So, yeah, let's call this the UK's entry, even though China owned these days.
Aerodynamic body uses Venturi tunnels to guide the airflow,
to boost downforce, to cut drag,
all of that aerodynamic focus being underneath the car.
Much like modern day Formula One, key features are an active rear wing,
F1 style DRS drag reduction system.
Diffusers, front splitters that make the electric hypercar very stable at high speeds.
And it's all about doing high speeds repeatedly.
0 to 100 kilometers an hour in less than three seconds.
They give the 0 to 300 number, which I think is hilarious.
0 to 300 kph in nine seconds.
That's almost top speed.
And advanced trashy electronics keeping everything cool and consistent.
With five drive modes, it'll do 80% charge in 12 minutes.
It's got the full track package brakes and wheels.
They say it all works together in a way that is entirely repeatable.
Let's get into the top three then, should we?
All right, here we go.
Number three, you've been waiting for this one.
You might have even thought that this was number one.
And when I started to write this list,
if I hadn't seen the recent news,
I would have thought this was going to be number one, maybe.
But there was a recent record set in August
that put this one down to number three.
This is the Croatian entry.
This is the Rimats-Navera R.
So the Rimats-Navera was a monster.
It was incredible anyway.
And then Mate Rimats and the incredible team in Croatia thought,
you know what, let's make a different one.
And we'll call it the Navera R, four independent electric motors.
2,107 horsepower, 1.66 seconds, 0 to 60.
And if you can hit V-Max,
and I wouldn't be able to because I'm not talented enough,
my knuckles would be white, 268.2 miles an hour.
At the quarter mile, if you're interested, 7.9 seconds.
And they also give the record-breaking number
of going from zero to 400 kilometers an hour to zero.
So how fast can you go and how good are the brakes?
And if you've got 25.79 seconds to spare,
well, then you can have a go at it.
And it's still in the record books, by the way.
The battery, 108 kilowatt hours.
Lithium, manganese, nickel chemistry.
H-shaped for weight and stiffness.
Peak power all the way down to 60% state of charge.
So you haven't got to have this thing topped up to the brim
to get maximum charging.
And it will charge to 80% in 15 minutes at 450 kilowatts.
Aerodynamics, well, all the usuals at this end of the market.
Massive diffuser, rear wing, active aero.
Revised air management over the Navara.
Downforce is up by 15% over the standard car.
What do we call the Navara?
Like the base model?
I don't know.
It runs on Michelin Pilot Sport Cup 2 rubber.
Every system, from the torque vectoring to the chassis,
all controlled centrally.
Remats really go big on their custom software code.
The car has broken so far 24 speed records.
And it still manages real world 300 miles of range.
Hypercar engineering in, again, maybe not an everyday car
because you can't afford one like me.
But certainly you could drive it every day.
Right, what's the top two cars?
Any guesses?
I'll tell you number two.
It's the Aspark Owl.
OK, this is interesting because you may not have even heard
of this depending on how deep you are into EV world.
Aspark Owl hit 273 miles an hour.
That's 438.7 kph.
Four motors, total of 1,953 horsepower.
4,600 newton meters of torque to the rear.
And another 2,000 plus up front.
Teeny weeny battery, 69 kilowatt hours.
Designed for extreme power output,
but then stop and charge again.
Active thermal management, active aerodynamics,
a long tail, a central fin to cut the drag,
lightweight carbon fiber body and chassis.
Variable ride height, double wish bone suspension,
active torque vectoring.
Stopping power comes from carbon ceramic brakes
and some specially developed rubber.
These are Bridgestone Potenza race tires.
And I'll tell you why you need them.
Because if you want to go above 420 kilometers an hour,
the move to electric vehicles is now making
the actual engineering to go that fast
not as much as a headache as it used to be in combustion world.
And I'm not saying this is easy when we're up at this level.
But the physics then transfer to those four tiny patches of rubber
where the rubber meets the road, as they say.
So the engineering around just the tire technology
so they don't just disintegrate
has to be next level as well.
The Asparcow SP600 specifically
is the result of a partnership between Asparc,
MAT, which is Manifestura Automobili Ciorino,
and Bridgestone with a focus on safety and reliability
at high speeds, testing covered virtual development,
wind tunnels, track sessions,
and real world top speed runs in Germany
before they went on to do that benchmark
top speed run in 2024.
Shall we do the number one?
All right then.
And this is where I go back to the beginning of the podcast
and say the Chinese are really taking it
to the German engineers
because the number one spot is now held by BYD,
specifically their sub-brand Yang Wang
and the Yang Wang U9.
