Tag Archives: Electric Vehicles

Is Bugatti About To Reveal An Electric, Track-Only Hypercar?

Shortly after a sensational report that the VW Group could sell Bugatti to Croatian EV maker Rimac, it is claimed an all-electric hypercar could soon be unveiled by French manufacturer.

In the original Bugatti-Rimac report from Car Magazine, it was suggested a production-ready version of the Vision Le Mans concept with an all-electric powertrain will be launched in October.

Fast forward a few days and The Supercar Blog claims to have received confirmation that such a vehicle is indeed being prepared for a launch.

For now, few details about known about this potential track-only hypercar, but if it is indeed all-electric and if the potential deal between the VW Group, Bugatti, and Rimac goes through, it would be reasonable to assume the latest limited-run Bugatti would use an electric powertrain from Rimac.

Read Also: Bugatti Designer’s Vision Le Mans Would Make An Astonishing Endurance Racer

The utilization of an electric powertrain could make the extreme design of the Vision Le Mans viable, as there would be no need to sandwich a traditional engine and transmission into the aerodynamic bodywork.

According to The Supercar Blog, the all-electric Vision Le Mans “will serve as a technology showcase for the future.”

For what it’s worth, the potential tie-up between the VW Group and Rimac has not been confirmed, but it has not been explicitly denied either. It is thought that the deal could see VW Group offload Bugatti to Rimac without any exchange of money. Instead, Porsche would increase its current 15.5 per cent stake in Rimac to 49 per cent.

Note: Bugatti Vision Le Mans from Max Lask pictured.

VW Boss Herbert Diess Agrees With Bill Gates On Green Tech

It’s good to see the chairman of a major carmaker mirror the thoughts of one of the most influential people on the planet when it comes to lowering carbon emissions.

VW boss Herbert Diess has recently encouraged Bill Gates to advise governments on how to lower emissions across the board. He also publicly criticized Germany’s slow abandonment of coal power, as reported by Bloomberg.

“You thoroughly understand the CO2 logic of the mobility sector. You know what we have to do and you could and should advise governments how to regulate and what to promote,” stated Diess in a LinkedIn post while referring to the Microsoft co-founder.

Read Also: Bill Gates Likes Porsche’s Electric Taycan So Much That He Bought One

“As you say, it’s not too complicated – electric vehicles wherever possible,” wrote Diess, while referencing a post Gates published last week regarding how climate change could actually be more dangerous to the world than COVID-19.

The VW exec would like all cars and vans to become fully electric, with long-haul trucks running on bio-fuels. He also added that switching to carbon-free electricity is critical to fighting climate change.

“Germany’s target date to exit coal power only by 2038 is for a rich, tech-leading country by far not ambitious enough”. Following the Dieselgate scandal of 2015, VW has embarked on a push into the electric sector, investing 33 billion euros ($39 billion) to date in order to develop the world’s largest fleet of battery-powered cars.

VW wants to cut its carbon footprint by 30% before 2025, compared to where it was in 2015. Meanwhile, their ultimate goal is to become carbon-neutral by 2050.

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Tesla Model S P90D Vies With Porsche Taycan Turbo For Electric Saloon Supremacy

The Tesla Model S and Porsche Taycan are the two most accelerative electric sedans currently on the market and, as Lovecars recently discovered, they are quite evenly matched.

Tesla has, of course, been producing the Model S for much longer than Porsche has been building the Taycan. In fact, the Model S has been in production since 2012, whereas Porsche started rolling out the Taycan last year.

Watch Also: There’s No Chance The Porsche Taycan Turbo S Can Defeat The 918 Spyder, Right?

Back in 2015 and 2016, Tesla’s Model S range was topped out by the P90D Ludicrous, complete with two electric motors and pumping out the equivalent of 762 hp and 1,013 lb-ft (1,373 Nm) of torque. While this variant has since been superseded by the P100D and more recently the Model S Performance Raven, Lovecars decided to pit the P90D against a new Porsche Taycan Turbo for a drag race.

We’ve seen the flagship Taycan Turbo S racing the flagship Model S Performance Raven in the past and the two were very close, although the Porsche seems to have a slight advantage. As it turns out, it is the same case here.

Off the line and racing in extremely wet conditions, the Tesla and Porsche got near perfect starts and accelerated at near identical rates. However, as the speeds started to increase, the Taycan Turbo stormed away from the Tesla, taking a relatively easy win.

