Everything Electric Podcast

Episode: Britain's Longbow Lets Fly! Is This The Roadster We've Really Been Waiting For?

Host: The Fully Charged Show (Robert Llewellyn)

Guest: Daniel Davey, CEO of Longbow Motors

Date: September 29, 2025

Overview

This episode is a deep dive into Longbow Motors, a UK-based upstart aiming to redefine electric sports cars with their upcoming Speedster and Roadster models. Host Robert Llewellyn interviews CEO Daniel Davey to explore Longbow’s mission, challenges, philosophy, and the unique British soul driving their electrified vision. Rich with wit and technical insights, the discussion covers everything from the state of EV sports cars to the nuances of engineering, manufacturing, and design in the UK.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

Introduction to Longbow Motors & Their Vision

• Longbow’s Products:
  • Electric Speedster (£65k) and Roadster (£85k)
  • Each under one tonne, 275 miles range, designed as the purest expression of British sports cars, “the spirit of the past, engineered for the future.”
• Personnel:
  • Founded by alumni of Tesla, Lucid, Polestar, BYD, and Uber.
• Mission:
  • "Change how the earth feels about sports cars." (Daniel Davey, 01:58)

The Pitch & Background

(01:41 - 04:05)

• Open-top, engaging driving:
  • The Speedster is about unfiltered driving on British roads—think “theatre” and driver engagement, inspired by classics like the ELVA and Monza SP1.
• The Roadster aims for higher volume:
  • “Serious production car... targeting global volumes, not just limited volumes like the Speedster.” (Daniel Davey, 02:37)
• Limited reservations:
  • “We’d much rather have a much closer relationship with a thousand reservation holders than bragging rights on 10 or 20,000.” (Daniel Davey, 03:43)

Why Sports Cars Need Electrification

(04:05 - 09:01)

• Electric sports cars can significantly impact emissions because traditional sports cars are among the most polluting vehicles.
• Electrification started in the sports segment with the original Tesla Roadster, but the segment has stagnated since:
  • “The most desirable, coolest and best sports car on the road should be an EV. And no one else is doing it. So we want to go and snatch that halo away as well.” (Daniel Davey, 05:38)
• EV powertrains give designers more packaging and engineering flexibility—important for sports car dynamics and aesthetics.

The Founders’ Story & Motivation

(09:01 - 13:15)

• Originated not from frustration, but excitement for building something new.
• Both Daniel and Mark previously at Tesla and Lucid, experienced the transition from exciting startup phases to corporate scale.
• “...you are drawn to the phase of [a] company you have early on and the excitement of launching something and building something from nothing... that phase of the business was so exciting.” (Daniel Davey, 10:18)
• Strong focus on validating the business as a “Google Moonshot”—constantly interrogating and stress-testing the idea.

Building a World-Class Advisory Board

(14:04 - 18:21)

• Advisors selected for integrity and actionable advice, not just for prestige.
  • Mike Flewitt (ex-McLaren CEO, ex-Ford VP)
  • Michael van der Sande (Tesla, Aston Martin, Alpine, Jaguar SVO)
  • Dan Balmer (Lotus CEO/President)
• “Their advice is there’s overlap, but generally they all have a different field of expertise and complement each other really nicely.” (Daniel Davey, 15:09)
• Advisors rigorously vetted Longbow before joining.

Why Longbow Is Different From Other EV Startups

(19:14 - 21:14)

• Founders’ experience: “Between Mark, Jenny and I, we’ve launched five different EV brands.” (Daniel Davey, 19:26)
• Learning from past failures (battery chemistries, supply chain risks), relentless focus.
• No rose-tinted glasses: “We started from leaning into lessons we’ve learned and built our business plan and go to market around that experience.” (Daniel Davey, 19:34)

The Founders’ Working Relationship

(21:14 - 23:16)

• Foundation of respect, moral alignment, and friendship (“...if you’ve had to pick leeches off your cofounder’s back in some godforsaken backwater of Kyrgyzstan, I think that helps solidify that relationship as well.” (Daniel Davey, 23:06))

The Longbow Approach to Manufacturing

(23:16 - 26:50)

• Clear-eyed on being a low-volume manufacturer: product design is critical to manageable costs.
  • “If you’ve designed a car to be 0-60 in 2.1 seconds, then don’t complain about your bill of materials, because you’ve chosen to...” (Daniel Davey, 23:49)
• Focus on simplified, lightweight, achievable specs—no ego-driven, over-the-top performance figures.
• Benefits from maturing global EV supply chain; UK supply base remains strong.

Crafting Surprise, Delight, and Timeless Beauty

(26:50 - 31:09)

• Core principles: simplify design/engineering without compromise; prioritize “beauty, authenticity, connectedness” over stats; persistent pursuit of “adding lightness.”
• “We are focused on an on-road performance car from the beginning. So just by focusing the product..., we strip out weight, we strip out cost, we strip out complexity. It’s already going to be nicer to drive because we’re not trying to get an ego lap record time...” (Daniel Davey, 27:37)
• The goal is a beautiful, tactile, engaging driving experience—analog, not screen-heavy.

