Wiesmann details Project Thunderball battery specs

Wiesmann is back. The German company is ditching piston power for its upcoming Project Thunderball sports car, instead going all-in on electric power to show that you can still go sideways in complete silence. And if that sounds familiar (cough, TVR, cough), rest assured that Wiesmann is taking its revival seriously – apparently that deliveries will get underway next year. Ahead of the car’s launch, the company has announced a host of new technical details to whet your appetite.

The big news here is that Project Thunderball will feature some seriously clever battery tech. We already knew that the silent sports car comes with a bespoke 92kWh (of which 82kWh is useable) lithium-ion pack, but Wiesmann has confirmed that its battery boffins have developed a proprietary cooling system to get the most out of the cells. A water-glycol mix is used to extract heat right to the base of the battery module as fast as possible, with a trick bit of software that helps regulate the temperature on the go. With the battery’s temperature in check, you’ll be able to get closer to the claimed 310-mile range and make the most of the EV’s punchy 670hp output.

Batteries aren’t light, though, which is why we often see SUVs getting the EV treatment and an absence of electric sports cars. In Project Thunderball, the battery weighs in at 500kg. Not far off half the weight of a Mazda MX-5. However, the batteries have been arranged in a T-shape, running along the centre of the car and over the front axle, which, in conjunction with the rear-mounted electric motors, evenly spreads the weight across the roadster. Besides, each exterior panel is made of carbon fibre, resulting in a kerb weight of around 1,700kg. Which doesn’t seem that much when an M4 Competition weighs a similar amount.

“Thanks to endless research and testing, the roadster will blend our bespoke cutting-edge powertrain technology with Wiesmann’s trademark German engineering excellence”, said company chief Roheen Barry. “We are putting the emotion back into EVs. Which is why technology has been a key part of this project, creating a vehicle that not only has the stunning looks of a true Wiesmann, but also drives like a world-class sports car.”

Barry also confirmed that orders books are filling up nicely, with three quarters of allocation slots for the first year of production already spoken for. Each one carries a €300,000 (or £260,000) price tag, which should be a decent bit of income to power up the production line.