Electricity is always fun. As a child, a simple flashlight could be anything from a light saber (classic) to a magic pen that could write in space. Then you get a little older and move on to cars. Of course with the advancement of technology, high-tech RC cars have captivated the minds of both children and adults. These cars cost hundreds of dollars, and you could change all the parts you wanted until you were 12 years old driving a 6-pound car at 40 miles per hour on the street. And when you turn 16, electricity suddenly becomes boring. Because at the age of 16, you discovered gasoline and all the magical power that comes with the internal combustion engine.
I still appreciate all the things electricity has given me. I love electricity, from the complicated television set to the simple act of flipping a switch to light up my room. But my light switch cannot be turned off. No matter how much power the new flashlight has or how many apps are created for the iPhone, the visceral feeling that cars and horsepower give us is something unique. If you’ve ever driven a Prius, you’ll understand. I’m impressed with the technology and the results, but it’s one of the most boring vehicles on the planet. But soon, there might be a car at your local track day that runs on some fully-filled AA batteries and can silently blow you away in turns 4: the eWolf e1 . This electric supercar will make its debut at the 2009 Frankfurt Motor Show.
The e1 started life as a technical trial between E-Wolf , the Saxony Lightweight Center and the Institute of Lightweight Structures and Polymer Technology at the Technical University of Dresden . UT Dresden is one of the largest universities in Germany with more than 34,000 students. What sets this school apart from your average SEC University is its focus on nanotechnology, metallurgy, vehicle design, and advanced materials research. The school is located in an area commonly known as “Silicone Saxony”, and their budget last year was over 700,000,000 USD. Basically, if you want to build something that uses cutting edge technology, space age materials, weighs next to nothing, and uses electricity then this is the place to do it.
And that’s how e1 started. It started as a way to show the world the weight savings that come with widespread use of lightweight materials, like Carbon Fiber, on vehicles (even the wheels). The project worked so well that eWolf wanted to see if a production vehicle could be produced. So they went to Li-Tec , the maker of groundbreaking battery technology, to ask them to make their batteries. So eWolf , Li-Tec and UT Dresden all agreed to move forward with creating a production-level vehicle. And the results are impressive.
On the outside, the car looks all business. It reminds me of a soap box car, the shell just wide enough to hold a human body. If you want to block the wind, it’s best to bring your own. It reminds me of a KTM X-bow, with a clear industrial design geared towards function. However, I will say that function looks pretty cool wearing a white suit and carbon fiber shoes. The fighter pilot’s cockpit gives the car an aggressive Formula 1 look, especially with the peak behind the driver’s head (although instead of being an air intake, it’s for engine cooling ). Somehow, all this experimentation with lightweight materials has resulted in a very interesting looking car. It sits low to the ground and the exposed wheels make reaching the top as easy as falling to the ground.
Since the goal of step 1 was to lose weight, let’s tell you how they did: 990 lbs. It is lighter than the current featherweight champion, Ariel Atom. And losing this much weight is not easy; The battery pack alone weighs 594 pounds. This means the body, suspension, frame, brakes, seats, wheels, and ashtray (if any?) weigh just 390 pounds. That light weight is a testament to the success eWolf has had with this “exercise”. If this car were a boxer, it would have to make a few trips to a casino buffet before competing in the Featherweight division. Even after a few weeks on the Kirstie Alley diet, reaching the minimum weight is still difficult.
The E1 has no problems in the “ride” department. It runs a single 110kW motor that produces 147 horsepower and 185 ft lbs of torque. Press…the spark pedal (?) and it goes from 0-60 in just under 5 seconds. Hold that pedal down and the e1 will scream, uh, um, reaching speeds of 147 mph. And you won’t have the problem of running out of battery in 20 minutes like my old Tiger Trax RC car because the e1 has a range of 300km. Processing figures are not yet available, but the math adds up very well. Carbon fiber wheels + racing design + driver in the middle = good. Just ask Gordon Murray how that formula works. Just one interesting note about its performance. All achieved with a driver that weighs 150 lbs. Not only that, e1 also said that people weighing more than 150 cannot drive a car. We don’t understand why heavier people can’t drive a car. Perhaps the car cannot withstand the additional force that a larger driver might exert. Regardless, I’ll keep eating carbs until I receive an official invitation for a test drive.
So it weighs next to nothing, has no carbon footprint, and you can charge it in your garage between trips. Well, there is one thing I see and that is the price. It’s not cheap. In fact, I don’t think I would call it “expensive.” A 60-inch plasma is expensive. A full Klipsch surround sound system is very expensive. Unfortunately, even a new iBook is expensive. But unfortunately, the price of this adult RC car is proportional to its size. It costs $220,000. Don’t make mistakes; This car is a major achievement in the world of “green” cars. It offers outstanding performance and the fun factor is probably up there with a lot of its dinosaur-powered rivals. But is the world willing to spend $220,000 on a single-seat car that forces you to say “No, thank you” to your own birthday cake for fear of weighing 151 lbs the next morning? I guess we’ll see. EWolf continues to produce but in very low quantities.
However, if all goes well, they will have another idea to pitch. It’s called the e2 , a 2-seater car powered by four 100kW motors, each wheel driven by its own motor. 400kw is equivalent to 536 horsepower. It would be difficult to say yes to a 1-seater with the same power as a Civic for the same amount of money as a new SL65 AMG. But if eWolf can build a car with the same power as AMG, it could be a fighter worth betting on.
Source: Autonews.de
