Ford has announced it is returning to the Pikes Peak hill climb in Colorado in 2023, and that it will be competing in a van.
But it won’t be a normal van, rather Ford’s wild electric Transit-based ‘SuperVan 4’. Revealed last year at the Goodwood Festival of Speed, it’s the latest execution of Ford’s ‘SuperVan’ concept, and the first EV.
Built by Ford Performance and rally specialists STARD, its four electric motors generate an enormous 1,973bhp, and means this heavily-modified Transit can accelerate from 0-60mph in just two seconds.
Ford has been competing at Pikes Peak for more than 100 years, and was present with its Model T at the first ever event, with the classic model taking 28 minutes and three seconds to reach the top of the 12.42-mile hill climb, which ends 14,115ft above sea level.
Ford hasn’t confirmed that it is hoping to break the overall record with the van, but has jokingly said it is ‘looking to shave more than a few minutes from the Model T’s time’.
At the wheel of the SuperVan will be Romain Dumas, who is the current record holder at the Pikes Peak International Hill Climb, getting to the top in a fraction under eight minutes at the 2018 event with the electric Volkswagen ID.R race car.
Dumas said: “Ford’s latest generation of electric vehicle technology is the perfect match for America’s Mountain. With high altitudes cutting power in traditional ICE-powered vehicles, the electric powertrain of SuperVan 4 has no loss at elevation and will be a healthy competitor in this year’s race.”
This year’s Pikes Peak Hillclimb takes place on June 25.