Roadsters?

[sherbertdip]

I have driven quite a few EVs, and the performance impresses me, but what's stopping me getting one is that I simply don't need an SUV or in fact 4 seats, I'm holding off until there is a roadster available, the only one I've seen (ignoring Tesla original and pie in the sky version) is the mooted one by MG.

Does anybody know of any more?

[plfrench]

If you can wait a couple more years then Porsche's next Boxster might do the trick

https://www.evo.co.uk/porsche/cayman/203666/electr...

Or at a lower price point, I think I read somewhere there would be an EV mini convertible soonish and you can get a 500e convertible.

[Europa Jon]

Believe me, there ARE more in the pipeline, but we're talking a few years away from now. You have to grasp the fact that as batteries are still very expensive, car makers are only going to fit them to their biggest or most profitable sellers, like SUVs for us plebs or hypercars for those with more money than they need.

[JonChalk]

Polestar 6

Never going to be able to afford one, but unless or until Audi get an R8 BEV equivalent sorted, this is gorgeous.

[page3]

God forbid if one suggests an EV sportscar/roadster would go down well.

https://m.facebook.com/story.php?story_fbid=pfbid0...

[Nomme de Plum]

Europa Jon said:

Believe me, there ARE more in the pipeline, but we're talking a few years away from now. You have to grasp the fact that as batteries are still very expensive, car makers are only going to fit them to their biggest or most profitable sellers, like SUVs for us plebs or hypercars for those with more money than they need.

I concur manufactures are focusing on the high net return vehicles and not just EV.

I was looking at the i8 Roadster but it's Hybrid.

The Tacan 4S I had for a few months is a fantastic EV but silly money from new. I wonder where the Boxter will sit price wise and will they run different model variants, e.g. 300kw and 400kw

[NDA]

If the Tesla Roadster ever launches I am almost certain to get one.... I'm not sure it'll ever happen though.

[SWoll]

Nomme de Plum said:

I concur manufactures are focusing on the high net return vehicles and not just EV.

I was looking at the i8 Roadster but it's Hybrid.

The Tacan 4S I had for a few months is a fantastic EV but silly money from new. I wonder where the Boxter will sit price wise and will they run different model variants, e.g. 300kw and 400kw

Porsche are a funny one as if you look at the Taycan it's actually very well priced in comparison to the equivelant ICE Panamera, they're about the only manufacturer who manages that and I certainly woudnlt suggest they are silly money when you look at the wider market.

Looking at current Boxster prices though I woudn't expect much chan.ge from £70k + options for the base EV car. Very much a sellers market and they're guaranteed to have a long waiting list.

[paradigital]

I know I’m in such a niche market that it’ll either never happen or be so far to the back of the list that I’ll not longer be the target market by the time one arrives, but I REALLY want a 4-seat convertible EV to launch.

Combining my Model 3 Performance and my 440i cabriolet would be ideal.

We love a roof-down drive out as a family.

[Nomme de Plum]

SWoll said:

Nomme de Plum said:

I concur manufactures are focusing on the high net return vehicles and not just EV.

I was looking at the i8 Roadster but it's Hybrid.

The Tacan 4S I had for a few months is a fantastic EV but silly money from new. I wonder where the Boxter will sit price wise and will they run different model variants, e.g. 300kw and 400kw

Porsche are a funny one as if you look at the Taycan it's actually very well priced in comparison to the equivelant ICE Panamera, they're about the only manufacturer who manages that and I certainly woudnlt suggest they are silly money when you look at the wider market.

Looking at current Boxster prices though I woudn't expect much chan.ge from £70k + options for the base EV car. Very much a sellers market and they're guaranteed to have a long waiting list.

I really enjoyed the Taycan and at the time could have purchased it for significantly less than current used prices but as it was in Europe not much use here.

I could feel the mass especially around bends and under hard breaking but under normal progress it was a very easy car to live with.

If I bought a Boxter I would still need another car which would be a bit pointless as my annual mileage is less than 3k these days.

[TheDeuce]

paradigital said:

I know I’m in such a niche market that it’ll either never happen or be so far to the back of the list that I’ll not longer be the target market by the time one arrives, but I REALLY want a 4-seat convertible EV to launch.

Combining my Model 3 Performance and my 440i cabriolet would be ideal.

We love a roof-down drive out as a family.

The i4 M50 is most of the way there, they just need to get around to a soft top version..

Definitely a waiting game right now for the sort of fun EV that a lot of people want, although I fully sympathise with the manufacturers deciding to focus on the big selling categories first.

Fingers crossed the MG roadster is a good car, sells very well and in doing so pulls focus back toward this segment.

