Faraday Future’s 1,050 Horsepower FF 91 Crossover EV Takes Direct Aim At Tesla Model X
Scoot your booty Tesla, and make room for Faraday Future, an electric vehicle startup headquartered in California that just announced its first production automobile. Faraday Future unveiled its FF 91 at the Consumer Electronics Show (CES) in Las Vegas and has even started taking reservations for it at $5,000 (fully refundable) a pop. The first 300 orders will have the option in a couple of months to upgrade their pre-order to join an exclusive launch series dubbed the Alliance Edition.
Faraday Future describes the FF 91 as a "bold new breed of electric mobility that combines supercar performance, precise handling, the comfort of an ultra-luxury passenger vehicle, and a unique collection of intelligent Internet features." It is hard to argue against those claims based on the vehicle's specifications. Kicking out a remarkable peak 1,050 horsepower (783 kW), it takes just 2.39 seconds to go from 0 to 60 miles per hour.
That type of performance does not seem like it would be possible from an electric vehicle (and up to now it has not been), though Faraday Future says it is the result of a multi-motor setup that enables real-time torque vectoring to the rear wheels. Even better is that performance does not come at the expense of battery range—Faraday Future claims the highly dense 130 kWh battery can power the FF 91 for 378 miles. Using the included home charger, the FF 91 reaches 50 percent to a full charge in under 4.5 hours (at 240V).
Faraday Future built the FF 91 using what it calls is a proprietary Variable Platform Architecture (VPA), which is a fancy way of saying it has a modular powertrain. If the FF 91 is a success, the modular design would allow Faraday Future to more quickly design and produce follow up models.
The FF 91 is not just the world's fastest EV, as its makers claim, but also a luxury car with a mix of amenities and high-tech goodies. It features a retractable 3D lidar, which itself is part of an autonomous sensor system consisting of 10 high definition cameras, 13 long and short range radars, and 12 ultrasonic sensors. There is a Driverless Valet parking feature that is supposed to allow the FF 91 to park itself after the driver exits the vehicle (a demonstration of this feature failed at CES, as the FF 91 just sat in place). Even the doors are smart—they're able to open automatically and independently, while sensors prevent them from opening too wide and banging into objects.
This is a critical juncture for the ambitious startup. The company has struggled with cash problems and a departure of high ranking executives, both of which have raised eyebrows and put Faraday Future's in question. Executives at the startup are loathe to talk about the company's financial situation and there is no mention of how much the FF 91 will cost, though we've seen unsubstantiated reports of it being in the neighborhood of $180,000.
You can go here to reserve one or to sign up to receive updates.
Faraday Future describes the FF 91 as a "bold new breed of electric mobility that combines supercar performance, precise handling, the comfort of an ultra-luxury passenger vehicle, and a unique collection of intelligent Internet features." It is hard to argue against those claims based on the vehicle's specifications. Kicking out a remarkable peak 1,050 horsepower (783 kW), it takes just 2.39 seconds to go from 0 to 60 miles per hour.
That type of performance does not seem like it would be possible from an electric vehicle (and up to now it has not been), though Faraday Future says it is the result of a multi-motor setup that enables real-time torque vectoring to the rear wheels. Even better is that performance does not come at the expense of battery range—Faraday Future claims the highly dense 130 kWh battery can power the FF 91 for 378 miles. Using the included home charger, the FF 91 reaches 50 percent to a full charge in under 4.5 hours (at 240V).
Faraday Future built the FF 91 using what it calls is a proprietary Variable Platform Architecture (VPA), which is a fancy way of saying it has a modular powertrain. If the FF 91 is a success, the modular design would allow Faraday Future to more quickly design and produce follow up models.
The FF 91 is not just the world's fastest EV, as its makers claim, but also a luxury car with a mix of amenities and high-tech goodies. It features a retractable 3D lidar, which itself is part of an autonomous sensor system consisting of 10 high definition cameras, 13 long and short range radars, and 12 ultrasonic sensors. There is a Driverless Valet parking feature that is supposed to allow the FF 91 to park itself after the driver exits the vehicle (a demonstration of this feature failed at CES, as the FF 91 just sat in place). Even the doors are smart—they're able to open automatically and independently, while sensors prevent them from opening too wide and banging into objects.
This is a critical juncture for the ambitious startup. The company has struggled with cash problems and a departure of high ranking executives, both of which have raised eyebrows and put Faraday Future's in question. Executives at the startup are loathe to talk about the company's financial situation and there is no mention of how much the FF 91 will cost, though we've seen unsubstantiated reports of it being in the neighborhood of $180,000.
You can go here to reserve one or to sign up to receive updates.
