Introducing: Renovo Coupe

News of revolutionary electric cars is fast becoming commonplace in the pages of The Gentleman’s Journal. With the launch of BMW’s i8 supercar and whisperings of the neo-retro Icon Helios concept, now Silicon Valley-based Renovo Motors joins the ranks of electric vehicle makers with the unveiling of its production prototype of the Renovo Coupe.

Sporting the body and chassis of a factory-modified 1964 Shelby Daytona, the Renovo is powered by two mid-mounted axial-flux motors. Combined, the two electric powerplants produce around 500bhp and are capable of powering the Coupe from 0-60mph in just 3.4sec and on to a modest top speed of over 120mph – impressive credentials for a car designed 50 years ago, no? “We wanted something that was classic and instantly identifiable as American” said CEO and co-founder Christopher Heiser when commenting on the decision to base the Coupe on the iconic Le Mans-winning Shelby Daytona, of which only six were originally produced.

Inside, the Renovo Coupe balances its retro outer styling with modern touches such as traditional needle gauges and racing switches, which sit alongside a central digital display. Offering a range of just 100 miles, the Coupe appears to be more suited to short blasts on the track than long-range road trips so don’t expect to see one straying too far from a socket. To fully charge the Coupe from the mains will take five hours but hook it up to a fast-charger and the time reduces to just 30 minutes, giving you time to appreciate the Coupe’s curves and crafted haunches.

Sprouting from the epicenter of tech-start ups – Silicon Valley – Renovo was co-founded in 2010 after Heiser had spent two decades in the tech industry. In the build up to the Coupe’s launch at the 2014 Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance, Heiser completed test drives in the Coupe at night to ensure the car remained well and truly hidden from the public eye.

Renovo started taking orders for the Coupe last month and a limited production run is scheduled for 2015 in the US. There’s still no word on price but expect it to be hefty owing to the car’s limited production numbers; Renovo bosses revealed it’ll produce “a fraction” of what McLaren and Ferrari have allowed for the P1 and LaFerrari. After Tesla, Renovo is the second major car company to emerge from Silicon Valley, which begs the question; is Heiser looking to overtake Elon Musk as the electric car king? Time will surely tell but, for now, one thing is for sure; the battle for electric car supremacy is only just beginning.