Jonny Smith’s Late Brake Show reviews the RBW electric roadster

When we were getting ready to reveal the pre-production RBW electric classic roadster to the world’s media and the wider market, there was only going to be one man who would be getting the first drive – Jonny Smith and the Late Brake Show!

We’d met Jonny, best known for Fifth Gear and his electric vehicles reviews for both Fully Charged and his own Car Pervert YouTube channel, at the London Classic Car Show in 2019 where we had shown our sample A car.

Straight away, he bought into the idea of what RBW wanted to achieve and our plan for the car and its unique system. Jonny offered advice, posed interesting questions and said he’d love to be kept informed about what we were doing.

The fact Jonny spent so much time with us that day in Excel’s exhibition hall when there was so much else to see gave us the confidence that we were on the right path. If we were barking up the wrong tree, surely someone who has driven as many electric cars as Jonny Smith had, wouldn’t have been so interested?

Fast forward to a rainy Tuesday at the beginning of October 2020. Not the ideal time to launch a roadster but thanks to Covid and a global pandemic, we had no choice.

Jonny met us at Continental Engineering Services (CES) HQ in Lichfield where we had all our vehicles – from Sample A through to the prototype, Sample B to the new pre-production model.

With someone keeping an eye out for a break in the weather, RBW managing director Peter Swain took Jonny through each vehicle to show the learning and progression of this electric classic car. As an engineer, Jonny also talked with CES’ technical director Ian Mills to go through the finer details.

But the main event was when the dark clouds cleared and Jonny took to the road. He enjoyed it so much that even when it started raining again, he wouldn’t let it stop play!

And once we got back to CES HQ, play he did as he was let lose in the Sample B car in a private area where he showed that a new electric car, styled like an MGB roadster from the 1960s, could do-nut and make its tyres squeal like any other car.

Enjoy Jonny Smith and an episode of his new programme The Late Brake Show. Be sure to subscribe for more of his fantastic videos as Jonny covers all types of motoring as well as great interviews and insights.