Electric propulsion is almost all the rage at the moment. Wherever you look, a new electric car is being released and we are certainly appear to be on the cusp of an electric revolution. Some enthusiasts look upon this with dispair. EVs are too quiet, seem emotionless, and how do you hotrod an electric motor, anyway? But despite many of us thinking electric cars will forever be boring, Lotus is out to show that it will simply not be the case. Drive Tribe sent James May of Top Gear and Grand Tour fame, to check out what is surely one of the most powerful and fastest electric cars ever built, the 2000 HP Lotus Evija.
The Attraction Of The Engine
James says that part of the attraction towards many of the cars we have is the sound. And that we all love a good engine. Be it a V8, V10, a V12, or a twin-turbo V6. There is nothing more exciting than the roar of an engine. But equally, that roar might well signify that you are a bit behind the times. And that you need to adapt, in order to survive in the 21st century. And in fact, the noise of a car may now signify that you yourself, are slow. An accusation of which Mr. May is quite familiar.
Enter Lotus then and their insane Evija. One of the fastest and most powerful electric cars in the world. It has 500 horsepower…per wheel, giving you a total of 2000 hp. That, as James points out, is twice the horsepower of the Bugatti Veyron. It's 0-60 time is well under 3 seconds. A significantly less common metric of 0-180 is under 9 seconds. It is frankly, a ludicrous amount of power and speed potential. And not only that, it looks absolutely phenomenal as well.
Ideal Weight Distribution
The Evija has classic mid-engine proportions and May discusses the the appropriateness of that in a car with no engine. In addition, the preponderance of weight is no longer in the power unit, but in the battery, which is winding up in the middle of all electric cars regardless of body style. In any case, it allows this car to keep the rather awesome styling we have come to know and love of the mid-engine supercar.
Source: YouTube