- Seller: Roger W (Contact)
- Location: Manteca, California
- Mileage: 0 Shown
- Chassis #: UH5MSEU47PRS004126, S00155
- Title Status: Missing
- Engine: Electric
- Transmission: Direct drive
We’ve featured lots of unique and unusual vehicles here on Barn Finds, but this might be a first! Reader Roger W has decided to part with his pair of CityEl Cars, and given our love for oddball cars, he’s listed them with us. If you’ve never heard of a CityEl, you’re probably not alone. These lightweight three-wheeled electric cars were developed by a Danish company in the late 1980s for use in large cities. Somehow, Roger ended up with the pair, one’s a 1987 and the other is a 1995, plus some spare parts. They are located in Manteca, California, and he’s asking $2,000 for both cars and the parts.
El Trans A/S of Randers, Denmark, developed and initially manufactured the CityEl, but by 1988, they gave up production and another company took over. In 1995, another Danish company took over manufacturing, and in 2012, a German company bought the rights to the car and moved production to Germany. That’s a surprisingly long production run for a single-seat three-wheeler with about 30 miles of range, but if you just need to zip around a crowded city, this could be a fun way to do it!
The 1987 appears to be the more complete of the two and has even received an updated controller. The 1995 is missing its motor, and both cars will need sorting to be ready to drive again. Electric motors and EV batteries have improved significantly over the past decade, so upgrading both cars with newer technology would likely improve range and top speed massively. Given the three-wheel layout, you probably won’t want to go much over 35 mph in one of these, but having a little extra power certainly won’t hurt.
They might have limited use, but these little EVs could be fun to tinker with and zip around in. Finding parts might be a challenge, but thankfully these look pretty simple, and there appear to be enthusiasts online who are happy to help owners sort out issues. So, would you use the pair to make one complete car, or would you fix both up?
Why does the Red Car have Tesla on the front end? I was confused, thinking that Tesla manufactured the CityEl at some point, but that didn’t make much sense.
Re the Tesla badge, I’m betting that whenever it was added, it was a matter of being amused for the owner at that time.r
Modern Isetta?
These cars are ugly. I wouldn’t be caught dead in one.