Porsche P1

The C.2 Phaeton model is in fact a four seat vehicle which is powered by the "octagon" electric motor, which took its name from the eight-sided design of the motor housing. The electric motor can produce an output of 3 hp (2.2 kW) at 350 rpm and for short periods of time, up to 5 hp (3.7 kW) with a top speed of 35 km/h (22 mph) by overcharging it. The car could be driven for three to five hours with a range of approximately 49 mi (79 km). The car uses a complicated series of gears where it is driven by using a 12-speed controller where six are dedicated to forward gears, two for reverse and four to brake the car.

The vehicle can also be styled as an open-air chassis or a coupe and because of its alternating vehicle body, it could be used during the summer and winter or sunny and rainy days. The vehicle is mainly made out of wood and weighs 2,977 lb (1,350 kg) with the battery itself weighing over 1,103 lb (500 kg). The wheels are also made out of wood and are surrounded with pneumatic tires.

The car disappeared for 112 years and only recently was found in a warehouse in Austria, where it had remained untouched since 1902.[2] The car remains to be in a clean and good condition where the motor still functions, however the batteries and seats have gone missing. The P1 is currently on display at the Porsche Museum in Stuttgart, Germany.

In the year 1898, Ferdinand Porsche designed his first ever car and named it the Egger-Lohner electric vehicle, C.2 Phaeton model or "P1" for short. The short form of the car "P1" came from Ferdinand Porsche who made sure that he would be credited for his design and work of the vehicle, hence he engraved the code "P1" which stood for Porsche number 1, onto all of the key components of the vehicle. The P1 was originally created for a car maker company by the name of Jacob Lohner. Ludwig Lohner, the owner of Jacob Lohner became convinced after seeing Ferdinand Porsche that the age of horse and carriage was over, requested Ferdinand Porsche to create an electric drive train. On June 26, 1898, the P1 officially rolled out to the streets of Vienna, Austria. On September 28, 1899, Ferdinand Porsche entered the Berlin road race with the P1, where it won the gold medal and crossed the finish line 18 minutes before the second car did. With such shocking results from the P1, it had also won another title where the P1 came out on top in the efficiency test, where it is recorded as the lowest energy consumption vehicle in urban traffic.[3]

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