Nyobolt charges EV in under 5 mins during first test drive

Claims of the next fastest-charging EV have become so common, they’ve almost completely lost their meaning. 

But Nyobolt might just have something to brag about. The UK startup has successfully charged an EV from 10% to 80% in just four minutes and 37 seconds — just enough time to grab a coffee.

Nyobolt achieved the feat at a race track in Bedford, England on Thursday, using its own specially designed electric sports car fitted with its own specially designed battery.  

The Cambridge University spin-out has tinkered with the chemistry of a standard lithium-ion battery to allow it to accept more electrical charge in a smaller amount of time, without the risk of degradation or fire. To pull this off, the startup has developed a new material for the batteries anodes — but remains hush-hush on the details.

Nyobolt has built a Lotus Elise-inspired sports car prototype to demonstrate its battery tech. The car only weighs 1,250kg and its 35kWh battery has an official range of 250 km.  

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The startup unveiled the electric sports car concept in June of last year, along with the claim that it could be fully recharged in less than six minutes. And now during EV’s first live demonstration Nyobolt has stuck to its promise — just about. 

There were a couple of hiccups during the test drive, including a cooling system malfunction, that prevented that EV from hitting the fully-charged-in-6-minutes target, Nyobolt’s co-founder Dr Sai Shivareddy told the BBC. 

The feat is impressive nevertheless, and shows just how far EV tech has come in only a few short years. In an industry where range anxiety and slow charging times still remain a significant hurdle, a battery with a six-minute charging time could be a game-changer.  

While the EV prototype is still a once-off for now, Nyobolt has indicated that it may begin “low volume production” next year. Its main focus, however, remains the batteries under the hood.