The cars of CES 2018
Henrik Fisker's showed off a new electric car called the Fisker EMotion. The first thing that strikes you is probably its cool gullwing-style doors. In terms of power, its electric motors put out approximately 780hp, allowing it to accelerate from 0-100km/h in under 3 seconds. Top speed is about 257km/h and the range on a single charge is over 643km.
The interior of the Fisker EMotion is quite bonkers. In place of standard flat screen displays, the passengers in the rear can get curved displays! Pretty sure it would compromise safety though.
Kia showed off a concept of its all-electric Niro EV. The big news with the Niro EV, when it does launch, is its greater range. Kia says the Niro EV, with its 150kW motor and 64kWh battery pack, will be able to offer a range of around 383km - that's 160km more than the Hyundai Ioniq EV with which it shares the same platform.
Over at compatriots Hyundai, they unveiled the Nexo hydrogen fuel cell car. Unlike most electric cars, the Nexo relies on hydrogen to produce electricity. The upside to this is that it only produces water as a byproduct, and, perhaps more importantly, it can be refilled just like any gasoline car. This means no lengthy charging times. Range is slightly under 600km and refueling takes just 5 minutes.
Here's a cutaway of the Hyundai Nexo showing off its hydrogen fuel cell-powered powertrain.
The Acura NSX is the Honda's take on a hybrid supercar. It features a turbocharged 3.5-liter V6 and three electric motors and produces 573hp in total. 0-100km/h takes just 2.9 seconds and top speed is 307km/h.
At CES 2018, Nissan showed off the IMx, its electric and autonomous SUV concept car that it debuted at the Tokyo Motor Show last year. The battery is built into the floor and produces the equivalent of 429hp. Range is said to be around 595km. Future Nissan electric cars will be built using the same scalable architecture.
The big news at Toyota this year is its E-Palette flexible vehicle concept. It wasn't on display, but I did find last year's Concept-i autonomous driving vehicle. It features advanced driving assistance in the form of an A.I. assistant called Yui.
A year on, the interior still looks pretty bonkers. In place of traditional displays and dials, the Concept-i's interior interacts with drivers using light, sound, and haptic feedback.
This is a race car, except it isn't an ordinary race car. There's no space for a driver, instead, this is a fully autonomous race car and it was developed by NVIDIA and Roborace to showcase NVIDIA's autonomous driving capabilities. For the latest update on Roborace, check here.
The Aston Martin DB11 is arguably the prettiest car at the show, but it is also the most "low-tech." No fancy electric motors or autonomous driving here. There's just a simple 5.2-liter twin-turbo V12 that develops 600hp. 0-100km/h takes 3.9 seconds and top speed is an impressive 322km/h. Drivers need to steer the DB11 themselves using a steering wheel and foot pedals.
Mercedes-Benz had its radical Project One hypercar on display. It features the same 1.6-liter V6 turbocharged unit that powered Lewis Hamilton's F1-winning race car. Together with a couple of electric motors, the Project One produces over 1000hp and is fast enough to accelerate from 0-200km/h in under 6 seconds!
Check out the Mercedes-AMG Project One's massive rear diffusers. The car is still undergoing testing and we can't wait to see what kind of performance the final production model will deliver.
