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The Drive eO automobile clocked nine minutes 7.222 seconds, taking the first overall win at Pike's Peak by an electric car. Remarkably, this was achieved even though the four-wheel drive racer's rear motor stopped working halfway through the race.

Another electric racer, manufactured in Croatia and piloted by Japan's Nobuhiro Tajima, placed second 25 seconds behind Millen. Tajima is a nine-time winner of the Pike's Peak Hill Climb.

However, the Latvian race car was unable to beat the all time record set two years ago by Sebastian Loeb – eight minutes 13 seconds.

The Pike's Peak track measures 20 kilometers with 156 turns, climbing 1,440 meters from the start at Mile 7 on Pikes Peak Highway.

The 1,020 kilowatt racecar, designed and built in Latvia, is propelled by six "YASA-400" motors with in-house developed eO controllers. The 50 kilowatt-hour lithium-ion battery pack, 2160 Newton meters of peak torque, a top speed of 260 kilometers per hour and a kerb weight of just 1150 kilograms are some other stunning specifications. The race car went through an extensive test program recently to tweak the electric drive train to perfection.