Arnold Schwarzenegger is known for loving massive, gas/diesel-guzzling vehicles.
The body-builder turned movie star turned Governator has owned Hummer H1s, a Unimog (a German Hummer), a Mercedes-Benz G-Class and a M47 Patton Tank.
Now Schwarzenegger has a new ride that is still massive and insanely powerful – but doesn’t use a drop of fuel.
It’s a new Mercedes-Benz G-Wagen, but this one has been electrified by Kreisel Electric, an Austrian company that specializes in battery technology for e-mobility and is known for electrifying cars to give them fast charging times and long range.
Examples of its work are a Volkswagen Golf that charges in 20 minutes with a range of 350 kilometres, and a Porsche Panamera that charges in an hour, has a range of 450 kilometres, and a top speed of 300 km/h.
Schwarzenegger’s new G-Wagen has two electric motors that make 482-horsepower, goes 0-100 km/h in 5.6 seconds, has a realistic range of 300 kilometres, and charges to 80 per cent in 25 minutes.
Kreisel removed the diesel V-6 from Schwarzenegger’s vehicle and replaced it with 80-kWh worth of electric batteries. Kreisel also removed the fuel tank, transmission and transfer case, adding in electric motors that drive the stock axles. This doubled the horsepower and brought the acceleration time down by three seconds.
Despite the changes, none of the vehicle’s off-road ability has been lost and power is still sent to all four wheels, Kreisel said in a statement.
This isn’t Schwarzenegger’s first environmentally friendly vehicle. He had a H1 converted to run on vegetable oil.
Schwarzenegger will soon be testing the prototype in Los Angeles and continue to work with Kreisel in its development. The car isn’t for sale, but Kreisel said it is “in contact with partner companies regarding mass production.”
