The Varley Electric Vehicles evR450 announced a few days ago is no longer the only electric supercar from Australia. Ian Denner has announced a new electric roadster that sounds very promising. Called Arcspeed Electric Roadster, this particular car started its life back in 2006 when it was intend to be produced in limited number, but as a gasoline-power car.
Back then Denner dropped the idea and later on he came with the idea of transforming the roadster into an electric one. The Roadster uses in fact the same powertrain as the evR450: two electric motors, each with 210 HP and 385 lb-ft of torque for a total output of 420 HP and 770 lb-ft of torque. The electric motors will take their power from a battery pack that consists of 500 individual lithium-ion phosphate batteries mounted in the cockpit floor. Also, just like with the evR450 the Roadster will sprint from 0 to 60 mph in just 3.8 seconds.
Denner hopes to put the car into limited production series and to price it less than $100,000.
We knew that the Ferrari 458 GT3 was fast, but we didn’t know that it would be the type to be wiping away lap records without even breaking a sweat.
But that’s what the car achieved at the Australia’s world-famous Bathurst circuit recently when it clocked a time of 2:04.9 seconds at a weekend practice session, blowing away the previous record set by the Audi R8 GT3 by a whopping four seconds.
The record was achieved by the 458 GT3 being run by Maranello Motorsport, which was making its debut in an Australian circuit. On top of its record-breaking GT3 run, the 458 GT3 also blew away the fastest lap set by a V8 supercar - a 2:06.8 lap time that was set by a Holden Commodore last year.
"The 458 is a great car. It’s worth the wait and really is amazing how the time we spent at the factory with Michelotto has paid off with the car so quick and stable so quickly."
“It’s terrific to not need months to dial it in. There’d been a lot of people with stopwatches around the track and to now have confirmation of the new record during the team’s first test is very exciting so we’re looking forward to the racing,” said Mark Coffey, the Managing Director of Maranello Motorsport.
Despite it’s record-shattering lap time, it remains to be seen how the 458 GT3 will fare in a real racing environment. Nevertheless, the record is still all sorts of impressive considering how much time lies between the old and the new record.
The Stig is an intimidating character that even the most professional of racers can’t help but be in awe of. At least that’s what the Stig likes to think of himself. We can’t blame him for the lack of oxygen in his head. Lord knows how long it’s been since he last took that helmet off, but whatever you think of him, the dude is a polarizing figure that needs someone of equal stature to put him in check.
Enter Ken Block.
The world-class rally driver recently teamed up with Top Gear’s resident test driver for a promotional gig for Top Gear Australia magazine. The two are scheduled to be in the cover of the November issue of the magazine and you can expect that article to be a must-read.
Before that issue hits newsstands, though, Top Gear Australia bought a camera crew to a race track to film the two drifter extraordinaires participate in a one-on-one Hoonigan show in Melbourne, featuring Block’s Monster Rally Fiesta and the Stig’s ride-of-choice, the Australian-born Ford Falcon FPV.
Check out the video after the jump and wait for the dramatic climax in the end. There’s plenty of rubber-burning, tire-shredding action in this 90-second promo video.
This is what you call dedication and drive! Tasmanian driver, Jason White, was about four seconds behind in the final stage of the Targa High Mountain when he knew he had to put the pedal to the metal and make up time. White took his Lamborghini Gallardo Super Trofeo Stradale to its limit where it literally burst into flames. While others would pull over and take care of the safety issue, White sped on knowing exactly the time he needed to underscore the team who was driving a Nissan GT-R.
Despite his fiery experience, White still took the top spot at the race, achieving a full ten seconds ahead of the pack. Luckily, the race ended right in front of the Mt. Buller fire station and his Lamborghini only suffered minor damages.
The whole world is going electric or hybrid, at least they plan to when all the kinks have been worked out, so it shouldn’t be at all surprising that the automakers of the world have hit the ground running with new technology. Even Australia is getting in on the action, and a small company by the name of Varley Electric is getting its turn. This automaker has just unveiled their evR450 - the first Australian electric supercar - at the 3rd annual Australian Electric Vehicle Conference.
The evR450 is powered by two locally sourced Ultramotive electric motors, each with 210 HP and 385 lb-ft of torque for a total output of 420 HP and 770 lb-ft of torque. This setup will sprint the car from 0 to 60 mph in just 3.8 seconds, while top speed will be limited to 124 mph.
The electric motors will take their power from lithium-ion batteries that will ensure an autonomy range of 93 miles, but this can be extended to 186 miles with a range-extension package.
The new evR450 will go on sale in January 2012 and will be priced at around $210K.
