The all-electric Mustang Cobra Jet 2200 developed by Ford Racing achieved a historic performance at the NHRA event held in Charlotte. The vehicle, which completed the quarter-mile (approximately 400 meters) distance in just 6.87 seconds at a speed of 221 mph (approximately 355 km per hour), broke a new world record in the electric vehicles category.

This tremendous time surpassed Ford’s previous record of 7.62 seconds, which was set by the Cobra Jet 1800 last September, by 0.75 seconds, a huge difference for motor sports.

What is the Secret to 2,200 Horsepower?

As its name suggests, there is a brand new engineering philosophy behind this special design, which transfers 2,200 horsepower directly to the wheels.

To make the system less complex and increase powertrain efficiency to 98%, Ford engineers abandoned the previous four-motor structure and switched to a new combination of two motors and two inverters. Thanks to this radical design change, the total power of the vehicle increased by 600 horsepower, while the weight of the electric motors and inverters was reduced by half.

Advanced Battery and Security Technologies

All this huge power is provided through a 900-volt architecture and a special battery with a capacity of 32 kWh that can be fully charged in just 20 minutes. The car also has equipment specifically for drag racing, which we are not used to seeing in ordinary electric vehicles. A special clutch system that allows the driver to instantly transfer all the power to the road for maximum acceleration and a multi-gear transmission that shortens the quarter mile time by up to one second are among these equipment. The “pyrotechnic circuit breaker” integrated into the system to fully comply with NHRA safety rules maximizes safety by instantly cutting off the high voltage connection with a small explosive charge in an emergency.

Will These Technologies Reach the End User?

It is highly likely that these latest technologies tested on the tracks, such as high-efficiency engines, weight balancing systems and 900-volt architectures, will be integrated into daily consumer vehicles in the future. However, on the other side of the coin, there is the fact that American automobile manufacturers have recently slowed down their investments in fully electric vehicles (BEV). Despite rapidly increasing gasoline prices, Ford’s recent announcement that it will redesign the F-150 Lightning model as an EREV (Extended Range Electric Vehicle) with a gasoline generator and GM’s postponement of the next generation electric pickup and SUV models show that the current priorities in the industry are starting to change.

So, what do you think about this crazy quarter mile record of 6.87 seconds that Ford broke with the Mustang Cobra Jet 2200? Despite this unstoppable performance increase of electric vehicles on the tracks, how logical do you think it is for major manufacturers to slow down their fully electric vehicle investments on the end consumer side? Don’t forget to share your ideas with us in the comments!