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The Elemental RP1 EV could be your new electric track toy

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The Elemental RP1 EV could be your new electric track toy | Top Gear

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How does 640bhp/tonne, 1000kg of downforce and 20 laps of Silverstone on a charge sound?

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The Elemental RP1 EV could be your new electric track toy

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How does 640bhp/tonne, 1000kg of downforce and 20 laps of Silverstone on a charge sound?

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How does 640bhp/tonne, 1000kg of downforce and 20 laps of Silverstone on a charge sound?

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The Elemental RP1 EV could be your new electric track toy

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The Elemental RP1 EV could be your new electric track toy

# data.attributes.metatag[].attributes.content
The Elemental RP1 EV could be your new electric track toy

# data.attributes.metatag[].attributes.content
How does 640bhp/tonne, 1000kg of downforce and 20 laps of Silverstone on a charge sound?

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Had you forgotten about the Elemental RP1? We forgive you. It’s been a few years since we drove one and it’s fair to say the icon status occupied by the Ariel Atom and Caterham Seven has thus far evaded it. Which is a shame.

Perhaps beating them both to electric power may help. Elemental has stuck some motors and batteries in the RP1 to make the RP1 EV, the first of the plug-in lightweights to make production.

And yes, it still classifies as a lightweight. Just about. Thanks to the base petrol car totalling a ‘so skinny it needs mooring to a lamppost in a breeze’ 595kg, shoving electric power still keeps the RP1 well below a tonne. It's now 875kg, to be precise, which is there or thereabouts a Lotus Elise.

There’s a significant power hike over petrol to compensate, too. Namely a 560bhp EV powertrain that’s hooked up to a 40kWh battery. Enough for 640bhp/tonne and a 0-62mph time of 2.5secs, two tenths quicker than an internal combustion RP1. More of which in a sec.

The EV will squeeze 180 miles of range from a charge at road speeds, while Elemental promises “20 laps of the Silverstone GP circuit at full race pace” on track. Which equates to around 75 miles.

“The 800v electrical architecture allows the use of ultra-fast charging and with 80 per cent charging in under an hour,” we’re also told, making the RP1 “an EV that can be a highly effective track car and still be used to drive home at the end of the day”. The tech’s been developed hand-in-hand with Apex, of AP-O supercar fame.

Do you still crave properly light weight and a petrol engine? The stock RP1 has morphed into the RP1R, its Ford-sourced 2.3-litre turbo engine now 50bhp healthier for a 370bhp total and 0-62mph in 2.7secs. Both it and the EV come with an optional windscreen as well as “an enhanced aerodynamics package delivering at least 1000kg of downforce at 150mph”. Should be enough.

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Had you forgotten about the Elemental RP1? We forgive you. It’s been a few years since we drove one and it’s fair to say the icon status occupied by the Ariel Atom and Caterham Seven has thus far evaded it. Which is a shame.

Perhaps beating them both to electric power may help. Elemental has stuck some motors and batteries in the RP1 to make the RP1 EV, the first of the plug-in lightweights to make production.

And yes, it still classifies as a lightweight. Just about. Thanks to the base petrol car totalling a ‘so skinny it needs mooring to a lamppost in a breeze’ 595kg, shoving electric power still keeps the RP1 well below a tonne. It's now 875kg, to be precise, which is there or thereabouts a Lotus Elise.

There’s a significant power hike over petrol to compensate, too. Namely a 560bhp EV powertrain that’s hooked up to a 40kWh battery. Enough for 640bhp/tonne and a 0-62mph time of 2.5secs, two tenths quicker than an internal combustion RP1. More of which in a sec.

The EV will squeeze 180 miles of range from a charge at road speeds, while Elemental promises “20 laps of the Silverstone GP circuit at full race pace” on track. Which equates to around 75 miles.

“The 800v electrical architecture allows the use of ultra-fast charging and with 80 per cent charging in under an hour,” we’re also told, making the RP1 “an EV that can be a highly effective track car and still be used to drive home at the end of the day”. The tech’s been developed hand-in-hand with Apex, of AP-O supercar fame.

Do you still crave properly light weight and a petrol engine? The stock RP1 has morphed into the RP1R, its Ford-sourced 2.3-litre turbo engine now 50bhp healthier for a 370bhp total and 0-62mph in 2.7secs. Both it and the EV come with an optional windscreen as well as “an enhanced aerodynamics package delivering at least 1000kg of downforce at 150mph”. Should be enough.

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How does 640bhp/tonne, 1000kg of downforce and 20 laps of Silverstone on a charge sound?