Electrics at Goodwood: From the Formula E Jaguar to the Alpine A290

At the annual Festival of Speed there are many battery-powered cars in attendance. There will also be the most powerful Polestar ever

Photo by: InsideEVs

By: Francesco Barontini

Jul 12, 2024 at 4:38am ET

Comment

Goodwood Festival of Speed: a name that's a guarantee. And in times of electrification, zero-emission cars will also be present to storm the famous British hill climb.

It has already been happening for a few years now: numerous cars (prototypes as well as production models) have appeared at the traditional summer event organised by the Duke of Richmond.

These include the McMurtry Speirling, which in 2022 set the overall record by stopping the clock at 39"081 thousandths, or the Nissan Leaf, which in 2012 was the fastest ever, completing the track in 1'37"... in reverse. But back to the present day.

Jauguar arrives with Formula E GEN3

Among the brands that are playing on home soil, there is Jaguar. This year the British manufacturer will bring its Formula E GEN3 single-seater to Goodwood. It will be an opportunity to showcase the progress these racing cars have made over the years.

Jaguar brings new GEN3 single-seater to Goodwood

The car, run by the Jaguar TCS Racing team, will tackle the hill climb at 9.20am on Saturday 13 July, driven by Karun Chandhok, a former top driver and now popular TV commentator. The single-seater will use all its 476 PS and all-wheel drive to impress the many fans packed along the road. It will certainly succeed, considering that it is capable of sprinting from 0 to 60 mph in just 1.82 seconds.

The most powerful Polestar ever

Jaguar will be in good company. At Goodwood Polestar will, for example, bring the most powerful car in the brand's history. It is called the Concept BST and is shaped like a racing sports coupe.

Tell us what you think!

View

Comments

La Polestar Concept BST

The company has not yet declared the technical data, but has made it known that it is the first car to use the new PPA (Polestar Perfermance Architecture) platform that will also form the basis of the Polestar 6. Speaking of power, it is thought that the Polestar Concept BST could reach values in the region of 1,000 PS.

Lots of electrics on show

Other sports cars on show at Goodwood will include the Alfa Romeo 33 Stradale (probably in a combustion variant, but also available with zero emissions, based on the Maserati MC20). Then there will be the Lotus Evija X, the shoot-out version of the already extreme Hethel-branded hypercar, and the Yangwang U9, the Made in China electric supercar orbiting the BYD universe.

Also on show at Goodwood will be the Alfa Romeo Junior Veloce, the zero-emission MINI John Cooper Works E and the Alpine A290, a gunship version of the long-awaited battery-powered Renault 5. Also from MG comes the coupé version of the Cyberster. It has the same lines as the roadster but a hardtop roof. For now in prototype form, it could arrive on the market in the course of next year.