If you head down to your nearby dealership, you’ll no doubt see plenty of electric vehicles for sale. They’re just as sharp looking as your gas-powered models and a heck of a lot more efficient. You can discard any notions you may have had about EVs being boxy or slow. The former can be proven just by looking at them. The latter, though, people still tend to be doubtful about, especially people who like sports cars and are passionate about performance and power. Can EVs really keep up with gas and diesel vehicles?
Electric Sports Cars Quiet Critics
Anyone who still has doubts about the performance of electric vehicles needs to look no further than the range of sports cars that are now fully electric and available to purchase. Nope, we’re not talking about hybrids here, either. We are talking fully electric, as in no gas at all.
Why is it so noteworthy that sports cars, in particular, are electric? It’s because there’s no other type of vehicle that’s more associated with speed and style than a sports car. Whether you picture a muscular Dodge Charger from the 1970s or a sleek Mazda RX-7 from the 1990s, your personal vision of a sports car is often the vision you hold all other vehicles against.
You see, sports cars represent more than just speed. They represent a lifestyle, usually one defined by socialization, leisure, and thrills. With a sports car, there will be late-night drives down to the beach or twilight drives into the city. Now that this vision can come with an EV option, the idea of an electric future suddenly seems possible. If a sports car can be electric and effective, then so can any other type of vehicle. Maybe this really is the moment for the EV?
How Many Electric Sports Cars Are Coming?
Electric sports cars are relatively new, but the market already has a few you can choose from, all of which have impressed sports car aficionados. We like the upcoming electric Dodge Charger, which we’ll get into a bit more shortly, but most manufacturers that have been producing sports cars over the years now offer an electric option. Take Porsche, for example. The name alone signals luxury merged with strength, beauty merged with power. Porsche now offers an electric sports car: the Taycan.
It’s quite impressive, too. It comes in a variety of trims and body styles and has an aggressive recharging time. Under best conditions, it can charge from 5% to 80% in a little over 20 minutes. Its estimated range is also impressive, as the 2023 Taycan is rated for up to 396 km on a single charge. You won’t have to worry about stopping often at charging stations with stats like that. In terms of performance, well, this will knock your socks off: the top-trim Taycan Turbo S can go from zero to 100 km/h in just 2.8 seconds and has a top speed of 260 km/h. You’re basically piloting a supersonic jet at that point.
The upcoming 2024 model of the Taycan promises even more excitement. A lot of these electric sports cars are new, which means each new model makes larger leaps than we are used to seeing in just one year. Word is that the new Taycan will have updated styling and may offer a tri-motor option capable of producing a cool 1,000 hp to better compete with the Tesla Model S Plaid.
BMW has long been known for quality vehicles and has entered the electric sports car market. With a rated range of up to 484 km for the 2023 model, the BMW i4 has been raising eyebrows. It’s a unique-looking vehicle with a long front and an almost futuristic vibe. While its exterior might not be to everyone’s taste, drivers looking for a sci-fi sports sedan will think they’ve found the car of their dreams. It’s a bit more affordable than other options, although the base trims are not quite as fast as some other electric sports cars.
The top trim 2023 BMW i4 M50 does improve on that performance, however. With 536 hp and all-wheel drive, it can accelerate from zero to 100 km/h in just over three seconds. It also offers up to 436 km of rated range, seating for five, and a massive liftback cargo area. Seeing these improvements in electric models makes it such an exciting time to be a sports car fan. We’re most thrilled about the upcoming electric Dodge Charger, though.
Charging Into the Future
The Dodge Charger is one of the original muscle cars. It’s been on the market since the mid-1960s, and it has had millions of fans around the world over its lifespan. In fact, when people think of a classic sports car in the abstract, we bet they’re thinking of something that looks mighty close to one of those 1966 Dodge Chargers.
Just getting behind the wheel of a Dodge Charger can be an empowering experience. You feel like you’re not just sitting in a muscle car but almost time-travelling. You could fool yourself into believing you can drive along the coast as it was in 1968 if you’re not careful. So much history is embedded in its name that a Dodge Charger is more than just its year or its trim; it’s an entire lifestyle.
Adding an electric motor to the Dodge Charger was an exciting prospect when we first heard about it, but there was some trepidation, too. Can it live up to the legacy that the gas-powered Charger forged? Can it still give us the same thrill? Everything we’re hearing about it tells us that not only will it match the gas-powered Charger, but it’ll outright beat it.
The Lowdown on the Electric Dodge Charger
The 2024 Dodge Charger has excited the world as this classic muscle car is becoming electrified. Dodge has played its cards very close to the vest on some of the stats, but it is promising out-of-this-world performance that will redefine the electric marketplace. Some details have begun to trickle out, though, and they’re blowing us away. For instance, the company has let slip that this new EV could have up to 800 km of range on a full charge.
The design of the EV Charger harkens back to the Chargers of old. We’re big fans of this as it reinforces the history at the heart of this model. We love the fact that the initial glimpses of it have shown that it’s going to be a two-door ride. However, at no point does it look dated. The light bars on the front and rear give it a futuristic touch that just looks cool. While all sports cars send a message, the new Dodge Charger is going to be an unmistakable beauty on the road.
There’s an upcoming trim for the Charger that Dodge is extremely excited about, too: the SRT Banshee. Dodge is promising out-of-this-world horsepower that will beat even the legendary Hellcat. Just so you don’t lose any of the joy the gas-powered trim gave you, the electric Charger will be coming with an exhaust system designed to sound like the Hellcat. The message Dodge is sending is clear. The fun that you’ve had with gas-powered Chargers hasn’t gone away. The only difference is that this one is friendlier for the environment and won’t result in you having to empty your wallet whenever you visit the gas station.
The Success of the Electric Sports Car
EVs like the Dodge Charger are game-changers. Now that electric sports cars can race down the highways of North America, even the biggest doubter of the electric revolution is going to have to admit that a change is truly coming. Now, sure, the electric revolution has seen a few false starts in the past. We all recall the brief blip of EVs in the 1990s. But were any of those EVs like the electric sports cars we’ve talked about today? No way. That’s how you know this time is different. The current and upcoming sports cars are sending a message: electric vehicles are soon to be the best option on the market.
