It does happen once in a while that an electric car creeps up on you without you noticing it due to the lack of sound. We still need to get used to it, or do we? Today we bring you the Totem GT Electric. A classic supercar EV with sound, power, and over a ton of newton meters.
Lets talk Totem Automobili
Totem Automobili is a supercar manufacturer that combines traditional Italian values with cutting-edge technologies that are geared toward innovation. These values include elegance, exclusivity, and style. Riccardo Quaggio, an innovative automotive designer, was the brains behind the creation of Totem Automobili. He had the insight to breathe new life into the Alfa Romeo Giulia GT’s classic shape. Though it has always been firmly established in his family, who have been passing down the great taste for classic automobiles to him since his early boyhood, his enthusiasm for classic cars is not a casual affair.
He earned his degree in transportation design from the IAAD in Turin, Italy, and has worked as an exterior and interior designer for Honda and the Alfa Romeo Style division.
In 2018, Riccardo invested in Totem Automobili with the intention of creating the car he had always imagined as a child. He was motivated by the duty to preserve the tradition of Italian automotive design and inspired by a futuristic vision of the high-end automotive landscape.
In addition to serving as the company’s CEO, he closely monitors every step of every project with strong attention to detail in an effort to make his ideas a reality.
Totem Automobili is a supercar manufacturer that combines traditional Italian values with cutting-edge technologies that are geared toward innovation. These values include elegance, exclusivity, and style.
The foundation of Totem Automobili is a steady team of specialists and partners, primarily from Italy, who support Totem throughout all the intricate processes involved in a manufacturing cycle in the high-end automobile industry.
Totem’s main goal is to create reinvented versions of the Italian cars that helped define the golden age of racing by creating and putting into use a blend of cutting-edge technologies and time-tested methods.
a project that is one of a kind, changing the Restomod industry by fusing cutting-edge engineering with the traditional designs found in vintage vehicles.
The mission of Totem is to give birth to heartbreaker vehicles that never existed.
Restomod with Battery
The car here is called Totem GT Electric, and, as the name implies, it is a Giulia GT revolutionized in soul and spirit thanks to an unprecedented Restomod. It is inspired by the legendary Alfa Romeo GTAs, and propelling it is an electric unit (rear-center-mounted) that promises more than 500 hp. It is powered by a battery large enough to premise 400 km of range. The development of the latter was handled in-house by Totem Automobili and uses a special military liquid to maintain a constant temperature inside the ‘stack,’ which never exceeds 38 degrees Celsius. A solution that promises greater efficiency and no sudden loss of range depending on outside temperatures or car usage.
Aggressive EV
Turning a historic car into an EV is an increasingly common operation thanks to specific legislative liberalizations that allow the old ICE to be replaced with an electric one without endless bureaucratic processes for re-approval. The heart of the work lies in the details that transformed and made the Totem GT Electric unique. Starting with the bodywork, which is almost entirely made of carbon with track widths widened by 18 cm, front and rear.
The new LED headlights (two + two additional ones inspired by the lights of 1960s rally cars) along with the headlights, changed from rectangular to round; all this gives the GT Electric a greater modernity of form, while the forged 17″ wheels suggest the sporty intentions of this electric Giulia GT, even once taken to the limit.
Modern-day cornering
Underneath the lightweight composite panels, there is no shortage of technical innovations: to support more than four times the original’s power, the body has been reinforced with a roll bar inspired by those used on the Giulia racing cars of the 1960s, while the steel battery box serves as a load-bearing element of the chassis. The suspension layout is also new: the Totem GT Electric uses multilink at the rear and MacPherson up front with aluminum arms and manual or electronically adjustable Bilstein dampers (optional). Finally, a limited-slip self-locking differential has been added to unload all the power to the rear wheels.
The motor torque is also restricted by the permanent magnets. The high temperature has a substantial impact on the magnets, which lowers the remaining flux density and, as a result, the motor torque capacity. The primary drawbacks of this kind of motor are the mechanical forces and magnet costs. Due to the potential for the magnets to break, the increased centrifugal forces brought on by faster motor rotation rates can provide safety concerns.
A true classic racecar vibe
The cabin is as well cared for as the exterior with new carbon shell seats and luxurious leather upholstery for the dashboard and door panels. Then in the center between the seats is a “curious” element for an electric car, the gearshift lever. To ensure greater driving pleasure the Totem GT Electric is equipped with a mechanism that simulates a sequential transmission with ‘real’ gear changes. This electronic system called “McFly” emulates the performance, sound, and vibration of an ICE and its transmission on an electric powertrain; depending on the driving mode selected, the driver can thus change the engine’s torque curve, power, but also the gear ratio and a number of gears for a more engaging driving experience.
The Powertrain
Totem GT electric sprints from 0 to 100 km/h in just 3 seconds because of the electric motor’s 1.100Nm of torque.
They put into practice the “GAVV” system, an electronic power control designed to control the electric motor’s output through 4 different efficiency settings: G (Gentile), A (Adagio), V (Vivace), and V. (Veloce). Comparable to playing the piano
The integrated inverter with limited slip differential (LSD) in the electric power unit allows it to operate at up to 400 volts and 1000 amps.
AEM Vehicle Control Unit (VCU) with OEM quality requirements and an 8-channel PDU for CAN-bus control handle the vehicle’s brain.
The Totem GT Electric Battery Pack is made up of 12 modular UN38.3-certified cells, with a capacity of 81kWh and a best-in-class weight of under 352kg thanks to the use of an aluminum honeycomb shell.
One of the smallest and most aesthetically pleasing HV Junction Boxes ever created connects all the various components via the high-voltage wire system.
Totem GT Electric may be charged at home in two different ways: in AC charging mode using the On-Board-Charger (single phase), up to 6.6 kW; and in DC fast-charging mode using the CCS type 2 socket, up to 90 kW. You can drive the Totem GT Electric for 400–500 km at an average speed on a full charge.
EV with racecar sounds
The real kicker of this car is its excellent classic race feeling and experience. The Totem team has come up with sophisticated audio that really gets you going. Underneath you will find the layout of this system. Would you like to hear it as well? Click here to check the audio clip on their website + extra informative on this great car.
References: www.totemautomobili.com & https://www.alvolante.it/
