Fun fact: The battery pack is equivalent to 9,000 cell phone batteries.
SEAT stunned (pun intended), when it revealed the Cupra e-Racer at the Geneva Motor Show a few months back. The world’s first electric touring vehicle, the zero-emissions racing car is not branded as a SEAT as it belongs to the Spanish brand Cupra. After its world premiere at the Swiss Show, the interesting EV traveled to Zagreb, Croatia to perform its first track test.
The not-a-SEAT Cupra e-Racer’s continuous power output is 300 kilowatts (402 horses), but peak power can reach 670 hp (670 kW). The Cupra Leon is available in either front- or all-wheel drive configurations. However, the track-only model uses an RWD configuration.
The switch from a conventional combustion engine to an entirely electrical powertrain has increased the vehicle’s weight by more than 661 pounds (300 kg) compared to the Leon TCR. It has also changed the weight distribution from 60/40 front/rear, to 40/60. Despite being heavier, the Cupra e-Racer can reach speeds of 125 mph (201 kph), in as little as 3.5 seconds from a standstill.
Cupra shared some preliminary information about the battery pack at the first track test of the race car. It is composed of 6,072 small cell batteries. This is equivalent to 9,000 mobile phones batteries. These batteries will be able to power the e-Racer in the new E-TCR (Electric Touring Car Races).
The results of the test in Croatia, which produced “very optimistic” results, will be used to fine-tune the car in order to make it ready for its competitive debut.