Electric vehicles come in many different forms. They range from the microcars that are meant almost exclusively for city driving, to sedans that bear no outward differences to any normal car you would see driving down the road today, all the way to electric powered sports utility vehicles. While electric works its way across a variety of transportation mediums one of the most exciting is racing cars. There are a few electric racing vehicles out there today that have proven that even without fossil fuels pumping through the engine an electric car can have the speed and the power to make a good showing on the raceway. One of the latest of these electric racing monsters recently reared its head up in France.
Dubbed the Green GT, after the Swiss company responsible for designing the vehicle, this all new electric vehicle is meant to one day rub fenders with the famous Le Mans racing cars that have run their annual twenty four hour race since 1923. The Green GT currently boasts an impressive 408 horsepower that is generated from two rear mounted electric motors. The two motors working together are capable of producing around 300 kilowatts of electricity and can push the vehicle to speeds around 180 miles per hour. The increase in power and speed is said to be a nearly fifty percent increase over the previous prototype model.
Since the newest Green GT model is another step forward in a series of prototype electric vehicles, many changes have been made to take full advantage of the electric power while also increasing the vehicle’s viability as a potential racing machine. The biggest change in the electric system on board, according to Green GT, is the decision to use two lithium polymer batteries. The new batteries feature a flame retardant cooling system and a new case that is meant to be more durable during a crash. The two new batteries are also capable of holding thirty one hours of charge when at full. Green GT also said during the vehicles media show in Le Castellet, France that they are using new software based torque vectoring system that allows the vehicle to handle better in turns.
While the new Green GT is hardly the kind of electric vehicle that will be seen by a majority of people in the electric market, it is always interesting to see how electric is affecting the racing world. It is an intriguing thought that in the next several years there may all electric vehicle racing leagues or even that the important races people have been watching for years may one day be given over to electric machines. It may be seen by some racing enthusiasts as heresy, but for most it is simply the future.
Article by Richard Cooke, appearing courtesy Justmeans.
