e-Racer? So it's electric then?

Well, it's either that or it's powered by something that The Shamen once felt compelled to pen a musical tribute to. And we seriously doubt the latter.

Sorry, you've lost me - can we get back to the car?

Sure thing. Cupra and SEAT's motorsport arm takes one Leon shell and begins the process of stuffing 450kg of battery pack into the chassis. This 6,072-cell set-up powers four rear-mounted electric motors which, between them, cough up 670hp while revving to somewhere in the region of 12,000rpm. As the whole car weighs 1,350kg, that's enough electrical thump to push the e-Racer from 0-62mph in 3.2 seconds, before it runs on to 169mph flat out. There's some serious aero on the exterior - such as the massive front splitter, the giant rear spoiler and the tiny rear-view cameras in place of door mirrors - while a rollcage is fitted within to ensure the Cupra meets international motorsport legislation. The recharge time, by the way, is just 40 minutes, which is handy if you've got back-to-back races at a weekend meet...

Any words from the team behind it?

Xavier Serra, the technical director for the Cupra e-Racer project, said: "One of this vehicle's most surprising aspects has to be its power. The Cupra e-Racer can reach 12,000rpm, compared to the 6,500rpm of a petrol-powered race car. These revolutions are achieved with a single gear."

Matt Robinson - 6 Mar 2018