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Aston Martin reveals electric Rapide concept
Date: 21 October 2015 | Author: Daniel Puddicombe
Sports car maker Aston Martin has revealed an electric version of its Rapide four-door luxury vehicle which could be brought to the market in two years' time.
Officially billed as an engineering exercise, the vehicle - known as the RapidE - has been developed in conjunction with Williams Advanced Engineering - part of the same group as the Williams Formula One team.
The car was unveiled during a Government summit to promote Britain to overseas investors. During the event, the sports car company and Chinese investment group ChinaEquity announced an agreement to explore the development of a production version of the concept.
Should the company build the vehicle, it would be constructed at the Aston Martin's headquarters in Gaydon. Real world range is likely to extend to around 200 miles, according to Aston Martin's CEO, reports state, with prices expected to start at around £200,000.
"We see luxury electric vehicles as an intrinsic part of our future product portfolio and welcome ChinaEquity into the next phase of study for the project development," said Aston Martin CEO Andy Palmer.
"The RapidE concept tangibly demonstrates the capability and ambition of Aston Martin towards developing low- and zero-emission sports cars," he added.
Williams Advanced Engineering, meanwhile, is one of the UK's leading developers of electric vehicles, having helped develop the batteries used in the single-seat Formula E racing cars.
The Rapide saloon is powered by a 560hp 6.0-litre V12 engine which emits 300g/km of CO2 and returns 21.9mpg, placing it in the highest BIK band. Should the new model become a realty, it is likely to share the petrol model's impressive acceleration figures, while adding zero-emissions credentials.
