Ariel, a small British company known for developing segment-bending sports cars, has unveiled an electric version of its Nomad 2 off-roader. While still at the concept stage, the E-Nomad will create a new niche in the EV space if it receives the proverbial green light for production.
Going electric wasn’t an excuse to tone down the styling, and the E-Nomad looks just as wild as the Nomad 2 it’s based on. Sitting high off the ground, it’s characterized by two pairs of three headlights that give it a bug eye look, wheels that stick out from the body, and a highly functional interior. There’s nothing else quite like it on the road; it’s pegged at the intersection of sports cars, SUVs, and dune buggies.
Power for the E-Nomad comes from a rear-mounted motor rated at 281 horsepower and 361 pound-feet of torque. It’s linked to a 41-kilowatt-hour battery pack, and it unlocks a zero-to-60-mph sprint of 3.4 seconds. For context, the E-Nomad is as quick to 60 mph as the base Nomad 2, which is powered by a turbocharged, 2.3-liter four-cylinder engine rated at 260 horsepower in its most basic state of tune.
One advantage that comes with using a relatively small battery pack is that it’s fairly quick to charge. Plugging the concept vehicle into a fast charger takes the pack from 20% to 80% in under 25 minutes, Ariel states. Alternatively, you can charge the battery using a regular household outlet.
Ariel explains it needed to fit the E-Nomad with body panels to reduce drag, which is one of the enemies of range. It made the add-ons with a material manufactured using flax fibers. It’s strong, eco-friendly, and about 9% lighter than carbon fiber. The concept weighs roughly 1,975 pounds, meaning it’s approximately 400 pounds heavier than the gasoline-burning Nomad, and it offers up to 150 miles of range. That figure won’t qualify it for the “long-range” label, but keep in mind the Nomad isn’t envisioned as a long-distance cruiser. It’s for short, fun trips.
There’s no word yet on what’s next for the E-Nomad, but one of Ariel’s top executives suggested that production is possible.
“While the E-Nomad is a concept, it does show production intent for the vehicle and hints at just a small part of Ariel’s future. Once it has been through our usual, grueling testing regime, we could opt to add E-Nomad alongside its ICE-powered Nomad 2 sibling, so we’ll take great interest in customer feedback on the concept car,” explained Simon Saunders, the company’s director, in a statement.
BYD has launched the third-generation Qin Plus DM-i in China, and the first thing that caught my eye is its price. According to CarNewsChina, the plug-in hybrid sedan starts at 79,900 yuan, which is about $11,980. That’s an incredibly low price for a brand-new car, especially by US standards.
What’s even more impressive is the range. The Qin Plus DM-i can drive up to 137 miles on electricity alone, which should cover most people’s daily commutes without using a drop of gas. Once the battery runs out, the 1.5-liter engine takes over. Thanks to its 17-gallon tank and roughly 91 mpg with a drained battery, the combined range reaches up to 1,423 miles.
Apple won the PC market’s worst quarter, but that’s not the entire story. It won the race by stumbling less than everyone else.
PC makers shipped just 57 million computers worldwide in Q3, which might look good, but it’s a 21% year-over-year plunge (via Counterpoint Research). And despite Apple’s Mac shipments falling by 11%, to 5.6 million, its market share rose from 8.7% to 9.8%. How did that happen?
Update (October 22 23:54 PT): In response to our query, GM clarified that offline recording support is already available on eligible vehicles. Like Tesla's Sentry Mode, it requires owners to connect a USB drive to save incident recordings, which can be viewed on the vehicle's infotainment screen. The upcoming Connected Cameras feature will build on this by giving owners remote access to these recordings via the revamped OnStar app, allowing them to check footage without walking out to their car.
General Motors has announced plans to add a new Connected Cameras feature to its OnStar service starting next year, giving drivers a way to monitor parked vehicles remotely and capture footage of certain incidents.