Dyson to launch electric car by 2020

James Dyson, billionaire inventor of the bagless vacuum cleaner, has said his company is building an electric car which will launch by 2020, making the firm the latest to challenge traditional carmakers in a burgeoning market.

Tesla has already shaken up the sector and Dyson said it would now spend £2bn (€2.2bn) on solid-state battery technology and vehicle design.

Dyson had been developing new battery and electric motor technology for its vacuum cleaners and other products for the past 20 years, Mr Dyson said.

“Battery technology is very important to Dyson, electric motors are very important to Dyson, environmental control is very important to us,” he said.

“I have been developing these technologies consistently because I could see that one day we could do a car.”

He told staff in an email that the company finally had the opportunity to bring all its technologies together into a single product.

“Competition for new technology in the automotive industry is fierce and we must do everything we can to keep the specifics of our vehicle confidential,” he added.

Mr Dyson said a 400-strong team of engineers had already spent two and a half years working on the project, developing the batteries that will power the car’s in-house designed electric motor.

The firm has yet to decide on where the vehicle would be manufactured, although it has ruled out working with existing auto companies. Mr Dyson said the firm needed to make the announcement as it was becoming hard to talk to subcontractors, government and potential staff.

Reuters