The Pininfarina Battista, the company’s all-electric hypercar, debuted in early 2019 with the goal of having the car reach customers in 2020. However, this year has been anything but ordinary, though fans of Pininfarina’s new EV shouldn’t fret. Development is progressing, with the company completing its high-speed test program at the Nardó Technical Center in Italy. This marks the beginning of a new round of testing and validation.
Pininfarina will put the Battista through testing both on public roads and in private facilities as it dials in the car’s chassis settings. Those tests include the Brembo carbon-ceramic brakes, the car’s unique torque vectoring system, and high-speed aerodynamics. The company will also tune the car’s drive mode software to create distinct characteristics for the five driving modes: Calma, Pura, Energica, Furiosa, and Carattere. Sound will be another area the company focuses on as engineerings sculpt both the in-car and external sounds.
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The focus is needed because the Pininfarina is all-electric and doesn’t have the screaming sounds of an Italian combustion engine. However, what it lacks in sound, it makes up for in performance. The Battista features four-electric motors (one at each wheel) that make a total of 1,874 horsepower (1,397 kilowatts) and 1,649 pound-feet (2,300 Newton-meters) of torque. Pininfarina claims the car will reach 62 miles per hour (100 kilometers per hour) in less than 2 seconds with a top speed of 218 mph (350 kph). The range is estimated at over 311 miles (500 kilometers) thanks to the 120-kilowatt-hour battery.
The Battista will come with unique connected-car features, including worldwide over-the-air updates. The company plans to produce just 150 examples of the new hypercar, destined for North America, the Middle East, Europe, and Asia, with a starting price tag of €2.6 million ($3.13 million at current exchange rates). Delivers are expected to begin sometime next year.