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It’s THE electric sports car for 2008… The Lightning GT is already available on pre-order and if I had the money to afford the super-green electric car, I’d have already ordered one.

What you see is what you get

The Lightning Motor Co. is Britain’s equivalent to Tesla Motors (remember the Roadster?) and they sound pretty convincing when they claim that electric cars, such as the Lightning GT, are the future AND present if you got the necessary cash.

With virtually no polluting emissions, this energy-efficient car uses clean technology and will have the ultimate green rating.

Obviously no car is the absolute green solution without doing any harm to our environment whatsoever, but the sleek electric masterpiece is certainly a better road choice than a smokin’ 70’s VW Camper.

It’s all on the inside and it’s damn sexy but not nouveaux

The stunning performance of the Lightning GTS will likely surpass almost all large engine high performance sports cars in the 0-60mph range. The sensation of harnessing power and performance will be felt by the sheer exhilaration of the power pushing you back in your seat as the car accelerates.

NanoSafeâ„¢ batteries use nano titanate materials instead of graphite which makes them far more thermally stable – there are no toxics or heavy metals used in NanoSafeâ„¢ batteries.

NanoSafeâ„¢ batteries have a life expectancy of 12+ years, versus the 3-5 year usable life of other batteries. NanoSafeâ„¢ can retain up to 85% charge capacity after 15,000 charges.

NanoSafeâ„¢ batteries can be recharged in approximately 10 minutes, rather than the hours required by many other rechargeable batteries.

Lightning claims the car will do 0 to 60 in 4.0 seconds and hit a top speed of 130 mph in 250 mile range:

(data from whatcar.co.uk June 07)

On the environmental side:

The Lightning’s also being compared to a typical London commute car petrol-wise and apparently you’d save something like £17,000 a year driving the Lightning GT.

2.2p cost per mile equivalent – save £4,840 (based on 20,000 miles at 26.4p/mile for the petrol version)

Exempt from road tax – save £300

Exempt from London’s congestion charge – save £1,920 (48 working weeks at £8/day).

Lower company car tax – an annual tax saving of over £8,000

No company fuel benefit tax – an annual tax saving of over £2,000

Whether or not their figures are close to 90% correct, remains to be seen.

And plenty of toys to play with

Lightning GT – Standard Features

• Anti lock braking system
• Traction control
• Regenerative braking
• Electronic door entry
• Programmable external engine sound generator
• Central door locking
• Alarm and immobilizer
• Electric windows
• Acoustic information and entertainment system
• Part leather/alcantara sports seats
• Forged alloy wheels
• Tinted windows
• Home based charging system (EVCS) with integral safety features
• Hella focused beam halogen headlamps
• LED taillights, front, rear and side-mounted lights

Colours

• Available in Electric Lightning Blue, black and silver as standard (as shown)

Options & accessories

• Air conditioning
• Tyre pressure and temperature monitoring system
• Satellite navigation system
• Non standard colour / metallic paint
• Full leather trim
• Mobile charging system

How do you charge this thing

The Lightning has a built in battery charging and control system. Simply plug the car’s charging lead into your home’s electric power point and you’ll soon be charged and ready for the next journey. The lead is 12 feet long (optional 20 foot extension cable available). The electronics take care of various power sources that it can receive power from. It’s as simple as that! There are a number of different sources that can be utilised with this cable and charging times can vary depending on the state of the batteries and also the power source chosen.

Couldn’t be easier, but first of all, £15,000 up front, then the remaining (approx.) £136,000 and it’s yours in 2009. If you’re lucky.

Compared to the Tesla Roadster, the Lightning GT is way overpriced. For comparison

Tesla Roadster:

kW=189
Torque=200ft/lbs
Weight=”around” 2690 lbs
0-60= under 4.0 secs
Top speed= 125MPH

$98,950 (excluding gadgets & accessories)

Lightning GT:

kW=480 (120×4 wheels)
Torque=553ft/lbs
Weight= 3500lbs (est)
0-60=4 secs
Top speed= 130MPH

approx. £151,000

Tesla’s electric Roadster sports car

More on the web: Lightning Car Company ; Tesla Motors ; Tesla all-electric Roadster heads to production ; Lightning GT all-electric sports car revealed

In action: The Tesla Roadster