Meet the tiny Colibri, Germany's one-seat wonder

The impossible dream of scoring the perfect city parking spot is about to get somewhat more possible – at least in Germany, where the tiny Colibri, a single-seat electric car from upstart Innovative Mobility Automobile (IMA), is headed for production.

Set to become available for test-drives and pre-orders this year, and scheduled to enter series production during 2016, the Colibri is aimed squarely at businesses that operate fleets of service vehicles in densely populated urban areas, where parking is at a premium. But that doesn’t mean IMA isn’t also trying to woo everyday drivers, says Thomas delos Santos, IMA’s founder and chief executive officer.

In fact, the company has already received more than 1,200 orders from private customers. Another indication of the car’s early popularity: More than 150 dealers from around the world (mostly in Europe, but also including Israel, Brazil, the United States and Australia) have applied for licenses to sell the Colibri. And collectively, those dealers estimate there’s enough consumer interest to sell another 5,000 cars, says delos Santos.

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