What's the news?
Aston Martin has confirmed that it will be its Rapide that will be its first all-electric production car, going under the name Rapide E.
Aston Martin, working with Williams Advanced Engineering as a development partner, will build just 155 examples of the Rapide E - and it'll be pretty potent. Powered by an 800-volt battery electric architecture with 65kWh installed capacity, the battery pack sits in the spaces vacated by the regular Rapide's 6.0-litre V12 engine, gearbox and fuel tank. It serves two rear-mounted electric motors, delivering huge outputs of 610hp and 950Nm.
Aston and Williams have tried to keep the weight down while ensuring sufficient cooling for the battery pack, so the Rapide E has lightweight alloys and uses carbon composite materials in its construction. The target range for the Rapide E is more than 320km under new WLTP and Aston says it can charge super-fast on both 400V 50kW chargers and more powerful 800V 100kW chargers, allowing owners to quickly get back onto the road.
The aims of the project are to have a top speed of 250km/h, with a sub-four-second 0-100km/h time and a 80-110km/h run of 1.5 seconds, which are fine numbers anyway - but Aston is keen that the car will deliver these, no matter what the state of its battery's charge. So it should still turn in these figures with low battery power, while it is said to be able to do a full lap of the Nürburgring Nordschleife 'with absolutely no derating of the battery'.
The car's exterior and underbody has been aerodynamically optimised, as have the alloy wheels, which wear Pirelli P Zero tyres. Aston is keen for the Rapide E to drive in the same entertaining fashion as a Rapide S, so the rear-wheel-drive E's pair of motors drive the rear wheels through a limited-slip differential.
Anything else?
Andy Palmer, CEO Aston Martin, said: "Environmental responsibility and sustainability is a global challenge faced by us all. As a career automotive engineer, I'm proud that the car industry is leading the way in finding long-term solutions and reducing harmful emissions. As Aston Martin's CEO, I take particular satisfaction working with Williams Advanced Engineering and our other associated technology partners to bring Rapide E to reality.
"As our first all-electric production model, Rapide E will fast-track our knowledge and help us ensure the character and high-performance capabilities of our future EV models and enhance the unique qualities found in all Aston Martins as we know them today. Rapide E will also serve as a critical step on our path to re-launching Lagonda as the world's first zero-emission luxury marque."
Just 155 examples of the Rapide E will be built at Aston Martin's St Athan facility in Wales, which has been announced as the future 'Home of Electrification' for the Aston Martin and Lagonda brands. First customer deliveries are due towards the tail end of 2019.