A few days ago, Faraday Future - the U.S.-based, Chinese-backed EV startup that's supposed to build a factory in Nevada but apparently doesn't really have the money for it - teased a video showing its prototype car going head-to-head against some of the quickest vehicles out there in a drag race.
We say "teased," even though we guess everybody knew what to expect from the clip that was to follow. You don't raise hype by showing your car getting beaten in a race with some of your competitors, some more direct than others.
Faraday Future picked a Ferrari 488 GTB (pure Italian supercar), a Bentley Bentayga (V12 luxury SUV that holds the title for the fastest - not quickest - vehicle of its type), and, of course, a Tesla Model X (the P100D top model we've seen humiliating sports cars in quarter-mile drag races). These are all quick cars: the Bentley Bentayga is the slowest at 4.0 seconds for the 0-60 mph sprint, then comes the 488 GTB which only needs three seconds flat, and, finally, the Model X, which does it in 2.9 seconds.
That begs the question: just how fast is the Faraday Future crossover? We've seen Lucid Motors, another EV company in a similar situation to FF's, show off its luxury sedan, claiming it'll reach the benchmark speed in 2.5 seconds. How about this heavier, less aerodynamic crossover, then?
Well, until we get some official figures, it's all speculation. The clip obviously suggests that it's quicker than all these three cars, but we lack the telemetrics to tell by how much. The Tesla duel looked pretty close, so assuming they had similar reaction times, we'd say it won't threaten the Lucid Air or the Tesla Model S P100D's time.
Peter Savagian, the FF Vice President and Propulsion Engineer, recalls how they started off aiming for a four-second 0-60 mph sprint, and then gradually reduced the time until they got "under three seconds." Other people involved in the project can be heard describing the crossover as a "muscle electric car," while Steve Schulz, Technical Fellow, Powertrain, says that FF's software "provides a competitive advantage that others don't have."
Since we don't know that much official facts about this car at the moment, it's pretty hard to get too excited about it. The good news is that it looks similar in size to the Model X (just a tad smaller), meaning it should offer plenty of interior space to go with these performances.
However, the fact there was a Model S present at the track and they haven't shown a clip of their car racing it has us thinking it is slower. But being slower than the quickest production car is nothing to be ashamed of.
FF has started a countdown to the big launch, and it currently reads 18 days and 9 hours. On January 3, 2017, the world should get the promise of another excellent electric vehicle. Let's hope Faraday Future will sort its financial troubles until then.
"Boy meets car, boy loves car, boy gets journalism degree and starts job writing and editing at a car magazine" - 5/5. (Vlad Mitrache if he was a movie) Full profile
Would you like AUTOEVOLUTION to send you notifications?
Google News