Charged with Electric Vehicle News and Views
Finnish startup Toroidion has launched their all-electric megacar at the Top Marque show in Monaco. The Toroidion has 1341 hp total and a swappable battery.
With 2x 200 kw at the front and 2x 300 kw direct drive in-board wheel motors at the rear, the Toroidion 1MW Concept, built by designer Pasi Pennanen, was created to be an electric car that can compete in the GT classes at the 24 Hours of Le Mans.
Source: Toroidion
Audi Motorsport has taken the wraps off the 2015 R18 e-tron quattro scheduled to compete in the FIA World Endurance Championship (WEC).
The new version has some big shoes to fill taking into account last year's model triumphed at Le Mans, but Audi is confident they can repeat the 2014 success thanks to a more aerodynamic body. It features larger air inlets in the redesigned front wheel arches along with reshaped headlights benefiting from matrix LED and Audi Laserlight technologies. Also new are the front wing, hood and engine cover while the monocoque has been carried over.
Audi has prepared two body configurations suitable for various tracks of the 2015 WEC calendar and they have also optimized the chassis in collaboration with Michelin. The engineers were responsible for doubling the amount of energy from 2 to 4 megajoules per race lap at Le Mans and during braking the energy recovered is then sent back to the front axle during acceleration.
The electric motor has been upgraded to 272 HP (200 kW), representing a "significant increase" compared to last year's variant while the encapsulated flywheel energy storage system can now store 700 kilojoules which is 17% more than before.
The LMP1 prototype tips the scales at just 870 kg (1,918 lbs) and now consumes 2.5% percent less diesel per lap than last year in order to meet the more stringent regulations implemented by FIA. Output of the TDI 4.0-liter V6 engine stands at 558 HP (410 kW) and only five engines will be available during the 2015 WEC season.
The Bridgestone brand will again act as title sponsor of this year’s World Solar Challenge – which will be known, as you’ve already probably guessed, as the Bridgestone World Solar Challenge 2015.
The event will take place in Australia between 18 and 25 October and is the 13th World Solar Challenge since 1987. Bridgestone intends to use the World Solar Challenge as a platform for promoting its ‘Ecopia with ologic’ technology, and the company says it will also engage in associated environmental initiatives and programmes that support young engineers participating in the event.
The last World Solar Challenge in 2013 attracted 38 teams, including many university students, from 22 countries. The participants competed in a 3,000 kilometre (1,184 mile) cross-country race using only solar energy to power the vehicles. The competition features three separate classes – Adventure Class, Cruiser Class and Challenger Class – which will compete for the title of the world’s most efficient solar car.
This is the Nissan NISMO entry to the 2015 Le Mans 24 Hour race, the GT-R LM NISMO.
The GT-R LM NISMO is a front-engined, front wheel drive car that is powered by a V6 3-litre twin turbo petrol engine and a kinetic energy recovery system- It is the ultimate GT-R.
Some info on the Nissan LMP1:
Nissan has yet to announce how retrieved energy is stored, but it is understood that it is a flywheel system.
Extensive testing with the second generation of Porsche’s Le Mans prototype began on January 18, on Abu Dhabi’s Yas Marina Circuit. As scheduled, this marks the start of the 2015 motorsport season for the Porsche Team. The new Porsche 919 Hybrid has already had its roll-out on the Weissach test track. As a next step, there will be several performance and endurance tests before the WEC season opener on April 12 in Silverstone, Great Britain.
The new Porsche 919 Hybrid is a comprehensive evolution of the successful car that made its debut in 2014. It will feature the same innovative drivetrain concept consisting of a 2-litre V4 turbocharged petrol engine, an electric motor powering the front wheels, and two energy recovery systems. The new generation car had its first roll-out on December 15, 2014.
Stohl Racing surprised at the Motor Show in Essen. The Austrians transplant two electric motors in a Peugeot 207 S2000 and have been approved for use in special stage rallying.
