Lightning GT... Anyone heard of this one?

[voyager]

Came across this one... Electric power with classic GT looks, like the old Maserati Ghibli... The Lightning GT accelerates to 97 km/h (60 mph) in less than 4 seconds and is geared for over 200 km/hr (124 mph). Its body will be made from carbon fibre and the chassis from a honeycomb aluminium structure. This unique H chassis will also house the battery modules which when integrated add massive torsional and beam strength. Final assembly location has yet to be determined but is likely to be outside of the UK.

 

[J1mbo]

Yeah, lovely car. Saw it at the London Motorshow in 2008...

In a much smaller stall near the main entrance at the same show, next to the French "electric quadcycle" company MEGA, I discovered these guys with their little kit car conversion...

Amazing what can happen in 8 years eh?

 

[voyager]

It's the sweet smell of what was about to happen...

 

[Takumi]

Lightning GT

 

[ecarfan]

Yeah, lovely car. Saw it at the London Motorshow in 2008...

Hmmm..so 8 years ago...

Amazing what can happen in 8 years eh?

Yes, amazing! Tesla is now producing 2 different revolutionary EVs at an annual production rate of about 100K/year, and the Lightning GT is being produced at a rate of...zero/year as near as I can tell. In the TMC thread that @Takumi linked to, the most recent post was made in 2012.

 

[mhpr262]

Oh god, I had almost forgotten that thing! Reading about the Lightning GT car started my fascination with electric vehicles. I had never thought it possible to do what the builders claimed they were going to do with electric power.

When I did further research on EVs I even came across a picture of the very earliest Alpha-prototype of the Model S and thought "yeah, 300 miles on a charge - that will never happen. A typical pipedream, we will never hear of that project ever again."