They have been working silently since 2016 in the Turkish part of Cyprus on their own electric car, named after the professor whose dream was to become a car manufacturer: the Günsel brand.

On February 20, 2020, the first prototypes of the fully electric Günsel B9, a two-door hatchback, were launched. Now the company says it’s ready to start producing on the island, aiming to build 75 000 of them yearly by 2030. The design of a second model, the J9, a sleek four-door crossover, already started in 2021.

Alu chassis and composite body

The B9 is a compact two-door hatchback with an aluminum chassis and composite body, weighing only 1 420 kg. It features an in-house developed 350 kg heavy battery pack of 52,6 kWh, suitable for a range of 350 km. The motor delivers 140 kW (188 hp) max and 300 Nm of torque, accelerating the EV in 7,7 seconds from zero to 100 km /hour. The top speed is 150 km/hour.

That’s as far as the technical specs released until today. There is no indication yet of the estimated price range, production start date, and first deliveries. The next model, J9, still in its design phase, will be a beefier model with dual motors and 4-wheel drive, delivering 280 kW (375 hp) and offering a range of 500 km with an 85 kWh battery. This one should accelerate in 5,5 seconds and reach a top speed of 200 km/hour.

Childhood dream

The Günsel brand is the childhood dream of Dr. Suat İrfan Günsel. He is a Turkish Cypriot who founded in 1988 in Nicosia the private Near East University, which is still owned 100% by the family. Today, employing 6 800 people, Near East Enterprises is the second largest employer after the state in Northern Cyprus.

As a child, Suat İrfan used to make automobile models from clay and dreamed that he would someday establish an automobile factory. First, these dreams materialized instead in an automobile museum with classic cars. Still, it triggered the desire to develop a domestic and national car for the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus.

Building solar cars

It started by building a solar car and winning its first championship at the Sasol Solar Challenge in South Africa in 2014. In 2017, design studies began to develop the B9 prototype, and by 2019, the new R&D facilities and headquarters on the northern part of the island were established.

The prototype B9 was shown to the world first in 2020. Today Günsel says it employs 300 engineers, designers, and technicians and will boost staff numbers to +1 000 to start mass production in 2023.