It looks like any one of thousands of tuk-tuks that rattle up and down Bangkok's side streets, all garish colours, bright chrome pipes and faux leather seats. Until the driver turns the key, that is.
Models take a spin in the Arun Sawasdi solar-powered tuk-tuk yesterday. PATIPAT JANTHONG
Instead of a puff of oily black smoke and the growl that gives the three-wheeled vehicle its name, there is only silence.
Arun Sawasdi, which means good morning, is the brainchild of Air Marshal Morakot Charnsomruad, chairman of Clean Fuel Energy Enterprise Co Ltd (C-FEE). The vehicle uses solar power and a battery instead of petrol or gas.
``When I go to other countries I always ask foreigners about the first thing they do when they come to Thailand. They say they ride tuk-tuks because it is part of the image of Bangkok. But they complain about the smell and pollution,'' said AM Morakot, who owns a company making electric-powered vehicles.
Although the vehicle has solar panels installed on the roof to store power, batteries can also be charged to provide an alternative source of energy.
With a battery charged for three to four hours, which costs 20 baht, the tuk-tuk can be used for a whole day or night for a distance of up to 60 kilometres. Use of solar panels for some of the day halves that cost.
Sponsored partly by the National Research Council of Thailand, the whole project cost 3-4 million baht for research and development.
Arun Sawasdi has been developed as a prototype for 40 tuk-tuks distributed in Thailand and worldwide.
``We have an order for 10 tuk-tuks from New Zealand to be handled in the next two months. We have exported to England, the United States and the Netherlands already,'' said AM Morakot. ``India is considering buying it for factory production.''
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