EP9 from NIO
Credit: Twitter
With just 7 built to-date, & 10 more planned, NIO’s EP9 is not a good fit for the description, “production car”, which some are prepared to give it. But it is road legal. From the look of it, make that, “barely road legal racer”.
One of the more interesting things about the EP9 is that, driven at competition speeds on the Nürburgring, a Tesla Model S drops into reduced power mode due to increasing battery temperature.1 A time of 6:45.90,2 suggests that the EP9 has the battery heating problem under control. Equally, a build price of $1.2 million3 (notice that’s, “build price”, not, “retail price”), suggests, “cost is no object”, is part of NIO’s solution.
Electrek – “NIO’s EP9 EV beats every production car ever with a Nürburgring lap record of 6:45.90”, https://electrek.co/2017/05/13/nios-ep9-nurburgring-record/
EP9 is also the fastest autonomous car at the Circuit of the Americas
Jalopnik – “The ‘World's Fastest Electric Car’ Just Set Two Incredible Lap Records”
https://jalopnik.com/the-worlds-fastest-electric-car-just-set-two-incredible-1792780274
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1 HitchHiker’s Guide 2 Tech: “Tesla Model S racing series”, https://hhg2tech.blogspot.com/2016/03/tesla-model-s-racing-series.html
2 To put 6:45.90 in perspective, a Lamborghini Aventador LP 750-4 SV just scrapes under 7 minutes
Road & Track: “Ten of the Fastest Production Cars to Ever Lap the Nürburgring”, https://www.roadandtrack.com/car-culture/g6413/nurburgring-lap-records/
Auto Express: “Fastest Nurburgring lap times 2017: quickest cars & lap records”, http://www.autoexpress.co.uk/best-cars/86123/fastest-nurburgring-lap-times-2017-quickest-cars-and-lap-records
3 Road|Show: “Electricity has never been more exciting”, https://www.cnet.com/roadshow/auto/nextev-nio-ep9/preview/
/ Tesla Model S racing series Electric GT World Series grid modified Model S zero-emissions GT road car based racing championships begin 2017 car grid Tesla Model S P85+ new championship Electric GT World Series seven-race season 2017 races Europe America Asia organisers tracks used Barcelona Spain Donington UK Mugello Italy Estoril Portugal 10 teams team two modified Tesla Model S P85+ road cars power unit control software unchanged standard road car 416hp horsepower 601Nm torque changes aerodynamics suspension brakes more suitable for racing car's weight reduced tearing out unneeded upholstery battery's cooling system improved drivers foot on the throttle longer Agustin Paya professional racing driver promoter Electric GT World Series P85+ rear-wheel-drive newer P90D all-wheel-drive chosen more suitable for racing easier to fix in a pinch drivers prefer RWD track future Formula E plan Electric GT World Series allow range different cars grid Tesla Model S one of the best cars ever made best 100 percent electric cars luxurious super tourer made for racing weight distribution low centre of gravity considerable mass more than two tons allows unbelievable cornering speed unending torque add up great racing car testing Barcelona Catalunya F1 Circuit Madrid Jarama circuit Model S GT champion Electric GT pull in the punters Formula E engine noise Model S much larger battery Formula E cars car-switching battery back swapping races last more than 100 or 150 miles Tesla racing exciting techies Teslaphiles tune in favourite car electric race car racing car lithium ion LiIon battery charge recharge range Electric vehicle EV decimating records internal combustion engine vehicles ICE vehicle NIO NextEV $1.48 million electric supercar NIO EP9 set a new lap record one of the world’s most famous and grueling racetracks Nurburgring Nordschleife electric car time of 6:45.90 fastest lap ever set by an electric vehicle around the track faster than any production vehicle electric beating Lamborghini Huracan Performante over 6 seconds fastest lap ever done by any production vehicle EP9 production vehicle NIO built seven EP9 plans another production run of ten more cars small number of units smaller production runs high prices McLaren F1 XP5 prototype production vehicles EP9 Nordschleife famously difficult track benchmark overall vehicle performance length and grueling nature track over 12 miles long German countryside includes high and low speed turns varied road surfaces lots of bumps and hills NIO EP9 lap of 7:05.12 suboptimal conditions cold and slightly moist track surface electric vehicle record beating handful street-legal gasoline-powered vehicles Huracan Aventador Porsche 918 big deal EV company with no racing heritage not even any automaking heritage beat cars from companies century of racing experience toughest track in the world incredibly impressive new lap NIO video video EV-record-setting lap /
