Today, at a launch event held at the prestigious Saatchi Gallery in London, electric car company NextEV unveiled its newest brand, NIO. The electric car brand will apparently, “help users rediscover the ‘joyful lifestyle’ of car ownership by creating inspiring vehicles that deliver superior performance, a new benchmark for aesthetic design and unique user experiences.”
Alongside the new brand launch, a new electric supercar was revealed for the first time too. Called the NIO EP9, the car has already acheived a new lap record at the Nürburgring Nordschliefe. On October 12th 2016, the EP9 lapped the 20.8km ‘Green Hell’ in a hugely impressive 7m 05.12s, beating the previous EV lap record held. This marks it out as the fastest electric car in the world! Additionally, on November 4th, it smashed the EV record at Circuit Paul Ricard in France, recording a time of 1m 52.78s, eclipsing the previous record of 2m 40s.
With four high-performance inboard motors and four individual gearboxes, the EP9 delivers 1-MegaWatt of power, equivalent to 1,360PS or in layman’s terms, a lot. The EP9 accelerates from 0-124mph (0-200kph) in a back breaking 7.1 seconds and has a top speed of 194mph (313kph). With an interchangeable battery system, the EP9 is designed to be charged in 45 minutes and has a range of 265 miles (427 kilometres).
The carbon cockpit and chassis embodies a new approach to performance vehicle design to handle the physical demands of a car with 3G cornering capabilities, with added structural solidity and aero efficiency. The EP9 is capable of achieving 24,000 Newtons of downforce at 240kph.
NextEV Founder and Chairman, William Li, said: “Today we launched our electric supercar that broke the record at the Nordschliefe. The NIO EP9 was born to push limits and is the first stage of automotive production for NIO. It is a statement of our vision and technical and manufacturing capabilities. It is a best-in-class product that showcases what is possible with electric vehicles. We believe that when the car ownership experience exceeds expectations, electric vehicles will become the natural choice for everyone, leading to a more sustainable tomorrow. And with that, our vision of a blue sky will come true.”
Source; NextEV
Wow! That is a truly epic car. It is a level above the Rimac.
When will there be a road test review?
We’ve been in touch with NIO but there’s no chance to drive it just yet, unless we had a tame racing driver maybe…