ARE YOU READY FOR NEW ALL-ELECTRIC MGBS, MADE IN THE U.S.A.?

For the past six years, we’ve been following the progress of RBW EV Cars, the British firm that has made its name by handcrafting all-new MGBs with battery-electric power. This boutique manufacturer launched its first product, the RBW Roadster EV, at the Cenex Low Carbon Vehicle Event 2018 with the goal of building 30 examples. Since production began in 2022, they’ve completed 27; recent U.S.-based investments indicate they are on track to produce many more.

Since that time, the firm decided against building the Jaguar XKSS and C-type replicas it originally intended, as founder and CEO Peter Swain tells us; “In the early days I was still understanding the market. It soon became apparent that a ‘new bodyshell’ and ‘new vehicle,’ not a donor or retromod, was the best way forward for RBW; this was not possible with Jaguar XKSS or C-type.”

It was the ever-popular MGB that RBW EV Cars focused its energy on, and the company has been in the news this summer, revealing a £10 million ($13,106,650) venture funding investment from Meson Capital Partners in California. It followed this up with a presence at the recent Monterey Car Week, when it unveiled its left-hand-drive Roadster and GT to America while announcing its intent to establish a new production facility in Danville, Virginia.

MGBs for Forward-Thinking Connoisseurs

The lucky folks who strolled through the Concours Village at the Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance were greeted by a pair of subtle-looking MGBs that promised more than met the eye. The RBW Roadster EV and GT EV, which list for $139,000 and $151,000 respectively, are brand new cars that use British Motor Heritage body shells motivated by a patented, rear-subframe-mounted electric motor powered by a crash-tested under-hood battery pack from the U.K.-based Turntide. These sports cars feature digital instrumentation, touchscreen infotainment, air conditioning, and a choice of standard or custom paint and upholstery finishes. Their underpinnings are modern too, with the fully independent suspension (coil-over shocks) and brakes (VW Golf-sourced discs) upgraded to handle the circa-210 horsepower -more than double the amount produced by the strongest American-spec MGB- specified for the U.S.-market, larger battery tune. Standard-spec examples built for Europe have an output virtually identical to the original twin-carbureted ‘B, better off-the-line performance, and can cover up to 160 miles.

Local Creations

It was that announcement of the American production facility that really made waves, as RBW EV Cars has promised to invest $8 million to create a manufacturing facility in an industrial park called Cane Creek Centre; this park is co-owned by the city of Danville and Pittsylvania County, and an impressive 144 new jobs will be created when it’s up and running in the first quarter of 2025. In addition to custom-building finished cars at the Cane Creek Centre facility, its workers will manufacture RBW EV Cars’ scalable, rear-drive electric motor/front-mounted battery pack driveline assemblies to sell for use in other vehicles.

The left-hand-drive Roadster and GT are certified as road-legal in all 50 states, falling under the Low Volume Vehicle Manufacturer Act with their emission-free powertrains. Up to 325 turnkey units are allowed annually by this Act; Swain says that, in the fullness of time, he’d like RBW EV Cars to build “250-plus, with new models planned [for] 2026… to be continued!”

We’ve had fun configuring Roadsters and GTs on the company’s website- how would you spec yours?

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2024-09-04T14:33:12Z dg43tfdfdgfd