Still-born Dyson EV revealed

The wraps have come off the aborted Dyson electric vehicle.

Cancelled last October by Sir James Dyson after the vacuum cleaner entrepreneur ploughed 500 million British pounds into the project, the N256 seven-seat wagon boasts some pretty extreme numbers.

They include a world-leading 600-mile (960km) range between recharges courtesy of Dyson’s proprietary solid-state batteries, a 2.6-tonne kerb weight and a 4.8-second 0-100km/h time via two 200kW electric motors.

The Dyson N256 measures up at about 5.0m long, 2.0m wide and 1.7m tall. The wheels are “bigger than any production car on the market,” Dyson told The Sunday Times during an interview to mark his rise to the top of the UK’s rich list.

Inside the N256 there is a head-up display that “floats in front of your face like a hologram” and slimline seats with segmented cushions and lollipop shaped head restraints.

Dyson revealed the N256 ended up costing him 500 million British pounds ($A937 million). He pulled the pin after failing to find a buyer for the project.

Dyson estimated each example of the N256 would have had an exorbitant 150,000 pound retail price ($A281,000) to make any money.

“I don’t have a fleet. I’ve got to make a profit on each car or I’d jeopardise the whole company. In the end it was too risky,” he said in the interview.

The N256’s range puts Tesla and other brand’s current range claims into the shade. Elon Musk recently touted the latest updates deliver a 400-mile range (644km) for the Model S.

Further, Dyson claimed the solid-state batteries could sustain that range “even on a freezing February night, on the naughty side of 70mph on the motorway, with the heater on and the radio at full blast”.

Dyson has retained the 500-strong team that worked on the EV for other projects. He also says he may allow others in the automotive industry to tap into his battery tech.