If the first wave of EVs this century hid their combustion-humbling performance potential under sleeper skins, the latest generation is making up for it. This is the HiPhi A, a Chinese EV that isn’t just lightning fast, but looks it even when it’s standing still. You might recognize the basic shape from the HiPhi Z liftback sedan unveiled by Human Horizons last year. But the A ramps up both the power and the visual aggression in equal measure to deliver a tri-motor monster that makes a Model S Plaid look as exciting as a used Camry.
The A uses its single rear motor and dual
fronts to spread a total of 1,287 hp between all four wheels, which
makes it almost twice as powerful as the 662 hp dual-motor Z it’s
based on. And instead of taking 3.8 seconds to reach 100 km/h, the A
can get there in just over 2 seconds, so should be a good match for a Tesla
Model S Plaid in a drag race, Tesla quoting 1.99 seconds to 97 km/h.
The Plaid would win if the road was long enough though, its 320 km/h top speed besting the Z’s 300 km/h top end by some margin, though
almost no owners of either car will see those speeds in real life.
HiPhi, which says the four-door supercar
is the result of collaboration with WESAIL New Energy Automotive, has equipped
the A with rear-wheel steering, adaptive damping, and torque-vectoring
capabilities, and claims corning and braking performance is up 15 percent and
10 percent over the less extreme Z. The already arresting body is made even
more eye-catching with the addition of a large rear wing, wider wheels and
tires, matte paint, and generous helpings of carbon fiber trim.
There’s no word on prices at this stage,
or whether the model will come to Europe, where HiPhi intends to sell the
regular Z and its X SUV, but Chinese buyers can probably expect to pay high-end
Porsche Taycan money when it does go on sale.
