Nick Heidfeld Is Driving the Pininfarina Battista into Production

Automobili Pininfarina has made a fast start into 2020, the 90th anniversary year of Pininfarina SpA, commencing the testing and development phase for the ground-breaking Battista – the world’s first fully electric luxury hypercar.

The Battista’s technical development schedule is headed by Automobili Pininfarina Sportscar Director Rene Wollmann, formerly of Mercedes-AMG. In the driving seat of Battista prototype vehicles will be former Formula One and Formula E legend Nick Heidfeld, now a Development Driver and Ambassador for the Italian luxury car marque.

Rene Wollmann commented: “The mule vehicles running the chassis and powertrain concepts for Battista have already achieved 80 per cent of their performance capability without issue. This means that our EV performance is already equal to the most powerful combustion engine-powered hypercar currently in the world. And in the simulation and wind tunnel testing phase, by fine tuning the aero packaging, we’ve already seen a significant increase in the potential range of Battista versus our original prediction.

“In the next six months we will progress to delivering a thrilling pure-electric hypercar that seamlessly produces 1,900 hp and 2,300 Nm torque across a range of driving modes to suit varying environments. Our clients cannot wait to experience this performance alongside Nick Heidfeld.”

Automobili Pininfarina’s teams of engineers will now undertake a rapid development programme of exhaustive testing, evaluation and development over the coming months, in the climates and environments that the Battista will be driven in, that culminates with the first hand-crafted Battistas being handed over to clients at the end of 2020 in Cambiano, Italy.

The Automobili Pininfarina Design Team, led by Chief Design Officer Luca Borgogno, has also created a unique livery for Battista prototypes, seen for the first time on the new hypercar as its technical development programme accelerates into 2020.

Luca Borgogno said: “We have been humbled by the overwhelmingly positive response to the aesthetics of Battista since it was first revealed. So we have chosen to create a playful and interesting prototype livery design that is clearly inspired by the electrifying performance that lies beneath its beautiful exterior.

“Yet our ambition is always to further delight our future clients. To celebrate the 90th anniversary of the famous Pininfarina design house, the team at Automobili Pininfarina is now preparing the ultimate expression of Battista hypercar design, ready for its world premiere at next month’s Geneva International Motor Show.”