Mini mother ship

"I look forward to seeing your cars out on the road," said American President Barack Obama to 33-year-old Austin entrepreneur Stacy Zoern on May 9, 2013. Born with a disability, Zoern was making a presentation at a Texas think-tank to discuss funding the all-electric smart car she has developed for the physically handicapped. The Kenguru (IMAGE ABOVE, VIDEO HERE) allows a person in a wheelchair to drive right inside and take over the controls, which are all at hand-level. It has a range of 60 miles (96 km), a top speed of 28 miles (45 km) per hour, and a price-tag of about $25,000. With orders for 600 units already and many more expected, production will start this summer in Titusville, Florida. Zoern herself does not have the upper body strength to drive the current model, but plans are in the works to roll out a Kenguru controlled by a joystick. Unlike my own mother ship, the tiny car is only 7' (2 m) long and weighs 1,200 lbs (544 kg), filling a need and appealing to a changing sense of style. As Zoern points out, “Teenagers and people in their 20s don’t want to drive around in a minivan.”

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