What Tesla hath wrought: bumper crop of luxury electric carsWhat Tesla hath wrought: bumper crop of luxury electric cars

It may have taken some time, but the auto industry is now reacting to Tesla in full force.
More than four years after the first Tesla Model S was delivered, we are on the verge of a bumper crop of luxury electric cars.
A mix of established automakers and startups looking to emulate Tesla’s success are planning a growing array of new models, the first of which will enter production next year.
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While some of this contingent are sedans like the Model S, many are crossover utilities that compete more directly with the Tesla Model X.
That’s likely in keeping with the current popularity of utility vehicles—particularly in the U.S.
Here are the new luxury electric cars confirmed for production so far, along with some rumored to be in the pipeline.
Audi e-tron Quattro concept, 2015 Frankfurt Auto ShowAudi
Next year, the Audi e-tron electric SUV will enter production at one of the German automaker’s existing factories, in Belgium.
It will borrow styling and likely a three-motor electric powertrain from the e-tron quattro concept launched at the 2015 Frankfurt Motor Show.
Lithium-ion battery cells will be supplied by Samsung SDI and LG Chem, and Audi is expected to target a range of around 300 miles on the European testing cycle.
The European cycle is much less stringent than the U.S. EPA cycle, so a comparable rating on the latter would be somewhat lower.
ALSO SEE: Audi e-tron vs Jaguar I-Pace vs Mercedes EQ: electric luxury SUVs compared (Dec 2016)
But Audi expects plug-in cars to account for 25 percent of its U.S. sales by 2025, and that goal can’t be reached with just one model.
Following the e-tron, Audi is expected to launch a much smaller electric car that would compete with the BMW i3.
That model could in turn be followed by a low-volume electric sports car, possibly aimed at the BMW i8, which is a plug-in hybrid.
Hopefully that model will do better than the short-lived Audi R8 e-tron, of which only 100 were built.
Rendering of BMW i5 electric crossover utility vehicle, from patent drawings [Indian Autos Blog]BMW
After carrying on since launch with only the i3 and i8, BMW’s “i” sub-brand will get an injection of new models.
The highest-volume will be the i5, a five-door crossover that will use similar aluminum and carbon fiber-reinforced plastic construction to the previous two “i” models.
All-wheel drive will likely be at least an option, and the i5 is expected to have an EPA-rated range of 200 to 250 miles.
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The i8 is also expected to receive a major update for the 2018 or 2019 model year, likely including the addition of the long-awaited i8 Spyder convertible model.
Finally, BMW is plotting a flagship electric sedan codenamed “iNext.”
Set to debut in 2021, the iNext will also serve as a showcase for BMW’s autonomous-driving technology.
Faraday Future FF 91Faraday Future
Faraday Future is a Chinese-backed startup that recently walked back plans to launch its FF 91 electric crossover by next year.
That goal was announced at the 2016 Consumer Electronics Show, a year before the FF 91 and shortly before Faraday committed to building a factory from scratch in North Las Vegas, Nevada.
The FF 91 was unveiled at CES 2017, bristling with autonomous-driving hardware, a claimed 378-mile range, and 1,050 horsepower.
But work on the plant has stopped, and Faraday is expected to reduce its size, and push back the completion date to 2019.
The startup will also reduce its planned model range from seven vehicles to two.
That includes the FF 91 and a smaller crossover Faraday reportedly considers to be its true Tesla Model X competitor.

Jaguar I-Pace concept, 2016 Los Angeles Auto ShowJaguar
The Jaguar I-Pace will go into production in 2018 within months of one of its most likely competitors: the Audi e-tron.
Like the e-tron, the I-Pace is a luxury utility vehicle with car-like styling.
It was previewed by a concept that debuted at the 2016 Los Angeles Auto Show, and a production-ready version will be shown before the end of the year.
A pair of electric motors—provide a combined 400 horsepower—and Jaguar quoted a range of 220 miles on the EPA testing cycle for the concept.
Lucid AirLucid Motors
Lucid Motors—the startup formerly known as Atieva—will begin production of its Air sedan in 2019.
It expects to deliver 10,000 cars in the first year, from a factory in Casa Grande, Arizona, that hasn’t been built yet.
Lucid is the first to confirm that its electric car will be available in multiple variants, as Tesla’s are.
The base Air will have 400 hp, rear-wheel drive, and a range of 240 miles.
But Lucid also plans to offer a dual-motor all-wheel drive powertrain with 1,000 hp, as well as battery packs large enough to afford 315-mile or 400-mile ranges.
Like Faraday, Lucid also plans to equip the Air with hardware for autonomous driving, if and when that becomes practical.
Mercedes-Benz Generation EQ concept, 2016 Paris auto showMercedes-Benz
Like many of its luxury rivals, Mercedes-Benz plans to enter the long-range electric-car arena with an SUV.
That SUV will be based on the Generation EQ concept that first appeared at the 2016 Paris Motor Show.
The concept featured dual-motor all-wheel drive, 402 hp, and an estimated range of 310 miles on the European testing cycle.
Mercedes also hopes to create an “EQ” sub-brand, analogous to BMW i.
It hopes to launch no less than 10 new EQ-badged models by 2025.
Mercedes parent Daimler’s Deutsche Accumotive division will likely supply lithium-ion battery cells for these electric cars.

Nio Eve concept, 2017 SXSWNextEV/Nio
While Faraday Future and Lucid Motors are U.S.-based firms with Chinese backing, fellow startup NextEV is entirely Chinese owned.
The company plans to launch an autonomous electric car in the U.S. around 2020, under its newly-created Nio brand.
That vehicle will likely be based on the Nio Eve concept unveiled at SXSW 2017.
Nio/NextEV released no real technical details of the Eve, beyond noting that it was fully autonomous.
Faraday Future executive Nick Sampson subsequently accused Nio of copying the FF 91, calling the Eve a “poor clone” on Twitter.
Nio’s only other vehicle so far is the EP9, an all-electric supercar that also boasts autonomous-driving capabilities.
Porsche Mission E concept, 2015 Frankfurt Auto ShowPorsche
The Porsche Mission E first appeared as a concept at the 2015 Frankfurt Motor Show, and was confirmed for production later that year.
A low-slung sedan with coupe-like styling, the Mission E will go on sale before the end of the decade, Porsche has said.
The electric car may very well be the much-discussed “Pajun,” a smaller sedan to slot below the current Panamera in Porsche’s lineup.
That means it will likely cost less than the Panamera, putting it up against the top end of the Tesla Model 3 lineup, or the base versions of the Model S and Lucid Air.
Bentley EXP 12 Speed 6e concept, 2017 Geneva auto showOthers
In addition to models confirmed for production, Bentley is expected to launch some form of electric car.
The British automaker showed the EXP 12 Speed 6e electric convertible concept at the 2017 Geneva Motor Show, but is also reportedly considering an SUV to be its first electric model.
Volkswagen is also known to be considering re-launching its Phaeton luxury sedan as an all-electric model, likely sometime around 2020.
In widely-publicized remarks, VW brand boss Herbert Diess recently said the success of the Tesla Model S forced Volkswagen to redesign the Phaeton as an electric car.
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