Car manufacturers Porsche and Audi have both unveiled new luxury electric vehicle concepts, though it will be several years before either is available on the market.
Porsche’s concept car was seen at the Frankfurt auto show, and resembles a “futuristic” Porsche 911. Called the Mission E, the four-door can drive 310 miles from a full charge. It will only take 15 minutes to charge the battery to 80% capacity. Teslas currently take 30 minutes to reach an 80% charge, but their chargers are becoming faster as well.
The Mission E would also have a longer range than the Model S; the new electric vehicle can travel 250 miles after charging for 15 minutes, compared to 170 miles from 30 minutes of charging. The Porsche concept car can even be charged wirelessly, distinguishing it from the competition. The electric vehicles can be parked on top of a coil which will be installed in the floor of the garage. That means the cars won’t even need to be plugged in to charge.
A spokesperson for Porsche explained that it could take five whole years before battery technology becomes sophisticated enough for the Mission E. VW CEO Martin Winterkorn explains that the company actually plans to manufacture 20 different new electric vehicles or hybrids by 2020.
The Mission E also has the speed associated with Porsche, and can accelerate from 0-60 in less than 3.5 seconds.
Audi also has a new concept car, an electrically-charged SUV known as the E-Tron Quattro. Audi’s version will be able to travel just as far as the Mission E, and will begin manufacturing in 2018.
In addition to its clean energy source, the E-Tron Quattro will also have eye-tracking controls, holographic images near the dashboard, and gesture-activated controls.
Image (c) Porsche