Recently, last month, hitting a new record,
293.54 miles an hour.
That is 472.41 kilometers per hour.
Going faster than any EV before it.
The Yang Wang U9 set a new record.
Key to the blazing speed is its quad motor platform,
four independent motors, which spin at 30,000 RPM.
Each one outputting 744 horsepower.
If you were to combine it,
and it's not, you can't quite add it all up that way,
it would be over 3,000 horsepower.
That's 2,220 kilowatts.
It sits on a 1,200-volt architecture.
Now most EVs are around 400, some are 800.
Lucids are on a pretty high voltage at around 900.
This is a 1,200-volt system.
Each wheel gets real-time 100 hertz,
so 100 times a second, torque adjustment,
for traction and agility.
And peak acceleration is unofficially tested
as far as I know, but well under two seconds of course.
Shassy control comes from their intelligent body control system.
Each suspension corner independently managed
to stabilize the car.
These are extreme speeds.
The U9 can even jump on the spot
or lift a wheel off the ground, be a three-wheeler,
or just drop its ride height on demand.
Hence, when I talk about the independent corner control
of the suspension.
So that keeps the, you know,
when it's not doing party tricks,
the grip on uneven roads as best it can be.
It weighs about 2,480 kilograms curb weight.
Aerodynamics are tailored for minimal drag.
A big carbon splitter, no rear wing for the record run, by the way.
They even end up getting really funny over things like panel gaps
because it makes a difference up at this.
It runs on bespoke semi-slick tires, all corners,
providing maximum mechanical grip.
They're wide-shape and special compound
with astounding that the speeds are almost 500 kilometers an hour.
The battery and the inverters, obviously,
are custom designed for sustained power
with some very advanced cooling.
The result is an ultra-high-voltage power car,
quad-motor intelligent suspension,
tire-tech designed to cope with the speeds
and absolute top speeds.
The Yang Wang U9 Track Edition provides just how far
electric hypercars can push performance,
setting a benchmark not just for EVs anymore,
setting a benchmark for how fast a car can go,
regardless of how it's powered.
Now, one of the self-imposed rules on this Top 10 Countdown,
putting it into the list,
had to be that these cars are in series production
and that if you or I won the lottery,
or maybe if you have the cash, then congratulations could go and buy one.
And you can with this.
It's a proper track day car that you could just go out in China, of course,
and buy if you want to.
They're making them and plenty of them.
In fact, in the first five months, they sold over 100.
The latest data I've got to is August 21st.
Last time I could, the latest I could find rather.
And that was that they've now sold 149 units.
Now, what was been like three weeks since then,
so maybe some more.
And with the price is 1.68 million yuan per vehicle.
But again, compare that to what you would have paid
in combustion world for these rare hypercars.
Not only is it the ultimate reply to them,
but it bests them as well.
And it's a proper production car that everyday people,
well, for right or wrong, without extra training, can just go and buy.
And that's our Top 10.
And I hope you liked it.
Oh, yeah. Do you want a bonus one just for fun?
All right, let's throw in the Tesla Roadster,
a claimed speed of 250 miles an hour.
That's 402 kilometers an hour.
The second generation Tesla Roadster was unveiled in November 2017.
Despite multiple announced timelines,
it's never been launched or delivered to a single customer.
As of now, Tesla say the car should debut by the end of 2025.
At least that's the last I paid attention to.
The new Roadster was launched to deliver a hardcore smackdown.
That was the phrase that the CEO used to combustion cars
with the aim to redefine electric performance.
They say it will deliver the quickest acceleration ever announced
for any production car in the world.
Three electric motors, one up front, two in the rear,
for all-wheel drive and torque vectoring.
They say 200 kilowatt-hour battery, which is easily almost double
anything else on the list that we've talked about today.
So that does seem that the other cars we've talked about
are significantly better today,
and they're not doing 200 kilowatt-hour batteries.
They say that it'll use the new 4680 cells
that Tesla are developing themselves,
and that it'll do 620 miles on the highway in terms of range.
Well, okay, but that's going to be a very, very heavy battery.
And where are all the cells going to go?
The Roadster will have a dedicated EV platform,
a low center of gravity, removable glass roof.
Aerodynamics will be prioritized, they say.
Charging speeds will be 350 kilowatts,
although, of course, announced that in 2017.
It sounds good.
Announce it now, and well, it's a little bit average.
In fact, it's a lot slower than some average cars.
There aren't this much money.
