2015 Parx Supercar Show
Soon, supercars with engines like jewels will be things of the past

Supercars vs EVs

India is a land of many miracles. From sages to Miss Worlds, this country has everything to cover almost all aspects, except for a few that are so glaring that one should have eyes like that of a Ganges dolphin to not see them.

One thing that immediately comes to mind is how rare it is to see performance cars on the road. Yes, one can easily see premium sedans of German make on our roads, but those mostly have diesel engines and are brought as luxury items rather than for performance.

It is quite rare to see cars driven for the sake of driving them here (except at a top metropolis) and who is to blame, even a small hatchback with decent kit costs around Rs. 5 lakhs these days and in a country where millions cannot choose but travel on overcrowded public transport, I am afraid things might not improve.

A supercar or even a sportscar is something out of the ordinary in developing nations. They bring joy among the young and also give them something important – hope.

Seeing such a thing ignites a fire in the hearts of young ones and although irrational at that time, makes them want to buy one. Ask any person who has come up in life, they would tell you stories of that one posh car they saw while on their way from school which they so wanted to buy and drive.

However, things are in for a change and in the near future I think we should not be surprised to see more cyclists on the road. Not because they want to save the planet, but because fuel is fast becoming a commodity that cannot be afforded by the common man.

I know now that my hope to see more performance cars in the “environment-friendly” world would soon be a thing of the past and we will be left with glorified milk floats that might not necessarily make young boys go weak in their knees. I hope I am proven wrong either way. I hope that EVs can simply be as light and fast as possible without much foibles associated with the technology. Maybe solid-state batteries can help.

Bear in mind, there is an alternative. Performance motorcycles are still within the reach of people in terms of costs and could very well have the same effect as supercars. As long as bikemakers keep pushing the boundaries, all the while dealing with legislation, kids would still have something to ignite fire in their hearts.

Tesla Model S P100D
EVs need to get lighter in the future if they are too provide the same thrills as supercars