The Peugeot S2000 built by Manfred Stohl is all-wheel-drive via 2x electric motors with a maximum output of 400 kW (544 hp), more impressive is the torque of a whopping 880 Nm which, typical of electric motors, comes on immediately. Zero to 100 km/h takes only 3.0 seconds despite a weight of 1,500 kg.
A highlight is the installation of the battery, which is located between the driver and passenger. This is installed in a special cage construction, but can be changed in service in just five minutes. This is made possible through a specially designed trailer mounted lift.
The range of the electric-S2000 as usual depends on the driving style. Stohl Racing has calculated approx 30 kilometers range with a subsequent return to the Service to change the battery. The rally-e Stohl Mk1 will premiere in the state rally championship soon.
ELMOFO will have an entry in the last round of the 2014 Australian eFXC Superbike Race Series this weekend in the form of a recently purchased Brammo Empulse TTX.
This particular bike has enjoyed a lot of success in the US in the hands of Eric Bostrom. Elmofo will have local pro-rider Simon Galloway to race the bike in an effort to promote Brammo production bikes in Australia.
There should be a good mix of bikes at the final round at Eastern Creek including some modified production along with some super-high-powered privately built bikes.
An electric racing car developed by students at ETH Zurich and the Lucerne University of Applied Sciences and Arts on Monday set a world record for acceleration, the universities announced.
The “grimsel” car sped from zero to 100 kilometres an hour in just 1.785 seconds, at a military airport in Dübendorf in the canton of Zurich, smashing the the previous record.
The previous record of 2.13 seconds was set by Delft University of Technology in the Netherlands.
Operated by a student team from the Academic Motorsports Club Zurich (AMZ), The grimsel car, reached a speed of 100 km/h in less than 30 metres, ETH Zurich, the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology, said in a news release.
Thirty students from the two swiss universities developed and built the racing car in less than a year.
Weighing just 168 kilograms, the carbon-fibre vehicle generates 200 horsepower through four-wheel drive, ETH said.
Four specially designed wheel hub motors create a total torque of 1,630 Newton metres (Nm), with torque distribution controlled individually for each wheel to maximize acceleration, the university said.
AMZ was founded in 2006 ivy ETH students and produces a prototype racing car to compete in various student formula competitions in Europe every year.
The grimsel car will be presented to the public at “Student Power Day” on November 9th at the ETH Hönggerberg campus, with test rides planned between noon and 2pm.
Mitsubishi’s top selling Outlander PHEV plug-in hybrid electric vehicle is set to tackle a new frontier when it takes on one of the toughest off-road events in outback Australia next month.
With technical support from Mitsubishi Motors Australia (MMAL), Team Mitsubishi Ralliart Australia (TMR Australia) will enter a plug-in hybrid Outlander PHEV in the iconic Australasian Safari, which takes place in Western Australia from 19-27 September.
It will be the first plug-in hybrid four-wheel drive officially entered in an Australian motorsport event – including the Safari, which is considered one of the most demanding off-road endurance rallies in Australia.
Experienced local driver and co-driver team of Steve Glenney and Bernie Webb will put the TMR Australia petrol electric Outlander PHEV through its paces during the nine-day outback event.
The Outlander PHEV will compete in class A1 for production vehicles, in a category specially created for hybrid or dual powered vehicles.
TMR Australia’s Australasian Safari entry marks the third international off-road rally outing for an Outlander PHEV since its launch in late 2012. Previously, the Outlander PHEV’s all-terrain performance and durability have been tested in the Thailand, Cambodia Asia Cross Country Rally, which the Mitsubishi SUV successfully completed in 2013 and 2014.
TMR Australia Outlander PHEV Safari Team Principal Alan Heaphy said the Australasian Safari is a challenging event that demands stamina and endurance from competitors and vehicles alike.
“We’re very excited about building the first plug-in hybrid to compete in the Australasian Safari,” he said.