Some very achievable family cars,
like the new BMW iX3 or the Mercedes-Benz GLC EV
would both charge a lot quicker than that.
Wireless home charging was announced as well,
but Tesla just killed that off for the Cybertruck,
so I don't know.
The car will be made out of carbon fiber,
have a yoke steering wheel, and be a 2 plus 2 layout.
It'll have the SpaceX package,
where the back seats get taken out,
and you get compressed air thrusters based on rockets technology.
0 to 60 less than one second.
But they haven't had to prove it, of course.
And they say a 250 mile an hour top speed.
Look, it's clear that whilst Tesla has delayed the Roadster
for almost 10 years now,
the competition hasn't sat around on their backside.
It hasn't just caught up.
It's far exceeded it.
The Roadster was meant to be the world's fastest EV,
and hit 250 miles an hour.
That would be an achievement
that wouldn't even put it in the top three of our countdown today.
So I don't know.
What do they do with it?
Do they try and release it and not have it as the ultimate
hardcore smackdown that it was meant to be?
Because it would no longer make the headlines.
It would be a wonderful vehicle.
I'm not criticizing.
But it wouldn't be what it was meant to be.
Will they ever make it?
Like, I mean, does it even matter?
They've got bigger problems than that
to sort out right now at Tesla.
But it's certainly interesting if they want to regain their crown,
their momentum, their reputation,
as leading the way in the EV world.
Well, at the minute, it's the Chinese,
and it's the BYDs that do.
Hey, that's the success of the move to EV.
Previously unknown manufacturers are achieving world-class performance
that only the move to EV adoption has allowed them
to create opportunities for new industry leaders
and established automotive hierarchies completely challenged.
As electric vehicle technology continues advancing,
the current performance achievements represent
merely the beginning of this new era.
How scary is that?
Traditional limitations of the internal combustion engine
no longer constrain vehicle performance,
where global competition for being number one
is reshaping the structure of the entire automotive industry.
I hope you enjoyed our top 10 countdown.
I love putting it together.
What a giggle.
Didn't take it too seriously.
Not exactly the everyday car.
There's the cars that you and I can buy.
But boy, was it fun.
Thanks for listening, and I'll see you on the next one.
About this episode
A thrilling countdown of the top 10 fastest electric vehicles (EVs) showcases how the hypercar segment is evolving with new contenders from around the globe. The episode highlights the fierce competition between established brands and emerging manufacturers, particularly from China. Each car is dissected for its performance metrics, engineering innovations, and unique features, culminating in the record-breaking Yang Wang U9. The discussion emphasizes the shift in automotive dynamics, where electric technology is reshaping speed benchmarks and challenging traditional automotive hierarchies.
Welcome back to EV News Daily. Today, just for fun, we’re looking at the world of EV hypercars, and how the shift to EV has turned the established world order on its head.
The electric vehicle revolution has reached its apex in the hypercar segment, where manufacturers are pushing the boundaries of speed, power, and engineering excellence.
German manufacturers, while maintaining their reputation for engineering precision and build quality, face significant challenges in matching the raw performance metrics achieved by their Chinese competitors.
With manufacturers from Japan, Croatia, Sweden, and the United Kingdom also contributing unique solutions to the electric hypercar segment. This global redistribution of high-performance electric vehicle manufacturers represents a democratization of automotive technology that was previously concentrated in traditional automotive manufacturing centres.
So let’s get into our Top 10 Countdown. Plus stay tuned, because I’ll even give you a bonus one at the end, which some people might argue shouldn’t even be on the list.
Lotus Emeya – 159 mph (256 km/h)
Porsche Taycan Turbo GT Weissach – 190 mph (305 km/h)
Nio EP9 – 194 mph (313 km/h)
Maserati GranTurismo Folgore – 202 mph (325 km/h)
Lucid Air Sapphire – 205 mph (330 km/h)
Pininfarina Battista – 222–225 mph (358 km/h)
Lotus Evija – 217 mph (349 km/h)
Rimac Nevera R – 268.2 mph (431.45 km/h)
Aspark Owl SP600 – 273 mph (438.7 km/h)
Yangwang U9 Track Edition – 293.54 mph (472.41 km/h)
The success of previously unknown manufacturers in achieving world-class performance levels indicates that electric vehicle adoption may create opportunities for new industry leaders while challenging established automotive hierarchies.
As electric vehicle technology continues advancing, the current performance achievements represent merely the beginning of a new era in automotive engineering, where traditional limitations of internal combustion engines no longer constrain vehicle performance and where global competition for technological supremacy is reshaping the fundamental structure of the automotive industry.