Aston Martin Rapide E: first all-electric Aston plugs in at Shanghai

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Aston chose the 2019 Shanghai motor show to showcase its new electric vehicle (EV) and chief creative officer Marek Reichman was on hand to unveil it. This is a limited series car, with just 155 due to be built at the new St Athan factory in Wales.

Think of the electric Rapide as a warm-up act for the next-generation EVs under development in Gaydon.

How to electrify an Aston Martin Rapide
Aston Martin has teamed up with Williams Advanced Engineering to create the Rapide E. Out comes the regular V12, replaced by a pair of chunky electric motors driving the rear wheels - and a modestly large 65kWh battery pack mounted in the space where the petrol engine, transmission and fuel tank would normally sit.
There’s been a host of modifications to the regular petrol-powered Rapide, although there’s undeniably a whiff of this being an internal combustion engine (ICE) car that’s been adapted to cope as an EV, rather than this being a ground-up electric car. That honor befalls the next generation of higher-volume Aston EVs. Think of this as the testbed.

Much attention has been lavished upon the Rapide’s aerodynamics, with active shuttering of the grille, a smooth undertray, cheeky rear diffuser and bespoke, slippery forged aluminum wheels; to aid its progress through the air, there’s been much smoothing and aero trickery - so much so, that Aston Martin claims an 8% improvement to the drag figure. Impressive, super-slippery stuff.

Electric specs, range and battery details
Where you’d normally find a 6.0-liter V12, transmission and fuel tank you’ll find the EV hardware turning the Rapide into an electric limo. There’s a 65kWh lithium ion battery enclosed in a carbonfibre and kevlar casing, comprising more than 5600 cylindrical cells.

They power a pair of rear-mounted electric motors, whose combined output totals the equivalent of 602bhp and 701lb ft. Slow the Rapide E is not.

Aston Martin quotes 155mph v-max, 0-60mph in less than three seconds and a 50-70mph sprint of just 1.5sec. That last figure is most telling: the Rapide E will provide instant thrust, at any speed, judging by the spec sheet. We’ll know for sure when we drive the electric Aston Martin later in 2019.

There are a few tweaks onboard, reflecting the swap from petrol to volts. Where you'd normally find analogue dials in a V12 Rapide, you'll now see a 10-inch digital display, which reports battery charge, regen braking info and connection with an app which reports battery status, charging points en route and details like where you've parked your car back to your phone.

How long to charge up? And what’s the range?
Aston Martin quotes a WLTP range of ‘over 200 miles,’ which is mildly disappointing in this age of 300+ miles among the market leaders. But remember this is a stepping-stone EV - and one based wholly on an already-ageing limousine platform.

If you’re charging up the Rapide E, the 800-volt system can onboard 185 miles of range every hour if you charge on a 50kW fast-charger, according to Aston Martin. Find a rapid charger with 100kW or more, and you’ll charge at 310 miles of range every hour. It’s not quite up to the latest Tesla Supercharging of 1000 miles every 60 minutes, but it’s still acceptably fast.

The onboard AC charger can top up the battery at a domestic connection at home in as little as three hours, says Gaydon.