Being environmentally conscious and consumed by passion for luxury vehicles can prove quite a conundrum. On one hand you don’t want to be one of the millions of Americans that contribute to the warming of the globe and the depleting of the ozone layer on a daily basis. On the other, you really don’t want to drive a car that looks like it’d be more fit to ride around a hot wheels set than an actual road. What to do? Well, get a car that’s both electric and beautiful and powerful, of course! Enter, the Renovo Motors Renovo Coupe, which was debuted this past weekend at the 2014 Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance.
Renovo used exciting new EV Technology in the production of the vehicle, and as a result the car is distinguished as the very first American all-electric supercar.
“Renovo Motors sought to create an aspirational vehicle that demonstrates the performance, control, and excitement that is possible with EV technology,” said Renovo’s CEO Christopher Heiser. “We have poured our passion and innovation into the Coupe in an effort to deliver a truly amazing driving experience, and we’re honored to present the Production Prototype of our car at the Concours d’Elegance.”
The car stunned with a plethora of records set. The Coupe sets a benchmark 0-60 time of just 3.4 seconds, the fastest of any production rear-wheel drive electric vehicle. The car’s massive 1,000 foot-pounds of torque is available immediately from a dead stop and delivers perfectly linear acceleration that is unlike any car on the road today.
When run at full throttle the axial-flux motors run at a mind-bending 500 horse power, comparable to non-electric cars like 2013 Ford Shelby Mustang GT-500 and the 2013 Corvette Z06.
The drivetrain runs to full-power in just 37 milli-seconds, which for those not privy to car terminology means it gets there 10 times faster than you blink your eye. The automobile is redefining how a car responds to the commands of its driver.
Renovo is using this automobile to show enthusiasts what can be done with electric automobiles. Namely, that they aren’t just trying to match the capabilities of gas-powered vehicles, but that they are exceeding the performances of said vehicles, “Our motivation to design and build our cars is not artificially tied to any particular propulsion technology,” notes Jason Stinson, Renovo Motors CTO. “Simply put, we can do things with electric vehicles that can’t be replicated by any other platform.”
Award-winning designer Peter Brock was at the helms of this vehicle’s look, and as expected, he delivered a design of pristine quality. The coupe is delivered in a CSX9000 chassis delivering the beloved features of the modern supercar while paying respects to the design of said 1964 Le Mans-winning CSX9000.
“This shape was nearly perfect 50 years ago, and physics doesn’t change much over time,” said Mr. Brock, an early advisor to Renovo Motors. “However, the redesigned car has a totally updated body, frame, suspension, and cabin; it’s a new chapter for this chassis.
Brock was thrilled to have been brought on for this project, “When the Renovo team approached me with the idea of incorporating my work into their designs, I was thrilled. The finished product definitely carries the spirit of the original car strongly into the future.”
The vehicle’s interior breeds unprecedented connectivity between the driver and the controls and in the cockpit the drivers has access to a wide range of controls.
Classic needle gauges surround a modern circular digital display, and a muscular drive selector enables brake regeneration to be adjusted in real-time—another first for a production electric vehicle.
All Renovo vehicles are fittingly developed in the United States’ epicenter of innovation, Silicon Valley. The Renovo team looks forward to continue putting finishing touches on the vehicle for a 2015 limited production series, and pre-sales began over the weekend at Concours d’Elegance.
With companies like Renovo bringing electrically-powered vehicles to the forefront of the luxury supercar industry companies that manufacture environmentally-negative gas-destroying cars must be at the very least sweating a little bit. The Renovo Coupe provides all the thrills that an Aston Martin could with none of the environmental guilt.
