Drako Motors was founded in 2013 by Dean Drako and Shiv Sikand. In August 2015, Drako Motors came out of stealth mode to announce its DriveOS four-wheel torque vectoring, single-VCU drive operating system which applies positive and negative torque to each individual wheel within milliseconds, as a way to deliver additional corner control, performance, and safety compared with conventional drivetrains. In 2015, Drako Motors worked with Metropolia University to build a four-motor, electric, test race car using the DriveOS with 4 motors, which set a lap time record of 7 minutes 49.04 seconds at Nürburgring Nordschleife. In 2019, Drako Motors announced its all-electric, production Drako GTE at The Quail Motorsport. In 2020, the Drako GTE was featured on CNBC’s Jay Leno’s garage.
Drako GTE
The Drako GTE is an all-electric, quad motor, full-size 4 door sports sedan that seats 4 passengers. It uses a Fisker Karma chassis, however, other than the doors, the body panels are completely new. The carbon-fiber bodywork was designed by Lowie Vermeersch of GranStudio, responsible for the design of multiple Ferrari and Maserati vehicles. The GTE has a claimed top speed of and a 0-60 mph time of less than 3 seconds. Drako Motors announced a limited production of 25 Drako GTE vehicles in 2020, with a base price of US$1,250,000.
Technology
The Drako GTE uses proprietary Drako DriveOS software. The four motors produce a combined output of and 6490 lb-ft of combined torque through four permanent-magnet hybrid synchronous electric motors and four direct-drive gearboxes. The car has no differentials. Each motor is controlled individually by the Drako DriveOS operating system, which computes a new torque value for each wheel every 10 milliseconds, based on steering angle, slip angle, wheel-speed sensors, accelerator, and brakes. In addition to forward torque, the DriveOS can decelerate the individual wheels. The GTE's drive control system lets drivers select driving modes for different road surface conditions, including ice, snow, rain, dry, track and race. The GTE has Brembo carbon-ceramic brakes, with regenerative braking and slip control.
Battery
The battery pack that drives the motors is a 90 kWh, 450-volt unit made up of 10,000 cells. It can output 1,800 continuous and 2,200 peak amps, to supply the four motors with 900 kW of power. It has an internal parallel cooling architecture which integrates multiple cooling channels that surround each individual battery cell to dissipate heat more quickly. The battery is mounted in the floor to give it a low center of gravity for greater traction and safety on different road surfaces. The car has a 15-kW on-board charger that is compatible with electric vehicle charging infrastructure, and has a fast charging option through both CHAdeMO or Combined Charging System up to 150 kW. Drako Motors states that the battery delivers an estimated 250 miles of range.
