Chinese electric car maker NextEV has debuted its NIO brand, along with the first car from that electric car line, called the EP9. The first vehicle it revealed is already a world-record holder: it has the fastest lap time for an EV at the Nürbhurgring Nordschliefe test track in Germany, one of the most famous proving grounds for supercars.
The EP9 also beat the EV record at France’s Circuit Paul Ricard by around 50 seconds. EP9’s specs include a 0-124mph speed of 7.1 seconds, and a top speed of around 200mph. It also has a 0-60mph time of 2.7 seconds – which, astute EV fans will note, is actually 0.2 seconds slower than the current production model of the Tesla P100D with the Ludicrous Mode option (and soon to be 0.3 seconds slower, thanks to a speed-boosting easter egg update going out to Teslas in December).
Tesla has called its P100D the “fastest production car in the world,” so the EP9’s claim of being the “world’s fastest electric car” will definitely need direct head-to-head testing to prove the validity of one or the other. The EP9 isn’t quite a product vehicle yet, however – today’s unveiling isn’t a sales announcement.
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The performance is impressive, however, and the car also has a charging system designed to provide a full “tank” in just 45 minutes, with a max range of around 265 miles. The EP9 is probably a stage-setter for NIO overall, as the company says it’s intended to be a “best-in-class” and “showcase” product in a release announcing the car.
NextEV’s U.S. CEO Padmasree Warrior explained in an interview with TechCrunch last December that she was looking for an opportunity to “build something from the ground up and make it big” in taking on the role at NextEV, and this debut car from the company definitely looks to fit that bill.