See, you can build lightweight EVs! Spectacular sub-1000kg Longbow sports car set for 2026 launch to trump Tesla’s Roadster

April 13, 2025April 12, 2025 Iain Curry 1191 Views 0 Comments electric sportscar, ev sportscar, Longbow EV, longbow roadster, Longbow speedster

British start-up Longbow is promising the first ever “Featherweight Electric Vehicles” (FEVs), with rear-drive Speedster and Roadster models previewed ahead of planned customer deliveries in 2026.

It’s positive news for those who fear the death of the lightweight sports car as we move into an EV age of hulking batteries and lardy kerb weights.

Longbow says both its closed cockpit Roadster and open-topped Speedster will tip the scales at under a tonne, quoting quite incredible figures of 995kg and 895kg respectively.

Rather wonderfully, those are Lotus Elise S2-rivalling numbers.

How are they going to do it? A couple of AA Duracells and a range to the end of your driveway?

Apparently not.

The Brit brand’s quoting 442km range (WLTP) for these two-seaters, and in an interview with TopGear magazine, said the current plan was to use “2170 nickel-cadium cells powering a 240kW motor, with the possibility for a dual-motor version left open for later on”.

Power-to-weight should be mega as a result, with Longbow suggesting 0-100km/h in 3.5 seconds for the topless car, and 3.6 seconds for the tin-top.

They look bloody lovely in the pictures too, with Ferrari Roma vibes up front and a Lotus/TVR feel at the back.

The magazine’s interview with one of Longbow’s co-founders, Daniel Davey, quoted him saying: “We have a 240-kilowatt motor: there are 12-15 (different motors) we can buy off the shelf. We personally have good relationships with all the major Chinese semi-state owned businesses and suppliers.”

Buying off-the-shelf motors, batteries and more will help reduce costs, and the UK price starts at a palatable ₤64,995 ($135,000) for the Roadster and ₤84,995 ($177,000) for the Speedster. Longbow said 150 examples of each style would be hand-built in the UK, with deposits already being taken.

As we await Porsche’s EV Boxster/Cayman, the Tesla Roadster MkII and delayed Polestar 6 Roadster, the Longbow’s only obvious rival in Australia is the MG Cyberster EV ($121,980), which at a chunky 1985kg weighs twice as much as the Longbow’s claim. The Cyberster may be quick, but with that mass it’s never going to be a properly engaging sportscar.

Conversely, the Longbow has lightweight at its core. Its motto ‘Celeritas Levitas’ or ‘the speed of lightness’ is what it calls “a rallying cry for enthusiasts”. Inspiring.

In a nod to Lotus founder Colin Chapman’s ethos, we’re told Longbow’s EV development “has pursued a singular philosophy: simplify, focus on beauty and engagement, then relentlessly add lightness”.

The chassis is a bespoke aluminium item “engineered for minimal weight and maximum stiffness”, and the body is crafted of lightweight composite panels.

With handcrafted interior elements and nostalgic nods, Longbow says its cars will be “built like they used to be,” although let’s hope not in the same way as some of the chuff coming out British Leyland in the 1970s.

The three-person team behind Longbow have solid CVs. Daniel Davey began his career with Tesla in 2010 (when its original Roadster was developed) before moving to Lucid; Mark Tapscott developed Lotus Elise and GT race cars and had roles with Tesla, Lucid and BYD; while Jenny Keisu is former CEO of X Shore, a company pioneering electric transformation in the boating industry.

We’re also told Longbow’s engineering team brings decades of experience in road and motorsport including Formula E, Lotus, Aston Martin, Ariel, and Tesla.

Davey said Longbow had a very clear mission: “Amidst the e-mobility revolution, we have lost something important,” he explained. “Many modern ‘sports cars’ tip the scales at 1500kg and BEVs can reach almost double that. There is a need for a more driver-oriented, featherweight, electric sports car.

“We are reviving an icon, the lightweight British sports car.”

We’ve reported on myriad EV startups over the years, and many get delayed or, sadly, fade to grey.

Longbow appears optimistic, expecting first deliveries to begin in 2026. For the sake of driving enthusiasts everywhere, we’d love to see these fascinating superlight sports cars launch and succeed.

Iain Curry

A motoring writer and photographer for two decades, Iain started in print magazines in London as editor of Performance BMW and features writer for BMW Car, GT Porsche and 4Drive magazines. His love of motor sport and high performance petrol cars was rudely interrupted in 2011 when he was one of the first journalists to drive BMW's 1 Series ActiveE EV, and has been testing hybrids, PHEVs and EVs for Australian newspapers ever since. Based near Noosa in Queensland, his weekly newspaper articles cover new vehicle reviews and consumer advice, while his photography is regularly seen on the pages of glossy magazines.