Report: Spyker to Develop Electric SUV for 2017 Debut

Boutique Dutch automaker Spyker will begin development of an all-electric powertrain for an SUV, reports Autocar.

Spyker will reveal a gas-powered SUV at the 2016 Los Angeles auto show, and it should pack a robust V-12 engine. But the automaker confirmed we’ll seen an all-electric version of that SUV debut in 2017. The automaker will work with its partner, Volta Volare, an electric aviation company, for the development of the new SUV’s electrical systems.

Spyker CEO Victor Muller also revealed to Autocar that the SUV will draw heavily from the D12 Peking-to-Paris concept car, which first debuted in 2006 but never went into production. “It has always been my long-held wish to put that car into production,” said Muller. “You could say we were 10 years ahead of our time; today there are lots of luxury performance SUVs on the market, but then there were very few.”

Muller confirmed the SUV that will be shown in Los Angeles will pack a V-12 engine, but said an electric version is coming because there’s a purpose for it. He said, “In a sports car you want the engagement of a combustion engine, but in an SUV I don’t mind having a quiet engine. Electric power is much more sellable here.” However, Muller said that it’s unlikely for the car to receive a hybrid powertrain due to the complications and packaging issues associated with them. The type of battery Spyker will use on the all-electric SUV, on the other hand, is still unknown because Muller doesn’t see lithium-ion units as cost-effective and believes that degradation is the major disadvantage.

In terms of volume, production of Spyker’s SUVs will be kept low to prevent them from competing with mass-production brands like BMW and Tesla. “We don’t want to be in competition with BMW and Tesla; we wouldn’t have the means to do so. But what we can do is develop technology that will make its way into more mainstream vehicles later.”

Spyker also recently revealed the C8 Preliator at the 2016 Geneva auto show. That model packed an Audi-sourced 4.2-liter V-8 as well as a supercharger for a total of 518 hp.

Source: Autocar

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