Ariel Nomad EV previews 896kg, £78k production car for 2026

Somerset-based Ariel has revealed a near-production-spec concept that previews an electric version of the Nomad 2, the performance off-roader that was itself unveiled only last month.

Dubbed E-Nomad, the new car will provide similar performance to the ICE model while offering unique driving attributes.

Ariel says the electric car is “already on the way” and plans to launch it in 2026. It would cost around £10,000 more than the £68,000 Nomad 2, Ariel CEO Simon Saunders has told Autocar, with battery costs the key to final pricing.

The new EV is the focus of a three-partner project called ZELV (Zero-Emissions Lightweight Vehicle) and the concept will be officially unveiled on 4 September at the Millbrook technical centre, Bedfordshire, as part of the Low Carbon Vehicle Event.

Saunders firmly believes low-volume manufacturers must embrace the electric future or risk being left behind. The E-Nomad aims to show how new technology can be adapted to other low-volume EV projects.

Built with the assistance of two British-based partners, Rockfort Engineering and BAMD Composites, the E-Nomad is backed by a £300k government Advanced Propulsion Centre grant.

It uses the same steel spaceframe chassis and all-independent suspension as the Nomad 2 and has a similar rear-wheel-drive layout.Power comes from a BorgWarner water-cooled single drive motor that delivers 281bhp and 360lb ft.

Several prototypes have already been built and Ariel is confident that a battery-powered model can have a 115mph top speed and achieve 0-60mph in 3.5sec.

Moreover, Ariel engineers predict new benefits in off-road use from the precise delivery of the E-Nomad’s huge bottom-end EV torque and the practical possibility of single-pedal driving.

The E-Nomad is designed with both regenerative braking and a new-to-Ariel ABS system. In a developed version of the car, further tuning could produce a power output of 324bhp.