It looks sleek and fast, like a green version of a glossy Batmobile. Watch out Tesla Motors because Faraday Future—a California-based electric car company—debuted their battery-powered FFZERO1 at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas on Monday night.
While the unveiled vehicle is only a concept, the company has announced the car boasts 1,000 horsepower, can go from 0 to 60 mph in three seconds, and tops out at speeds over 200 mph.
By the way Faraday Future promotes its concept car, it sounds as if the car is like a glove that envelops the driver, promoting intuitive control. The interior features a zero gravity driving station, which “allows for unparalleled sense of weightlessness (and) reduced driver fatigue” by the holding the driver at a perfect 45-degree angle, which promotes circulation, according to the company. Additionally, a helmet provides the driver with oxygen and water, and a Halo Safety System provides the driver’s head and neck with support.
The steering wheel has a smartphone dock fitted into its center, which allows easy access to information. “Conceptually, this setup could enable the smartphone to serve as the interface between the vehicle and the driver in—and outside—of the car,” Faraday Future said.
The car’s carbon fiber and lightweight body ensures “minimal drag, maximum vehicle efficiency, (and) exceptional driver safety,” according to Faraday Future. And an aerodynamic tunnel allows air to travel through the vehicle, reducing drag and providing cool air to the batteries and motor surfaces.
But the true highlight is the powertrain, called the Variable Platform Architecture, which is highly customizable. “That platform is done on a very modular and flexible basis such that we can change the size of the platform,” said Nick Sampson, a senior VP at Faraday in charge of R&D and engineering, to The Verge. “We can change the number and power of the drive systems. We can change the physical size and electrical size of the battery packs, so we can get bigger and larger packs and smaller packs both on the electrical size and physical size because of the modularity of how the battery architecture is being done, which is unique compared to anybody else in the industry. The underlying story is all about the platform that’s being built.”
The underlying platform will be used on all subsequent Faraday models.
In the end, the FFZERO1 is simply a concept car. Faraday plans on releasing its first production car in 2018, according to BBC News.
Ground will be broken in a few weeks at the company’s first factory site, which will near Las Vegas. The company will invest $1 billion in the creation of the 3 million square foot facility. The company plans to employ 4,500 people at the site.
“The FFZERO01 Concept is an amplified version of the design and engineering philosophies informing…forthcoming production vehicles,” said Richard Kim, Faraday Future’s head of design. “This project liberated our designers and inspired new approaches for vehicle forms, proportions and packaging that we can apply to our upcoming production models.”
The company is partnering with Chinese TV provider LeTv on its future automotive endeavors.
