On Wednesday the 23rd of July, a team of UNSW students successfully attempted to break a 26 year old world speed record for the fastest electric vehicle over 500 kilometres. The team broke the record, but is still waiting for final approval from the world Motorsport governing body, FIA. The car averaged a speed of more than 100 km/h during the attempt, beating the previous world record of 73 km/h.
While there are solar electric vehicles with longer ranges or higher speeds, the team broke new ground by combining both into a single vehicle. Pushing the boundaries of technology, the car set a new standard for solar electric vehicles. Especially in a sunny country such as Australia, solar technology can be combined with electric vehicles to remove any range anxiety.
Impressively, the attempt on the record used just 50 cents worth of electricity. The car, eVe, can seat two people and has an 800w solar array. It can achieve a top speed of 140 km/h and has a range of 800 km. Built from carbon fibre, it looks more like a low slung sports car than a solar car. It uses two Maran in hub motors as well as a Panasonic NCR 18650 battery.
For more info check out the Sunswift website.
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