[Risonax]

sherbertdip said:

I have driven quite a few EVs, and the performance impresses me, but what's stopping me getting one is that I simply don't need an SUV or in fact 4 seats, I'm holding off until there is a roadster available, the only one I've seen (ignoring Tesla original and pie in the sky version) is the mooted one by MG.

Does anybody know of any more?

Seems to have moved on from "mooted"

[TheDeuce]

Risonax said:

sherbertdip said:

I have driven quite a few EVs, and the performance impresses me, but what's stopping me getting one is that I simply don't need an SUV or in fact 4 seats, I'm holding off until there is a roadster available, the only one I've seen (ignoring Tesla original and pie in the sky version) is the mooted one by MG.

Does anybody know of any more?

Seems to have moved on from "mooted"

The first new MG to look like an MG..

In previous threads I have imagined the idea of an EV MX5, on the basis that such a car could avoid the range=weight penalty of larger batteries by simply giving up on range and focussing on lightness and packaging. There's loads of town car type EV's that can't do more than 100 miles. What's wrong with a run-around roadster EV that can also do only 100 miles? I'm sure a significant % of existing MX5 drivers very rarely exceed that sort of journey length anyway.

It's the determination that range sells that is keeping smaller, fun EV's at bay - along with the temptation to focus on mass selling SUV's of course. But I can't help but think this range obsession is largely media fuelled and isn't actually that big of a deal for most drivers. My EV at worst has a 200 mile real world range and 2-3 times a year that means I have to use a public charger. But if that range was halved, I would probably still only need to use a public charger less than 10 times a year. It would be mildly annoying in terms of convenience but I'd consider it in terms of less weight - especially if I wanted a roadster.

A 40kwh roadster could be immense fun. Imagine a car only slightly heavier than a traditional roadster but gifted with several hundred horsepower, immense torque, a super low CoG and dirt cheap running costs no matter how hard you drive it. It's bound to happen eventually...

[NDA]

Nomme de Plum said:

I really enjoyed the Taycan and at the time could have purchased it for significantly less than current used prices but as it was in Europe not much use here.

I could feel the mass especially around bends and under hard breaking but under normal progress it was a very easy car to live with.

I didn't enjoy the Taycan when I drove it - I am one of the few on here that found it felt heavy/cumbersome. I liked the look and the interior - but not the drive.

I know it's a bit heretical to say such a thing!

I am not an engineer, but I would have thought it possible to take (say) the chassis and batteries from a Model 3 and put a roadster body on top.

[hiccy18]

I read the MG was getting launched in April, UK deliveries expected in '24. Suspecting they've put an EV drivetrain in a restyled MGF, but we'll see what the end result is.

[Nomme de Plum]

NDA said:

Nomme de Plum said:

I really enjoyed the Taycan and at the time could have purchased it for significantly less than current used prices but as it was in Europe not much use here.

I could feel the mass especially around bends and under hard breaking but under normal progress it was a very easy car to live with.

I didn't enjoy the Taycan when I drove it - I am one of the few on here that found it felt heavy/cumbersome. I liked the look and the interior - but not the drive.

I know it's a bit heretical to say such a thing!

I am not an engineer, but I would have thought it possible to take (say) the chassis and batteries from a Model 3 and put a roadster body on top.

I posted elsewhere that I said i could feel the mass of the vehicle but Porsche rarely get it wrong and Tacan sales are very strong despite the price. We had the Macan GTS at the same time and IMO the Tacan won hands down.

We loved the effortless acceleration and relative quietness and the Tourissmo adds back some additional practicality.

Turning a saloon into a roaster is not that simple. The whole body gives the car rigidity. The solid monocoque helps reduce flex and twist. Think of the ICE cars like Mercs and Audis that have saloon and convertible options. Quite a bit of extra strengthening required which of course adds weight.

[Silvanus]

hiccy18 said:

I read the MG was getting launched in April, UK deliveries expected in '24. Suspecting they've put an EV drivetrain in a restyled MGF, but we'll see what the end result is.

Not even remotely related to the MGF. Its based on mechanicals of the new MG4 so its thoroughly up to date, likely to be pretty quick if the hatchback is anything to go by.

Below are a couple of renders of how its expected to look, toned down a bit, but similar, to the Cyberstar concept.

Expected to be the cheapest of the upcoming EV sports cars.

[Risonax]

Bit of a teaser video, enough to confirm a conventional MX5-style hold, scissor doors.

[Risonax]

MG Cyberster, or MG-C or MG-E (all names are possible).

[Hill92]

Nomme de Plum said:

Turning a saloon into a roaster is not that simple. The whole body gives the car rigidity. The solid monocoque helps reduce flex and twist. Think of the ICE cars like Mercs and Audis that have saloon and convertible options. Quite a bit of extra strengthening required which of course adds weight.

Is that still the case for EVs given the skateboard battery packs add a fair bit of rigidity?