Independent Electric Vehicles, a five-year-old automotive startup based in the USA and also known as Indi EV, has started registering pre-orders for its first production car, which is called the One.
The battery-powered vehicle was designed by a minimal team of engineers, which sourced most of the hardware from third parties rather than manufacturing parts themselves. It looks like a hatchback despite being marketed as a CUV and is 4.8 meters (15.75 feet) long, slotting in between the Tesla Model Y and Model X in terms of size.
$45,000 USD buys you an entry spec with 75 kilowatt-hours of power storage and up to 370 km (230 miles) of driving range. A single electric motor churns out 279 PS (275 hp / 205 kW) and 410 Nm (302 lb-ft) of torque, taking the car from zero to 100 km/h (62 mph) in 6.7 seconds.
Opting for the $69,000 top-of-the-line spec nets you a larger 90-kWh battery and up to 482 km (300 miles) of range. Dual motors propel this one forward with 482 PS (475 hp / 354 kW) and 730 Nm (538 lb-ft) of torque, letting it hit highway speed after just 4.2 seconds from the launch.
The front panel houses a trio of large displays representing a digital dashboard and two Windows-powered infotainment screens. Passengers can play games and access the Internet through a 5G modem, among other things.
The production remains scheduled for mid-2023. In the meantime, the company is already running crash tests of late prototypes.
The Indi One EV will reach the U.S. market first and later become available in other countries, the startup claims. Since the marque lacks its own production capacities, a search for a suitable production site is currently in progress. As usual, third parties are welcome to offer their services.