Faraday Future rolls out production car, the FF 91, in rock star fashion
LAS VEGAS -- Faraday Future FF 91, an all-electronic autonomous vehicle got a unveil worthy of all the hype and wonder heaped upon it over the past 12 months.
It was a welcome respite from Faraday Future's recent financial troubles which cast the future of the eagerly-anticipated Tesla competitor in to doubt.
One thing, though, is no longer in doubt: Faraday Future built at least one production model of its impressive and powerful 4-door EV, the FF 91, which was revealed and demonstrated on Tuesday night at CES.
Gone are the wild impractical curves. The FF 91 is a sleek, expansive sedan that no longer shouts that it's trying the change the automotive world.
Even so, all the earmarks of something almost otherworldly remains.
That is, of course, by design. As Nick Sampson, SVP of R&D for Faraday Future, noted in his opening remarks, the company set out to build a new species of automobile and disrupt not only the traditional car industry, but upstarts like Telsa, as well, which Faraday Future apparently believes is still trying to build its car company in the image of the established giants.
We'll do it live
Faraday Future also marked the evening by not just talking about the FF 91's performance and capabilities, but by demonstrating them live in front of a huge audience assembled under a massive tent on the outskirts of Las Vegas.
We caught our first glimpse of the FF 91 via a live feed from the parking lot just outside the presentation area. As we looked on, a driver got out of one of the FF 91 cars, pressed a button and the car set about finding a parking space and then slowly and carefully backed into it.
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Whatever people thought of Faraday Future before, from that moment forward, the audience was with them.
Speedster
Faraday Future has packed the FF 91 with power in a clear attempt to, at least for a time, beat Tesla at its own insane game.
After showing a brief video of the car racing and beating a variety of standard and electric cars on a race track, Faraday Future demonstrated the FF 91's prowess (a claimed 1050 peak horsepower) by performing speed tests on the stage.
As we watched, one car after another sped from zero to 60 MPH right in front of us. Finally, it was FF 91's turn. It was fast. Though, without a radar gun, none of us could really tell how fast.
Eventually, Faraday Future revealed that the FF 91 has completed the run in 2.39 seconds, making it the fastest EV in the world and, yes, faster than Tesla using ludicrous mode, with which it can race 0-to-60 in 2.8 seconds.
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Long runner
The FF 91 also promises impressive -- better than Tesla -- range of up to 378 miles on a single charge, which it gets thanks to its 130 kilowatt hours of battery energy. The Tesla Model S gets approximately 315 miles on a charge.
From the interior to the rims, which adjust kinetically as you drive, the FF 91 is not your typical car. The spacious interior (151 cubic feet) features a large floating screen between the passenger and driver seat and a steering wheel that looks like a prop straight out of Will Smith's I, Robot. Each seat has its own digital controls, including temperature settings.
Every FF 91 owner will set up their own FFID to personalize the car and driving experience. Faraday Future said the car will use artificial intelligence and machine learning to learn your habits and adjust the driving experience over time.
The Faraday Future FF 91 is also going to be one of the most connected cars on the road, with multiple LTE modems so it can maintain constant connectivity and provide 802.11 ac Wi-Fi on the inside.
Hyper-aware
The car has 30 sensors around its body, including 10 cameras, 13 long and short-range sensors, 12 ultra-sonic sensors, and an unusual pop-up 3D LIDAR (a first for autonomous vehicles). It can drive autonomously and, as we saw, park itself or pick you up and even open the door for you.
Much of what we saw on Tuesday night was seamless except for one crucial moment when the full-production model was supposed to drive itself to center stage. FF 91 just sat there. Eventually, once Faraday Future dimmed some of the stage lights around the EV, it slowly and quietly cruised to center stage.
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The road ahead
Even though Faraday Future managed to deliver a pair of FF 91 cars to the stage, it's a long way from rolling dozens of stunning EVs off the assembly line. Initial delivery is set for 2018.
To get on the list for the initial run of FF 91's, you have to register on the Faraday Future website and drop a cool $5,000 just to be considered. The first 300 orders will be offered the option to upgrade to an Alliance Edition. Faraday Future plans to produce just 300 of these bespoke vehicles. The FF 91 list price was not announced.
Some might see that fully-refundable $,5000 deposit as financing Faraday Future's completion of its factory in Las Vegas. Others might be concerned that, despite getting this far in just 2.5 years, Faraday Future could suffer the same fate as Tesla and fall far behind schedule on initial delivery.
Others I spoke to at the event were impressed with what they saw, but remain skeptical of Faraday Future's ability to survive its financial troubles and successfully deliver the FF 91.
Faraday Future, though, had a message for the doubters. At the end of the presentation, Sampson told the audience, "Despite all the naysayers, despite all the skeptics, we will persist."
Lance Ulanoff was Chief Correspondent and Editor-at-Large of Mashable. Lance acted as a senior member of the editing team, with a focus on defining internal and curated opinion content. He also helped develop staff-wide alternative story-telling skills and implementation of social media tools during live events. Prior to joining Mashable in September 2011 Lance Ulanoff served as Editor in Chief of PCMag.com and Senior Vice President of Content for the Ziff Davis, Inc. While there, he guided the brand to a 100% digital existence and oversaw content strategy for all of Ziff Davis’ Web sites. His long-running column on PCMag.com earned him a Bronze award from the ASBPE. Winmag.com, HomePC.com and PCMag.com were all been honored under Lance’s guidance.He makes frequent appearances on national, international, and local news programs including Fox News, the Today Show, Good Morning America, Kelly and Michael, CNBC, CNN and the BBC.He has also offered commentary on National Public Radio and been interviewed by newspapers and radio stations around the country. Lance has been an invited guest speaker at numerous technology conferences including SXSW, Think Mobile, CEA Line Shows, Digital Life, RoboBusiness, RoboNexus, Business Foresight and Digital Media Wire’s Games and Mobile Forum.
