► The fastest electric cars
► We list the quickest EVs
► Ranked by 0-62mph times
Unless you’ve been living under a particularly large rock for the past few years, you’ll be well aware of the accelerative performance of electric cars; how swapping a petrol engine for a motor can result in face-bending acceleration, even from modest plug-in cars.
But, while anecdotally we all know Teslas are among the quickest cars ever made, the sheer quantity of electric cars capable of hitting 60mph in well under five seconds – and in several cases under two seconds – is extraordinary.
The performance of electric cars is rewriting automotive Top Trumps, as family-friendly saloons out-accelerate the quickest of the last generation’s hypercars, and comparisons between Formula 1 cars and supercars no longer seem relevant.
Here, we have assembled the quickest electric cars of 2021. This list includes cars that are available to buy right now, as well as those which can be pre-ordered, and those that have been announced and are expected on the road in the near future. Hold on tight for a run-through of the strongest silent performance heroes.
The fastest EVs 2021
0-60mph: 1.69sec
Top speed: 249mph
Price: £2.5m
The Owl is an electric hypercar from Japanese company Aspark. A run of 50 vehicles is planned, with prices starting at around £2.5 million. Yes, the Owl has a head-turning price...
The Aspark uses four electric motors and a compact 64kWh battery to launch from rest to 60mph in a claimed 1.69 seconds, putting it at the top of our leader board. Aspark also claims a 0-186mph time of 10.9 seconds and a top speed of 249mph.
Range is a claimed 280 miles, but we have to wonder just how gently the Owl needs to be driven to make its small battery go that far on a single charge. We suspect the slippery body and a roofline lower than a Ford GT40 may have something to do with it.
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0-60mph: 1.85sec
Top speed: 258mph
Price: c£2m
The second car to come from Croatian electric car maker Rimac, the C_Two is as much a hypercar for the public to buy as it is a way to market Rimac’s technology to potential partners. Rimac already works with Aston Martin, Koenigsegg and Automobili Pininfarina, and Porsche is a shareholder.
Back to the C_Two itself, and the numbers are extraordinary. Power is up massively from the original Rimac Concept One, from 1073 horsepower to 1914hp. This, plus all-wheel-drive and a sophisticated launch control, results in a claimed 0-60mph sprint time of 1.85 seconds.
Rimac is also claiming a 0-100mph time of a scarcely believable 4.3 seconds, 186mph in 11.8 seconds, a quarter-mile time of 9.1 seconds, and a top speed of 258mph. Deploy your right foot with restraint, and Rimac claims the C_Two has a range of 403 miles from its 120 kWh battery.
Rimac plans to build 150 examples of the C_Two, each likely costing in the region of £2m.
0-60mph: 1.9sec
Top speed: 250mph+
Price: £189,000
Revealed back in 2017 and expected with customers later this year (although Tesla is no stranger to delays), the second-generation Roadster can hit 60mph in a claimed 1.9 seconds, has a top speed of over 250mph, and a range of a massive 620 miles, thanks to a 200kWh battery twice the size of Tesla’s largest to date.
Of course, this is all based on Tesla’s claims for now, but the company certainly has a knack for (eventually) making good on its promises.
Tesla also claims a 0-100mph time of 4.2 seconds and a quarter-mile time of 8.8 seconds, both undercutting the Rimac C_Two. An all-wheel-drive 2+2 with detachable glass roof, the Roadster is priced incredibly aggressively, with a UK price for the limited-edition Founders Series of £189,000.
0-60mph: <1.99sec
Top speed: 199mph
Price: £139,980
Tesla has steadily lowered the Model S’s 0-60 time over the years, to the point where it now sits below two seconds thanks to the latest Plaid + model. For a large saloon weighing comfortably over two tonnes and with seating for five, that’s hugely impressive.
Expect 1100bhp, a range of 520+ miles and a quarter mile time of less than nine seconds.
0-60mph: <2.0sec
Top speed: 217mph
Price: c£2m
Winner of most syllables in a name, the Battista by Automobili Pininfarina is an electric hypercar which shares its battery pack and other components with the Rimac C_Two. This means it has a large 120kWh battery pack powering four electric motors.
A classically good looking supercar instead of resembling a spaceship, the Battista promises a sub-two-second 0-60mph time, a 0-186mph sprint of 12 seconds, and a top speed of 217mph. Range is a claimed 280 mile, while the four motors have a combined power output of 1400kW, which is 1877 horsepower in old money, and ‘somewhat adequate’ in plain English.
Production of the planned 150 examples is set to begin this year, and you’ll likely need to stump up in the region of £2m to secure one for yourself.
0-60mph: <2.4sec
Top speed: 155mph
Price: c£90,000
It would be fair to say EV start-up Faraday Future has had a tough time bringing its first car, the FF91, to market. Years of ups and downs, along with a fair share of corporate controversy, cast doubt on the entire company more than once. But now, with former BMW i boss Carsten Breitfeld at the helm, the company says the FF91 is almost ready for production.
