Ultra-fast niobium batteries boast 6-min charge for Lotus Elise-based EV
Enlarge / The Lotus Elise is an archetypal lightweight sports car. Now, it has inspired a showcase for new battery technology, courtesy of Nyobolt. (credit: Jonathan Gitlin)
Polestar provided a flight from Washington, DC, to London and back and two nights in a hotel so we could visit its UK R&D center and attend the Goodwood Festival Of Speed. While we were there, we also spoke to Nyobolt about its battery technology. Ars does not accept paid editorial content.
GOODWOOD, England-When is a Lotus Elise not a Lotus Elise? When it's the Nyobolt EV-which, to be accurate, is actually a stretched Lotus Exige chassis with new bodywork designed by Julian Thompson, who styled the original Elise in 1996. Delightful though the little sports car is, what's under the skin is even more intriguing. The concept showcases a new battery technology that promises more rapid DC charging than any electric vehicle currently on sale.
As just about everyone who has driven one knows, EVs really are better at almost everything. They're three to four times more efficient than vehicles that burn gasoline, there are fewer moving parts to break, they're quieter and smoother, and they offer near-instant torque.
But it still takes longer to recharge a battery than refill a gas tank, and EV charging locations don't shout their presence with 50-foot ad displays along highways. That's engendered a general sense of range anxiety among many car buyers, leading car makers to pack their EVs with bigger batteries in an effort to beef up their range numbers. And that, in turn, makes those EVs heavy and expensive.