GENEVA: Luxury electric vehicles brand Automobili
Pininfarina, part of the Mahindra Group, on Tuesday unveiled its luxury
electric vehicle Battista here that is touted to be faster than a current
Formula 1 race car in its 0-100 kmph sub-two second sprint.
When
it arrives in 2020, the Battista will be the most powerful car ever designed
and built in Italy.
It
has the potential to accelerate to 62 mph in less than two seconds, faster than
a Formula 1 car, and break the 250 mph top speed barrier — all with potential
zero emissions range of over 300 miles, the company said.
It
will deliver a level of performance that is “unachievable today in any
road-legal sports car featuring internal combustion engine technology”, it
said.
“This
is the most authentic and exciting automotive story imaginable,” Automobili
Pininfarina chief executive officer (CEO) Michael Perschke told reporters. “The
Battista is the hypercar of the future, inspired by a legendary past,” he said.
Electrification unlocks the door to a new level of performance and a zero-emissions future, whilst a passion and respect for automotive history will define how this landmark car looks and feels, he added. “We aim for the Battista to be a future classic and automotive icon, writing its own page in automotive history books,” Perschke said. No more than 150 Battistas will be hand-crafted in Italy and allocated equally between the regions of North America, Europe and Middle East/Asia, Pininfarina said.
Electrification unlocks the door to a new level of performance and a zero-emissions future, whilst a passion and respect for automotive history will define how this landmark car looks and feels, he added. “We aim for the Battista to be a future classic and automotive icon, writing its own page in automotive history books,” Perschke said. No more than 150 Battistas will be hand-crafted in Italy and allocated equally between the regions of North America, Europe and Middle East/Asia, Pininfarina said.
Customer
service will be delivered through some of the world’s best luxury car retail
specialists, from Los Angeles to London to Tokyo, it added.
The
Turin-based company has named the model after Battista ‘Pinin’ Farina, the
founder of the Carrozzeria Pininfarina coach building company that he started
in 1930. The all-electric hypercar is designed and handbuilt in very limited
numbers at Pininfarina SpA.
Based
out of Europe, Automobili Pininfarina combines its automotive design prowess
with Mahindra’s growing electric vehicle (EV) expertise, gained from participation
in the Formula E electric racing car championship.
The
Mahindra Group had acquired Pininfarina in late 2015 for an overall outgo of
over €50 million after months of negotiations.
“Yes
it finally happened. I am still in a state of disbelief that we have come so
far with what seemed like a gleam in our eyes...” tweeted Anand Mahindra, the
chairman of the Mahindra group.
Source: THE HINDUSTAN TIMES-6th March,2019
