Sponsored Links:
.
Anything that can get round the Nordschleife in less than eight minutes deserves some respect.
It was a hell of a target: to lap the Nurburgring in less than eight minutes in a battery-powered car, especially given that the existing mark, set by the Peugeot EX1 concept, was 9min01.338.
But the Toyota EV P001 is also a helluva car: it's low, very stable and has two 140kW EVO electric motors delivering 400Nm each and powering it to a top speed of 260km/h.
More importantly, although its 520-volt, 41.5kWh lithium-ceramic battery weighs a hefty 350kg, the whole car weighs less than a tonne, ensuring nimble handling around the notoriously twisty circuit.
The Toyota development team got lucky on August 29 as the famously fickle Nurburgring weather held (although track temperatures stayed relatively low) and test driver Jochen Krumbach put in a perfect lap to stop the clock on 7min47.794, more than a minute inside the old record and well below his eight-minute target.
The EV P001 is more than just a flag-waver for electric performance, however; Toyota plans to begin marketing the EVO motors, lithium-ceramic batteries and rational motion control modules in 2012 as the basis for a one-make electric racing series, while continuing its research into alternative powertrains and chassis designs.
|
|
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
Services
Buying a car has never been easy. Motoring.co.za contains a large database of car listings with a user friendly search.
Start searching today »
Business Directory
We like to make your life easier
Mobile
Browse IOL on your phone at m.iol.co.za.
Newsletters
Subscribe to our newsletters. News delivered to your inbox!
Comment Guidelines