Aston Martin unveils first electric car – the RapidE

If you're going to dangle a carrot in front of potential investors, then a 1,000hp electric super-saloon would be a good one. And it's got an Aston Martin badge? Well, job done then – no investor, not even a Dragons' Den one, could refuse that kind of offer.

Well, it’s certainly worked for Aston Martin which has given us a glimpse into the future of its powertrain design with the RapidE – an all-electric version of the Rapide saloon which has somewhere between 800hp and 1,000hp and could be in production in two years’ time.

That's a schedule which has been given a significant boost by the arrival of some Chinese cash around Aston way. It's no coincidence the car was unveiled in central London during the state visit of Chinese premier Xi Jinping; Aston has just secured a major investment from the China Equity group, and is keen to show off its wares both to potential Asian customers and the Chinese money-men.

The RapidE has been developed with help from Williams Advanced Engineering, an off-shoot of the famous F1 team, and could be on sale by late 2017 with a price tag of about €180,000 (before taxes). Its one-charge range is currently said to be in the region of 300km.

Project development

Aston Martin chief executive Dr Andy Palmer said: "We see luxury electric vehicles as an intrinsic part of our future product portfolio and welcome ChinaEquity into the next phase of study for the project development. The exciting RapidE concept tangibly demonstrates the capability and ambition of Aston Martin towards developing low- and zero-emission sports cars."

Chairman Chaoyong Wang of ChinaEquity said: “We are excited to participate in the development of the RapidE. . .”

Aston needs both those opportunities and the injections of Chinese money. Its losses last year tripled to about £75 million with sales falling to 3,300 in 2014. However, there is more than a little hope for Aston. It's about to get the best advertising campaign any car maker could hope for with the release of the new James Bond film, Spectre – Aston specially designed and built its DB10 model for the film.