Electric car technology is still steadily progressing along; we’ve moved from early morning milk floats (if you’re old enough to remember) barely capable of walking speed to the Nissan Leaf available for around £20,000 and with a top speed of around 90mph.
We’ve also progressed rapidly with regards to battery range. I remember the initial introduction of the Leaf also introduced a new and very commonly asked question: How far can it go before needing to recharge, with prospective customers worried about running out of power with nowhere to top up. Those initial estimates of around 100mph (if lucky) have been superseded by the likes of Tesla with, in comparison, staggering ranges upwards of 260 miles.
Now, as time moves on, more and more manufacturers are bringing us electric supercars and the latest intriguing model to appear in this relatively new genre is the Arcfox-7.
The BAIC Arcfox-7 is actually more than just a concept; it is, by all accounts, due to go on sale in China this year – yes, that’s 2016.
Inspiration for the 2-seater Arcfox-7 has come from Formula E single seat racers and it has a performance to match. In fact, it makes the early incarnations of the Leaf look like a milk float and packs some pretty incredible specs; like a 0-62mph of less than 3 seconds and a reputed top speed of 162mph.
You might think that the Arcfox-7’s range might suffer as a result of all this impressive power, but to be fair, an average range of 186 miles isn’t too bad a compromise – if indeed it could even be classed as a compromise.
If you’re looking for comparisons, I guess The Arcfox-7 is probably competing mostly with the £49,000 Tesla Model S, a car that will get you from 0-62mph in just under 3 seconds and has a top speed of 155mph. Though both cars look strikingly different.
The Arcfox-7 has a carbon fibre body and a kerb-weight of 1,755kg, while the battery pack is a 6.6Kw unit and the electric motor is capable of 603bhp. Carbon ceramic brakes will no doubt handle stopping very efficiently.
The Arcfox-7 is set to become the flagship electric model from BAIC, which will also offer the far less exciting looking Arcfox-1 open-top electric car at the lower end of their range.
No pricing as yet, but if the Arcfox-7 is indeed due to hit the streets this year, I wouldn’t think there would be too long to wait.
Images: carscoops.com, topgear.com
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