, rather than proof that he invented electric motoring itself.
Biography & sources ↗