Infiniti Has Built A 1940s-Inspired Electric Racing Car, And It's Stunning

Here’s something we really didn’t expect to come from a brand like Infiniti: an all-electric, “reimagining of a 1940s race car.” It’s been created by Nissan’s luxury division for the 2017 Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance in Monterey, and we’re rather taken with the thing.

It’s called the Prototype 9, and it’s based on an old-school steel ladder frame chassis, with hand-beaten steel body panels fitted on top. The 40s look is completed with 19-inch wire wheels, wrapped in “period cross-ply competition tyres.”

There’s nothing retro about its powertrain however, as it’s made up of a battery and motor combo lent by Nissan’s Advanced Powertrain Department. It makes 148bhp and 236lb ft, and while that may not sound like a whole lot, Prototype 9 only weighs 890kg. As such, it’ll crack 0-62mph in 5.5 seconds. Not bad.

We’re still not entirely sure what the point of this out-of-hours project is, nor how it relates to Infiniti’s rather hum-drum road car line-up. But we don’t particularly care: it looks amazing, and we’re sure it shouldn’t have any trouble drawing attention in Monterey later this week.