Lightning GT


The Lightning GT is a battery-electric sports car under development by the Lightning Car Company, a London-based privately owned and funded business.
The project was initially unveiled to the public in July 2008 at the British International Motor Show, with deliveries originally expected in 2009, but sales to the public have been put back due to 2020. Lightning is believed to be in talks with a major continental partner whose technology will help bring the car to production.
The GT was displayed at the 2014 Low Carbon Vehicle Event with Magtec.

Technical details

The car is powered by twin rear-mounted synchronous motors, driving through independent reduction gearboxes under electronic torque control. The powertrain system is sourced from MAGTEC, the leading UK powertrain manufacturer, providing rear-wheel drive and a peak power output capability of. with 4000 Nm of torque available at the wheels.
The Lightning GT accelerates to in less than 4 seconds and is geared for over. Its body will be made from carbon fibre and the chassis from a honeycomb aluminium structure. This unique H chassis will also house the battery modules which when integrated add massive torsional and beam strength. Final assembly location has yet to be determined.
A small amount of the development of the GT was assisted with a grant from the UK Government's Technical Strategy Board, as part of the EEMS Consortium. The Lightning GT development car excelled as a part of this consortium with 100% drivetrain and battery reliability over a full years monitored testing. The GT covered more miles than the rest of the consortium combined.

Battery

The standard battery specification includes two 22 kWh Altairnano lithium-titanate battery pack 'strings'. The 9 kW standard onboard charger can fully recharge the batteries in five hours from a dedicated 32amp wired socket or 12 hours from any standard socket. An optional on-board charger connected to a suitable dedicated domestic power source can recharge the car from zero in 2.5 hours. A full charge will give the vehicle a 'usable' mixed use range of over. Lightning are developing further battery combinations to take the range further on a standard pack. A range extender option is being developed which will enable significantly longer journeys.