Former Lamborghini Test Driver Valentino Balboni Tries Out the Drako GTE

Only 25 examples will ever be built, each starting at $1.25 million. As customers wait for the first units to be delivered, Drako Motors took the decision to promote the ultra-limited electric car with the help of an Italian man.

Valentino Balboni agreed to star in the promo, driving and kicking the tail out at the Thermal Club Raceway while offering a glimpse of the interior. The former Lamborghini test driver is impressed by the “incredible power and amazing control,” which is high praise for a startup’s first-ever car.

"My professional life has been all about finding innovative solutions to improve performance and the driver’s feeling from behind the wheel. Now after driving the GTE, I have entered a completely new world,” said Balboni.

Better described as a hyper-EV focused on the grand touring character rather than out-and-out performance, the Drako GTE packs no fewer than 1,200 horsepower. The torque figure is even more impressive than the ponies, rated at 6,491 pound-feet (8,800 Nm) thanks to no fewer than four electric motors.

Torque vectoring algorithms are still being developed by the San Jose-based company, predominantly at the Nurburgring Nordschleife for obvious reasons. At the present moment, the system is capable of adjusting each wheel’s torque delivery over 1,000 times per second. Pretty incredible stat, isn’t it?

Capable of 206 miles per hour (332 kph), the GTE employs direct-drive gearboxes that send the power from the motors to the wheels. This may be a heavy and rather expensive solution, but then again, it’s those gearboxes that provide the car with superlative turning capability on public roads and the track.

So what about the battery, then? Lithium-ion cells totaling 90 kWh provide up to 250 miles, but the driving range has yet to be tested by the EPA.