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The Final Tesla Roadster Built Is Available In Switzerland For Almost $1.5 Million

The final Tesla Roadster built has emerged for sale in Switzerland with an eye-watering price tag of 1.39 million Swiss Francs or about $1.49 million at current exchange rates.

Tesla only ever built 2,500 examples of the Lotus-based Roadster. The most valuable example is probably the first one built but rather than keep it in his collection, Elon Musk instead sent it to space a couple of years ago. As the final Tesla Roadster, this is most certainly the next most valuable and the original owner clearly only ever intended to keep the car and sell it for a profit.

Watch Also: This Is How The Tesla Roadster’s Rockets Could Work

A look at the listing on Car For You reveals the vehicle has never been registered and has spent its life sitting on foam tire pillows in a garage with marble floors. It has just 124 miles (200 km) on the clock and has been routinely plugged into a charger to stop the battery from discharging.

A host of unique touches distinguish this Tesla Roadster from most others. For example, it is finished in a special shade of white and includes a black and white leather interior. It is also equipped with a carbon fiber rear diffuser and a host of carbon interior trimmings, including on the kick plates, door panels, and dashboard. The steering wheel and mechanical handbrake still feature their protective wrapping.

In addition, the open-top model that’s based on the Lotus Elise chassis has a special plaque on the firewall that denotes it is one of just four ‘Roadster Sport Final Four’ examples delivered in Europe and Asia. It also features the signatures of various Tesla staff that helped in its construction.

PHOTO GALLERY

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Watch The Porsche Taycan Turbo S Hit 166 MPH On The Autobahn

We all know that electric performance cars like the Porsche Taycan Turbo S are capable of extraordinary acceleration. However, what are they like to drive at higher speeds in the German Autobahn? This video shows just how well-mannered and easy the car appears to be to drive.

While testing out the car, AutoTopNL was able to push the car through to a top speed of 267 km/h (166 mph), a very respectable figure for an electric car and more than enough for those who need a luxurious cruiser to crunch the motorway miles at high speeds.

One of the main reasons why the Taycan can hit these sorts of speeds is that, unlike many other EVs, it features a two-speed gearbox. This also explains why it is able to out-accelerate a Tesla Model S once the speeds start to build.

Watch Also: Chris Harris Left Impressed By The Porsche Taycan Turbo S

According to Porsche, the Taycan Turbo S can sprint to 60 mph (96 km/h) in 2.6 seconds and has a top speed of 161 mph (260 km/h). Evidently, that top speed figure is a little understated, while independent testing has shown that the quoted 0-60 mph time is also on the conservative side.

That kind of performance is made possible thanks to the 761 PS (750 HP / 560 kW) and 1,050 Nm (774 lb-ft) of torque with Overboost enabled. What’s even more impressive is the fact that, despite those numbers, the Taycan’s battery pack provides a range of up to 412 km (256 miles) on the WLTP cycle.

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Silent Killers: 2020 Porsche Taycan Turbo S Drag Races 2019 Tesla Model S P100D

An empty airfield in Bulgaria, judging by the license plates of the two cars, served as the battleground for a drag race between the Porsche Taycan Turbo S and Tesla Model S P100D.

Representing America, the Model S P100D has a dual-motor setup, with the front one delivering 275 HP (279 PS / 205 kW) and 310 lb-ft (420 Nm) of torque, and an extra 503 HP (510 PS / 375 kW) and 531 lb-ft (720 Nm) produced by the rear motor.

Each mode results in a different total system output and torque, but officially, it puts out 750 HP in Ludicrous+ mode and needs 2.5 seconds to complete the 0-60 mph (0-96 km/h) sprint, although it was clocked at a whopping 2.28 seconds by MotorTrend three years ago.

Watch Also: Porsche Taycan Turbo S Vs Tesla Model S Performance In Cheetah Mode

In the green corner, we have the Taycan Turbo S, which is also capable of supercar-rivalling performance, with the 0-60 mph (0-96 km/h) acceleration taking only 2.6 seconds. Top speed in the Porsche is 161 mph (260 km/h), and its zero-emission powertrain can pump out up to 750 HP (761 PS / 560 kW) and 774 lb-ft (1,050 Nm) with the Overboost mode enabled.

As the two super EVs have very similar performance numbers, we could see it go either way, but if you had to, which one would bet on to emerge victorious?

Before finding out if you were right or not, it’s worth noting that both the Model S P100D and Taycan Turbo S are customer, not press, cars, owned by the same individual. Thus, there shouldn’t be any accusations of rigging the outcome, as we’ve seen in previous duels, in favor of either performance EV.

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