Want to see the fastest EV in the world? Head to the Goodwood Festival of Speed. No, not the Rimac C_Two, although that boasts faster acceleration and a higher top speed. We're referring to the NIO EP9, the electric hypercar that lapped the Nurburgring last year in 6:45.9 – a good second and a half faster than the Porsche 911 GT2 RS – setting an EV lap record. Now the Chinese electric-vehicle startup is bringing that very car to Goodwood, where it will be reunited with the same driver that manhandled it around the Nordschleife.
The NIO EP9 also autonomously lapped the Circuit of the Americas in Austin, Texas, last year faster than any other self-driving car ever has. It's something of a technological marvel, packing four electric motors each producing over 335 horsepower for a combined output of 1,341 hp. Its batteries alone weigh 1,400 pounds, but carbon-fiber construction helps keep the curb weight down to 3,825 pounds. The result is a 2.7-second 0-62 mph time and a top speed quoted at 194 mph. While Peter Dumbreck drives the EP9 up the Earl of March's front lawn, NIO will display another EP9 along with its next-generation Formula E racer for fans to check out up close and in person.
Running at the time under the banner of its sister company NextEV, the NIO Formula E team won the first driver's championship with Nelson Piquet Jr behind the wheel in 2015. "It's our time to take to the global stage," said NIO performance chief Gerry Hughes. "We are all extremely excited at the thought of Peter Dumbreck unleashing the ground-breaking performance of the NIO EP9 Supercar." With its performance capabilities now thoroughly proven, NIO is in the process of putting the ES8 seven-seat electric crossover into production. The vehicle was unveiled last December, and is slated to start reaching customers later this year.
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