T.27 is world's most efficient electric car, says McLaren F1 designer Murray

Remember the T.27 electric car we told you about last year? Well it's coming along swimmingly, thank you very much. So swimmingly, in fact, that the T.27's makers, Gordon Murray Design, claims it's the most efficient electric car in the world. Evar!

Company head honcho Gordon Murray, who designed the iconic McLaren F1, says the T.27 has a far lower energy consumption per mile than rival electric cars. According to Murray, the Smart EV (or Smart ED, as it's known these days) uses 29 per cent more energy per km. Meanwhile, the Mitsubishi iMiev uses 36 per cent more energy per km and the Mini-E uses a whopping 86 per cent more energy per km.

The car, which has a 12kWh battery pack, can manage a range of 100 miles on the New European Driving Cycle (NEDC). The Godfather of EVs, the Nissan Leaf, can manage 109 miles more on the same cycle, but uses a heavier, more expensive 24kWh battery to do so.

What manner of satanic witchcraft helps the T.27 achieve such results? Murray tells us it's the mystic art of making things light. The T.27 tips the scales at a mere 680Kg including its battery pack, which is next to nothing in car terms, let alone electric car terms. The fossil fuel-fuelled Smart fortwo, for reference, weighs 730Kg. The Leaf, meanwhile, weighs 1,521Kg.

"Lightweight is the most powerful tool we have in our armoury in the fight against emissions and fuel consumption," Murray put on his press release. "This is true of all cars and especially so with electric vehicles! A lightweight car means a lightweight battery increasing the levels of safety and reducing the retail price dramatically."

Fortunately, its extreme diet program doesn't appear to have compromised safety. The car will come with ABS anti-lock brakes and ESP traction control as standard, an air-bag for the driver and front and rear crush zones, all of which helped it survive a recent EuroNCAP 50kph side impact mobile deformable barrier test with "virtually zero cabin intrusion".

Gordon Murray Design has yet to confirm the T.27's release date, but it's expected to hit the streets by 2013, a year after its petrol-powered brother, the T.25 goes on sale.

Have a flick through our photo gallery above to get a closer look at the car.