Six very fast electric cars

By Justus Visagie

These six electric cars are faster than that golf cart you once drove. Much, much faster.

Some people think electric cars are slow and therefore won’t consider choosing one over a fuel-burning car. But the opposite is true: electric cars are damn quick. They do have disadvantages, like a short driving range and long price tag. But slouchiness isn’t one of them. Here’s a collection of electric cars that will annihilate, embarrass or at least worry an internal combustion car at a drag meet.

1. Jaguar I-Pace: The Cat leaps

As you read the British marque is beavering away at their Merc-AMG GLE 43 destroyer, the I-Pace. Like the GLE it’s an SUV, but in a 0-100 km/h dash it will be about 1.5 seconds quicker, with Jaguar claiming a time of approximately four seconds for the sprint. With instant torque of 700 Nm, power output just shy of 300 kW and Jaguar’s track record, we have no reason to doubt their claim. The I-Pace will have a 90 kWh lithium-ion battery, which will give it a range of about 500 km, the manufacturer says. Its top speed should exceed 200 km/h, but constant speeds above 120 km/h isn’t an electric car forte, so don’t expect a sensational top end.

The production model will be revealed later this year and it’s due to arrive in South Africa (SA) in Spring 2018. Expect a price tag of over R1.4m

2. Tesla Model 3: The people’s electric car

If you crave electric transport and the Jag (above) is out of your league, consider the Tesla Model 3, due in Mzanzi next year or in 2019. Or even in 2020, since Tesla has a somewhat blemished record for delivering on schedule.

The company claims a 0-60 mph (0-97 km/h) time of 5.6 seconds – not bad for a car in the price range of a BMW 320i in the US. The sticker price for a Tesla 3 in the US is $35 000 (R472 000), but some buyers will qualify for a federal discount of as much as $7 500 (R100 000). This is to encourage motorists to go electric, but it’s not uncapped and so far it has mostly benefitted the rich. It’s unlikely that tax payers in SA will receive any incentives. But please prove me wrong, Malusi Gigaba.

If the Model 3 does come in below R600 000 it will find favour with buyers keen to switch, because of its estimated range of 350 km. South Africa’s only purely electric production cars, the BMW i3 and Nissan Leaf, run out of juice after about 140 km, which severely limits their appeal.

3. Formula E: The hottest ticket in town

The electric revolution has reached critical mass and it has even spawned a racing series. Yes, there’s life left in F1, WRX and WEC, but performance manufacturers are flocking to Formula E.

The series started in 2014 and the reigning champion (2016/2017 season) is Lucas di Grassi (Brazil) of the ABT Schaeffler Audi Sport team.

The Penske 701 EV Formula E, campaigned by Faraday Future Dragon Racing, has a maximum output of 200 kW. It can accelerate from 0-100 km/h in 2.95 seconds and reach a maximum speed of 240 km/h. It weight just 880 kg, driver included.

The cost of the Penske 701 is about R4.7m. Read more on the series at fiaformulae.com.

4. Rimac Concept One: The Hamster’s nemesis

Consider the following numbers: 900 kW and 1600 Nm. This is the maximum output of the Rimac Concept One. The Bugatti Chiron’s W16 engine, by comparison, develops a maximum of 1103 kW and matches the Rimac’s maximum torque.

There were eight of these Rimacs, but in an episode of The Grand Tour Richard Hammond crashed one. It then caught fire and burnt to a crisp. At least now the whole world knows Rimac.

As if its output figures and good looks weren’t enough to bring it fame, it has performance to match: 0-100 km/h in 2.5 seconds, a top speed of 355 km/h and a range of 350 km.

5. Tesla Model S P100D: A master class in electric performance

When Motor Trend in the US recently drove the Tesla Model S P100D – with optional Ludicrous+ mode – they declared it the quickest they have car ever tested. It completed the 0-60 mph (0-97 km/h) run in only 2.28 seconds. Just think about that: it’s the time it takes to inhale one breath.

Motor Trend starts the clock when the front wheel touches a marker that’s one foot ahead of the front wheels. Critics will say it’s a rolling start, although 30 cm hardly counts as a roll. Additionally, the Americans stop the clock at 60 mph or 97 km/h, where we go on for a little longer.

The car, with a max output of 500 kW and 1072 Nm, bears testament to the genius of Tesla and Elon Musk. Tesla quotes the P100D’s 0-60 mph time as 2.5 seconds, which we assume is from a complete standstill. We’ll have to guess what its 0-100 km/h time would be, but it won’t be much more than 2.55 seconds. Bugatti claims a “provisional” 2.5 seconds for the Chiron, which is almost ten times the Tesla’s price. The latter, which has a range of 500 km, sells for $148 000 (R2m). Sadly it won’t be coming to SA.

6. Drive eO PP100:

The name might be unfamiliar, but the place where it claimed victory in 2016, isn’t: Pike’s Peak. The all-wheel-drive eO PP100 and driver Rhys Millen completed the annual 20km “Race to the Clouds” in a time of only 8:57.118. That is quite a feat, considering the route’s 156 turns and that it starts at 1 440 m and ends at a dizzying height of 4 300 m.

The PP100 is made up of a steel tubular space frame with carbon fibre body, seven electric motors, a single reduction gear and a 700 V / 50 kWh lithium-ion battery pack. It’s equipped with limited slip differentials, power steering and rides on Hankook 320/710 R18 slicks. Peak power is 1 190 kW and peak torque a gargantuan 2 520 Nm. It weighs 1200 kg.

“There is no official 0-100 km/h time that we have specifically measured but we have seen 2.2 sec from race data,” Kristaps Dambis from Drive eO told AutoTrader.