Notable Moment:

• On acceleration: “...0-3.5 or 0-4 [seconds] will feel extremely quick when the car is lighter and smaller and you’re more exposed to the elements... the first time I rode a moped... I thought this was the most amazing thing ... I was going 25 miles an hour.” (Host, 29:46)

Who Is the Target Longbow Customer?

(31:09 - 34:55)

• Not niche: purposefully designed for broad appeal among automotive and technology enthusiasts.
• “We have spoken to every single one of our reservation holders. So we don’t need to guess.” (Daniel Davey, 31:35)
• Design philosophy: universally appealing, not “Marmite” (not polarizing, unlike some EVs).

Quote on design:

• “It’s not Marmite. So I think... you can have a product that is not Marmite but isn’t beautiful... And then you can have beauty that is timeless and people put on its wall. And I think we’re more inspired by that...” (Daniel Davey, 33:25)

Design Process & Timeless Aesthetics

(34:55 - 36:41)

• Designed in partnership with father-son team Vant Design (Chris & Jonathan Gould); melds classic clay modeling with advanced 3D techniques.
• Emphasis on “duality” — front evokes classic sports car lines; rear signals modern EV tech, expressed in a distinctive two-tone paint scheme.
• “If you look at the car, there’s a two-tone paint scheme for a reason. The rear of the car is supposed to be the more modern aspect of the vehicle... and the front is a skin that’s stretched... that represents more classic design...” (Daniel Davey, 36:13)

Why Build in the UK? Decentralization & Supply

(36:41 - 40:51)

• The UK is ideal—deep engineering and sports car heritage, proximity to leading suppliers, and skilled workforce (eight of ten F1 teams based there).
• 90%+ of the supply chain is UK-based.
• Strong aspirations to remain “Unapologetically British” as the company scales.
• Manufacturing in UK makes sense for sports cars in ways that China or the US doesn’t.
• “The UK is the best place in the world to build an electric sports car. There is nowhere even close.” (Daniel Davey, 37:28)
• Plans to grow to 10,000 units/year by 2030, with possible supplemental assembly abroad, but UK stays as HQ and mothership.

Final Reflections – What Would Help Most Now?

(40:51 - 41:56)

• Biggest wish is simply awareness: “People to be aware of what we’re doing, how serious we are about it, and that we’re much further ahead than people would think...” (Daniel Davey, 41:20)

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On sports cars as pollution sources:
  • “Typically [a] small car, massive engine, idling outside schools... anyone who’s driving around in a Porsche 911 in inner-city London is not helping emissions, let’s put it that way.” (Daniel Davey, 04:54)
• On legacy automakers ignoring EV sports cars:
  • “No one’s really looked at [electrification] from a sports car perspective. So I think there’s a lot of opportunity there.” (Daniel Davey, 08:09)
• On corporate culture changes at Tesla:
  • “When... you shift from being very humble and striving to earn your customers delight, when that shifts, you’ve probably shifted as a company.” (Daniel Davey, 13:24)
• On perseverance and partnership:
  • “If you’ve had to pick leeches off your cofounder’s back in some godforsaken backwater of Kyrgyzstan, I think that helps solidify that relationship as well.” (Daniel Davey, 23:06)
• On keeping technical focus:
  • “Your costs are a function of the product that you design in the first place.” (Daniel Davey, 23:49)
• On design philosophy:
  • “The aim is timeless beauty... people buy it because it’s beautiful, or they buy it because they want a driver’s car and they like going out for drives on a Sunday.” (Daniel Davey, 33:25)
• On the UK’s suitability:
  • “Eight of the ten Formula One teams are based in the UK. So it is the best place to build it. And we have a rich history of building lightweight sports cars.” (Daniel Davey, 38:16)

Timestamps for Key Segments

• 01:41 – Daniel Davey gives the Longbow pitch, product overview, and mission
• 04:05 – Why electrify sports cars & the Tesla Roadster legacy
• 06:58 – Technical advantages of EVs for sports cars
• 09:39 – Founders’ backgrounds and motivation
• 14:04 – Building the board of advisors and what makes them unique
• 19:14 – How Longbow intends to beat the EV startup curse
• 21:48 – Founders’ dynamic and trust
• 23:16 – Approach to manufacturing and cost/supply chain strategies
• 26:50 – Philosophy on product features and delight
• 31:35 – Who is the Longbow customer?
• 34:55 – The design process, aesthetics, and ‘duality’
• 37:28 – Why manufacture in the UK? Decentralization and scaling
• 41:20 – The one wish: increased awareness of Longbow’s progress

Summary

This episode unpacks Longbow Motors’ ambitious claim to electrify British sports car tradition for a new era—emphasizing engineering focus, timeless design, and uniquely British provenance. Daniel Davey makes clear their vision is measured by beauty, simplicity, and connection over spec-sheet one-upmanship, and is underpinned by proven startup veterans and a handpicked advisory brain trust. While cognizant of the risks, Longbow stands out by leveraging real-world experience, a grounded product, and a manufacturing ecosystem that’s world-renowned for driver’s cars. If they succeed, it could mean the purest electric roadster experience the UK (and maybe the world) has seen—delivered with a dash of British wit and a focus on genuine driving delight.