Stuff UK – September 2019

P

ELECTRIC CARS

Buy from £75,000 (est) / porsche.com

PORSCHE TAYCAN

orsche had one clear assignment
when it launched its Mission E
concept back in 2015, and that
was to take the fight directly to Tesla in
the battle to be the best premium electric
vehicle maker. Renowned for producing
ludicrously high-performance cars,
Porsche not only wanted to steal the
spotlight with headline performance
figures in its upcoming production Taycan
model, but was also determined to inject
some of its renowned handling and
precision driving feel.
As a result, the crew from Stuttgart
developed an all-new platform to house
the batteries and electric motors (about
the most expensive thing you can do as
an auto maker), while the driver sits with
his or her backside close to the floor in
order to obtain a perfect low centre
of gravity. Although slightly too
heavy to really earn the ‘electric

Porsche 911’ moniker, the Taycan is slated

to reach 62mph from a complete standstill

in less than 3.4 seconds. We know, the

most powerful Model S will outrun it in a

drag race, but get this on a track and it will

surely dominate.

FERRIS FUELLER’S DAY OFF

With a predicted range of around 320

miles, this EV is also very competitive

on the usability front, with Porsche

claiming it will use the latest battery

technology that features an energy

density greater than anything Tesla

currently uses. On top of this, the German

marque has been touting crazy recharging

times, stating that the 800-volt system

can take on 62 miles of charge in just

four minutes.

Cynics were quick to point out that

this is all dependent on the availability

of 350kW CCS chargers, of which there

is currently one in the UK and with which

no existing EV models are compatible, but

this is going to expand rapidly.

Seeing as the Taycan will act as a halo

EV model for the rest of the Volkswagen

Group (Audi, VW, Seat etc), it will

be ushering in the next generation

of interior tech, with beautiful curved

instrument displays, numerous

touchscreens and interactive surfaces

all slated to appear.

Pricing is still very much under wraps

for the time being, but expect it to cost

more than even the most expensive Tesla

Model S variants.

PININFARINA BATTISTA

Buy from £1.5m (est) / pininfarina.it

Wow. Italian auto maker and design studio

extraordinaire Pininfarina entered the EV

arms race at this year’s Geneva Motor

Show with the four-wheeled equivalent

of a surface-to-air missile.

A 120kWh battery pack and four

electric motors deliver a whopping

1900bhp, enough to see the Battista

become one of the most powerful

vehicles ever produced in Italy. Don’t

get too excited just yet, though: we won’t

be seeing any of these on the roads until

next year at the earliest, and just 150

of them will be hand-crafted in Turin.

We’ll have to wait a little bit longer to

see if the claimed 0-62mph sprint time

of under two seconds is real or just

vehicular vapourware.

KEY SPECS (EST) O 280 miles O 1400kW

(1900 bhp) O 0-62mph in 1.9s O 217mph

O Screens tbc

NIO EP 9

Buy from $1.2m (est) / nio.com

Chinese marque Nio has already launched

a number of electric SUVs with impressive

emissions-free running times, sharp

AI systems and space for up to seven

comfortable travellers. But its EP9 is

the real masterstroke, with a 1000kW

electric propulsion system developing

the equivalent of 1360hp.

Co-developed by British engineers from

the NextEV Formula E team, the EP9 uses

liquid-cooled lithium-ion batteries to help

it reach 124mph in just 7.1 seconds... and to

set a Nurburgring lap record.

Nio suggests just six EP9s will be built.

If you’re only lucky enough to make the

passenger seat, a dedicated digital display

will measure your ‘excitement levels’,

including heart rate.

KEY SPECS (EST) O Range tbc O 1000kW

(1360bhp) O 0-62mph in 2.7 seconds

O 195mph O Four screens

KEY SPECS

ORange Up to 320 miles

OPower 300-500kW (322-630bhp)

O0-62mph 3.4 seconds

OTop speed 162mph

OInfotainment tbc