If you haven’t seen or heard the E30 BMW M3 live, you’ve seen it on the Internet or heard the urban legends to say the least.
That little sedan is one seriously fast machine, but what happens when the 80’s powerplant is replaced by a current electric motor?
Can you ruin it completely or what happens with such an interesting decision? What are the real positives of what is going on with such an alternative solution?
Croatia’s Rimac Automobili set out to find out by creating this mean green electric machine. Unlike most eco-friendly folks, they didn’t opt for a small engine that’s worthy of a cruise around town.
Instead, they fitted a VST DC Motor which develops 600 horsepower and 663 lb-ft of torque. The torque offers up an instant kick as it’s available at 0 rpm.
That engine draws it’s power from a 24 kWh battery pack and it can propel the E30 BMW M3 from 0 to 60 in just 3.3 seconds or up to a top speed of 174 mph.
Those stats are what’s going on when talking about the spec sheet, what really happened when Rimac took the car to a runway and tested it spoke of new records.
Lining up for a straight line run, the E30 M3 EV managed to snag up five new world records for electric cars. The list includes:
Quickest 1/8 mile time of 7.549
Quickest 1/4 mile time of 11.808
Quickest 1/2 mile time of 13.714
Quickest 1 km time of 23.260
Quickest 1 mile time of 35.347
The first two of these records have already been certified by the FIA officials with the latter three still pending approval.
Maybe electric isn’t all that bad after all?
