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I went to the launch event in San Francisco where they had this (in cobalt blue) and another hypercar (R8 e-tron I think). What bugged me then and still bugs m
by ceocoder 8y ago
I went to the launch event in San Francisco where they had this (in cobalt blue) and another hypercar (R8 e-tron I think). What bugged me then and still bugs me now is how they are treating "electric", as in trying to add electric motors in the same Q5 chassis, including keeping some vestigial things around - like pedal shifters[2] that are still present in the pictures from article. When I asked about what purpose they serve, people running the event replied something along the lines of "they make the car go faster". Compared to amount of space you get in a Model X - a frunk and a massive trunk, there was rather limited space in this car.
I really wish Audi/Benz/BMW would treat electric cars more seriously, and not as PR projects like the i3 or e-Golf.
[1] http://www.thedrive.com/news/23364/third-gen-audi-r8-will-be-a-1000-hp-electric-hypercar-report http://www.thedrive.com/news/23364/third-gen-audi-r8-will-be...
[2] https://i.imgur.com/qEp4aOi.png https://i.imgur.com/qEp4aOi.png
- mrfusion 8y agoWhat do the pedal shifters do?
- woofyman 8y agoHe meant “paddle shifters”. They allow manual shifting of an automatic transmission.
- mrfusion 8y agoBut there are no gears to shift in electric.
- pjc50 8y agoTough. It's a luxury Audi, so it has paddle shifters. They just have to figure out something for them to do.
- ams6110 8y agoIn this vehicle they control the regenerative braking, i.e. make it more or less aggressive.
- mhh__ 8y agoElectric cars could have gears (e.g. Formula E) Also, the koenigsegg hybrid uses the paddles to control things other than the gear (Since AFAIK it has a CVT)
- baldeagle 8y agoI have a Chevy Bolt, and the 'brake more' paddle shifter is by far most used non-steering or acceleration control. Sometimes, I don't even need to use the foot brake at all. It reminds me of downshifting in my old Miata, without all the fun of the clutch.
- leoedin 8y agoThe i3 is a totally new, designed from scratch electric car. How is that not taking electric cars seriously?
- cjhopman 8y agoThose are called paddle shifters, not pedal. In the e-tron, they control the aggressiveness of the regenerative braking.
- alphabettsy 8y agoI like vehicles like the i3, but the styling isn’t for everyone and many buyer prefer a traditional looking vehicle. The Honda Insight for example was quite ugly IMO, but I would’ve bought one that looked more like a Civic or Accord. Also the R8 isn’t a hypercar, that’s more like a McLaren P1 or Porsche 918.