Why McMurtry Speirling is the best electric car
One of the highlights of the 2022 Goodwood Festival of Speed was when the McMurtry Spéirling electric fan car smashed the historic hillclimb record. The car they used to set the record wasn’t the final production version of the vehicle, but the company did say it wasn’t going to be long until the series model was revealed.
After the manufacturer finally lifted the veil off the production Spéirling, it appears that little has changed from the bonkers car that wowed Goodwood. This is great news for EV fans who are also driving enthusiasts because this vehicle has to be the world’s maddest electric vehicle, one that provides an equally crazy driving experience.
Let’s check out what makes the McMurtry Spéirling so unique!
1. Extreme Power-to-Weight Ratio
Measuring 3.4 meters, or 133.9 inches, in length and 1.5 meters, or 59.1 inches wide, the McMurtry Spéirling has the same footprint as a tiny Japanese kei car, although it is much shorter, standing just over 1 meter, or 41.3 inches tall.
Thanks to its small size and carbon fiber construction, it is expected to weigh under 1,000 kilograms, or 2,200 pounds. The final figure has not been released, but the 1,000-horsepower Spéirling should have a power-to-weight ratio of around 1 horsepower per kilogram, which is about the same as the Koenigsegg One:1 hypercar and comparable to a Formula 1 car.
2. It’s Quicker Than Most Purpose-Built Racing Cars
With this incredible power-to-weight ratio comes great acceleration. Even though only the rear wheels are powered, the Spéirling is still able to launch itself alarmingly quickly, reaching 60 mph from a standstill in just 1.4 seconds and 100 mph in 2.63 seconds, as measured by Carwow in the video above.
It can reach its limited top speed of 150 mph in just over 5 seconds, and it completes the standing quarter-mile in 8 seconds. The Spéirling took the quarter-mile sprint record from the Pininfarina Battista, the sister vehicle to the mighty Rimac Nevera quad-motor electric hypercar.
3. Fan Sucks the Car to the Road
Probably the Spéirling’s most unique feature is its fan. While the car does have traditional a traditional wing on the back to help push the vehicle into the tarmac so that it can corner at high speed, it’s the fan that keeps it glued to the road.
This fan essentially sucks the vehicle onto whatever surface it’s driving on thanks to skirts around the vehicle that help create a reasonably airtight seal. At top speed, McMurtry says the Spéirling is generating more downforce than a Formula 1 car, which means it should have no problem driving upside down through a tunnel.
4. Racing Car-Like Single-Seater Layout
In an effort to minimize unnecessary weight, McMurtry decided to make the Spéirling a single-seater vehicle. This resulted in a very narrow-looking car with a jet fighter-like glass canopy above the driver.
From inside the vehicle, the central position gives you a feeling of complete precision and control over the vehicle. You sit very low in the Spéirling, and this gives a strong sense of connection between driver and machine. It’s a lot like a Formula E electric racing car when it comes to its layout.
You really need to feel like you’re in control of this vehicle because, between its immense power output, low weight, very responsive steering, and the extra downforce added by the fan system, it corners like nothing else. Driving this vehicle spiritedly requires a lot of concentration and is extremely physically demanding, and being in the center of the car helps it all seem just that little bit more manageable.
5. The Fan Makes It Really Loud
Electric vehicles, even the quickest ones, operate almost completely silently. But this is not the case with the McMurtry Spéirling, whose fan makes it sound more like a jet than a car. Turned all the way up, the fan produces around 120 decibels, which is close to an actual jet engine in terms of noise.
The driver can adjust the fan power depending on grip needs, so when you’re just cruising around in the Spéirling, it’s just as quiet as any other EV. With the fan off is also how you can come close to achieving its maximum range.
There Is Nothing Else Like It
You can order a McMurtry Spéirling Pure for £820,000, not including taxes, which is around $1.04 million. That makes it one of the most expensive vehicles in the world, and you’ll have to wait until 2025 to take delivery, but we can’t think of another electric vehicle that promises to offer an experience anywhere similar. It is the kind of EV that will get a driving enthusiast’s juices flowing.
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