Electra Meccanica steals show
Local company turned heads with its two new all-electric vehicles
It seems fitting that a Vancouver-based automaker stole some thunder from the exotic and luxury carmakers who rolled out their supercars at the Vancouver International Auto Show.
Better still that Electra Meccanica builds nothing but all-electric vehicles, underscoring the green theme of the show that wrapped Sunday at the downtown convention centre.
Last year the small company unveiled its one-seater Solo model, and I’m told that clever commuter, which is being delivered to customers and being fabricated at a New West production facility, has a waiting list in excess of 500.
No doubt lists have already started for the two new EVs in the Electra Meccanica stable unveiled at the show — the Tofino and the Solo R.
The Tofino is a two-seat roadster the company calls an evolution of the classic Intermeccanica Roadster, the world-class Porsche 356 replicas the Vancouver-based builder Intermeccanica has been hand-fabricating for 30 years. Intermeccanica principal Harry Reisner oversees all Electra Meccanica production.
The other reveal vehicle, the Solo R, is a high-performance version of the Solo electric car which debuted in September.
“We are very proud to showcase our company, along with a couple of extremely exciting new vehicles at our hometown show,” Electra Meccanica president Mark West said. “The passion behind these cars is a massive step forward for our brand and they represent the best of what we can achieve from a performance standpoint.”
Designed by a world-class coach-building team from Intermeccanica with an all-electric drivetrain, the Tofino will provide a spirited and powerful driving experience, West said. The vehicle will be hand-crafted with an evolutionary design nod to the popular Intermeccanica Roadster.
In short, a classic car look with 21st Century technology.
Equipped with a high-performance, all-electric motor with a top speed of 200 km/h and a 0 to 100 km/h sprint time under seven seconds, the two-seater promises a full charge range of up to 400 km, the company says.
The chassis and body are made of a lightweight aerospace-grade composite, and the available colours include Titanium Silver, Electric Red, Raven Black, Arctic White, and Bionic Bronze.
The suggested retail price starts at $50,000, with estimated deliveries beginning by 2019.
The Solo R is a race-prepped performance variant of the Solo commuter vehicle, and will feature a high-performance battery system mated to performance brakes, oversized wheels and racing slicks. No pricing has been released yet. All of these updates come courtesy of Electra Meccanica’s Advanced Performance Team. More information on the EMV race program can be found at EMVRacing.com.
Interested individuals can make a $1,000 reservation for the Tofino by logging on to electrameccanica.com.
Electra Meccanica is also offering dealer opportunities and accepting fully-refundable $250 deposits for the Solo, which can also be made online at electrameccanica.com.