A Model X-sized car but with luxurious, business class-style seating in the back, the FF91 was first said to have a 0-60mph time of 2.39 seconds, but the company has since said 2.2 seconds is closer to the mark, thanks to all-wheel-drive and 1050 horsepower on tap.
FF is claiming a range of over 350 miles from the car’s 120kWh battery pack, and the FF91 will be priced at around £90,000 to £170,000 depending on options.
0-60mph: 2.7sec
Top speed: 196mph
Price: £2.5m
Developed with assistance from Nio’s Formula E team, the EP9 is an electric hypercar limited to just 16 examples.
Four electric motors serve up a combined power output of 1341 horsepower (also known as one megawatt), resulting in a 0-60mph time of 2.7 seconds. The EP9 reaches 125mph in 7.1 seconds and has a top speed of almost 200mph.
Range is a claimed 265 miles, but if you are less careful with your right foot the £2.5m EP9 will lap the Nurburgring Nordschleife in 6min 45.9sec, setting a new record for a production electric car in 2017.
0-60mph: 2.7sec
Top speed: 155mph
Price: £97,890
Tesla’s ludicrous 0-60 times are not limited to its smaller cars, as even the tank-like Model X Performance and its near-2500kg bulk clocks in at 2.7 seconds.
A true seven-seater, the Model X Performance also has a top speed of 155mph and a WLTP range of 301 miles – and, yes, there are those spectacular ‘falcon-wing’ rear doors, which never fail to cause a scene when dropping the kids off at school.
Sharing its chassis and drivetrain with the Model X is the perfect example of how an electric car’s platform (and otherworldly performance) can easily be shared across a manufacturer’s range.
0-62mph: 2.8sec
Top speed: 162mph
Price: £135,326
Stepping away from electric hypercars for a moment, we have the decidedly more sensible – but still otherworldly quick – Porsche Taycan. Specifically, the Turbo S model, which has a 0-62mph time of 2.8 seconds thanks to its 93.4kWh battery pack, all-wheel-drive, and peak power output of 751 horsepower.
Uniquely, the Taycan employs a two-speed gearbox, where the first gear is only used to launch off the line as quickly as possible, before shifting to the second gear which is used for the rest of the time.
Thanks to its 800-volt architecture, the Taycan is also quick at charging, with it taking as little as 21 minutes to top up the range from 24 to 188 miles. Total range of the Turbo S is 235 miles.
0-60mph: <3.0sec
Top speed: 200mph+
Price: £1.5m
Yet another member of the sub-three-second club, the Lotus Evija promises to be the world’s most powerful road car when production begins by the end of the year, thanks to a claimed output of 1970 horsepower.
All that power comes from a fairly modest 70kWh battery pack developed in partnership with Williams Advanced Engineering, and is sent to four electric motors, one driving each wheel. That’s a little over 490 horsepower per wheel…
We suspect Lotus is seriously sandbagging when it comes to the Evija’s acceleration, with 0-60mph taking 'under three seconds' and the top speed being 'over 200mph'. We wouldn’t be surprised to see the former closer to two seconds, and the latter closer to 250 than 200. Lotus is hoping for a fairly conservative 250 miles of range, but says the Evija will stick to the company’s trademark of ‘adding lightness’ by tipping the scales at 1680kg. For an electric car, that’s impressive.
0-62mph: 3.0sec
Top speed: 125mph
Price: c£53,000
If the Model X’s size and performance were already somewhat incongruous, then electric vehicle start-up Rivian will soon take things up a gear. Again taking advantage of EV platform sharing, the company’s upcoming R1S SUV and R1T pick-up truck will offer 0-60mph times of 3.0 seconds, and pass the 100mph barrier in under seven seconds.
These figures are for the range-topping example of each vehicle, which has a 135 kWh battery, a range of 310 miles, and a total power output of 753 horsepower. Rivian will also offer a huge 180kWh battery, but this is purely for range instead of performance, with 410 miles and 700 horsepower being the expected figures.
Production is expected to begin later this year, and prices start at a modest $69,000.
0-62mph: 3.2sec
Top speed: 162mph
Price: £52,000
Who’d have thought a sensible family car would match a McLaren F1 to 60mph? That’s exactly what you get with the Tesla Model 3 Performance, along with seating for five, boots in the front and back, a 162mph top speed, and a range of up to 329 miles using the WLTP standard.
The smallest of Tesla’s current offerings, the Model 3 is quickly becoming a mass-market success, thanks to prices starting at below £40,000. But if you want the F1-matching Performance version, you’ll be looking at £52,000.
0-62mph: 3.3sec
Top speed: 155mph
Price: £111,900
Finally, and notice how we are still comfortably below five seconds, we have the Audi e-Tron GT. It might share the same bespoke J1 electric platform as the Porsche, but it's a completely different prospect. The Audi's performance doesn't get served up in bottomless servings like the Porsche – it's progressive rather than instant. Pretty damn comfortable, too.
The WLTP range is 283 miles - if you want more you could always go for the regular e-Tron, which has an official range of up to 296 miles. Admittedly, you'll need to 'make do' with a 0-62mph time of 4.1 seconds.
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