“The Outlander PHEV showcases the latest Mitsubishi hybrid and four-wheel drive technology, making it an ideal platform for an entry in the Australasian Safari.
“From our long-term experience working with Mitsubishi products, the quality of engineering and technology is a good match for motorsport, and we’re looking forward to proving the Outlander PHEV’s durability and technology in genuine off-road conditions.”
Competing in Australasian Safari production class A1, the Outlander PHEV will be built to meet FIA specification with only minor modifications made for durability and safety.
To help it withstand the punishing conditions, the Outlander PHEV will have extra underbody and frontal protection, reinforced suspension arms and strut towers along with competition brake pads, rally tyres and springs with adjustable dampers for added strength and durability.
The Mitsubishi Outlander PHEV is the world’s first plug-in hybrid SUV. It uses Mitsubishi Motors’ advanced electric vehicle technology by combining a 2.0L MIVEC petrol engine with high output 60kW twin front and rear motors, high capacity 12kWh drive battery and regenerative braking system for maximum efficiency and performance.
Mitsubishi Motor Company will support the TMR Australia Outlander PHEV Safari entry by sending three plug-in hybrid specialist engineers to Western Australia for technical assistance during the gruelling seven day event, which will cover more than 2,500 competitive kilometres through sand, salt plains, dry river beds and rugged desert tracks.
The 2014 Australasian Safari concludes in Kalbarri – 600 kilometres north of Perth – on Saturday 27 September.
With less than 4 weeks to go until the inaugural FIA Formula E race in Beijing China, an electric race car in Australia has already made history.
In what is believed to be a world first, a battery powered Radical SR8 entered by ELMOFO in the NSW SuperSports State Championship has become the first electric car to win a race against petrol vehicles in a sanctioned race event. To prove it was no fluke, it won twice!
Not only did the EV win two of the three races comprising round four of the championship, held 17th August at Wakefield Park Raceway, the ELMOFO Radical, driven by Garth Walden, also set the fastest lap time for the entire meeting (57.6870 sec) beating all other categories which included Formula 3 and Sports Sedans.
The ELMOFO Radical is similar in concept to the current Nürburgring EV lap record, the TMG EV P001 built by Toyota Motorsport GmbH and the TMG EV P002 modified by TOYOTA Racing Development U.S.A. to tackle Pikes Peak in 2013.
The race winning electric Radical SREV was built by Newcastle based Solar PV systems firm Solar Power Australia. The car delivers 280 kw (375 hp) and 570 Nm (428 ft-lbs) of torque almost instantly from its twin sequential BLDC motors. Power is controlled by dual Rinehart Motion Systems inverters which are fed voltage from a 37 kWh lithium ion battery pack controlled by a Batrium BMS. Power is transmitted to the rear wheels via a single speed limited slip differential. Performance specs for the all-electric racer, built on a Radical SR8 chassis, include 0 to 100 km/h (62 mph) in 3.5 seconds, 0 to 160 km/h (100 mph) in 6.5 seconds with a top speed of 265 km/h (165 mph).
The 2014 CAMS NSW SuperSports Championship is mostly a one-make series for Radicals, with a couple of Stohr WF1 single seaters also contesting the series. The ELFOMO team have worked hard over the previous three rounds to debug the car and the wins are a just reward for achieving solid reliability. Since the beginning of the season the car has demonstrated it had raw speed by routinely qualifying on the front row of the grid. In only round 4 of the championship the battery powered racer dominated from the front with Walden blasting well ahead of the pack for the first 4 or 5 laps and then backing off a little to preserve the car.
The ELMOFO team would like to thank Rinehart Motion Systems, AM Racing, Batrium, Garth Walden Racing, Royal Purple and the Supersports Racecar Club Committee who have been very supportive of the car, scheduling some races of a length that the battery powered vehicle could complete to ensure it’s inclusion in the series.
