Champion NASCAR drivers recently had a chance to test a new Ford vehicle.

It has seven motors in it. It has 1,400 horsepower. And it’s electric.

Mark Rushbrook is global director of Ford Performance Motorsports. The company developed a racing version of its all-electric Mustang Mach-E crossover.

“It pushes everything to the extreme to really show what the potential is of this platform and for electric power trains,” he says.

The prototype is not street-legal, and it’s not competing in races. But the company is using it to showcase what an EV can do.

“You feel that almost instantaneous torque going from a standing start, and it is just a very sustained high rate of acceleration,” Rushbrook says. “Even our NASCAR drivers that drive very high-power internal combustion engine race cars … they just come out smiling and excited about what the future is.”

The car may be a one-off, but Ford says its commitment to EVs is not. The company recently announced that it’s increasing its investment in EVs to $22 billion.

So Rushbrook says Ford wants to get people thinking about EVs not only as good for the climate, but as fun, fast, and powerful cars.

Reporting credit: Sarah Kennedy/ChavoBart Digital Media.