Meet the VBB-3, the world’s fastest electric car

[Guest Kloaked]

Original article: http://arstechnica.com/cars/2016/02/400mph-or-bust-meet-the-vbb-3-the-worlds-fastest-electric-car/

 

No, this isn't a car you'll be driving to work and back. This is just a project that Ohio State University and the (used to be unknown to me) Venturi electric car company.

 

 

Behold, the dankest of electric cars.

 

 

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VBB-3—its nickname—is the third land speed car to come from the Center for Automotive Research (CAR) in Columbus. Its long, thin shape has been dictated by aerodynamics, unencumbered by the draggy intakes required to feed air-breathing engines. It has a pair of electric motors, each good for 1,500 horsepower (1,119kW) and powered by eight large lithium-ion battery packs. Earlier VBBs set records in 2009 and 2010, but last summer terrible salt conditions prevented VBB-3 from running a proper test program to 400mph and beyond.

 

 

 

As a southerner, FUCK YEAH NASCAR WOOO

 

 

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Each axle is powered by its own electric motor. The starting point is the same EV motor Venturi builds for its sports cars, running here at a much higher voltage. In fact, there are actually two EV motors in each unit. "It's two motors sharing a cooling system and a common shaft," team leader (and former graduate student) David Cooke told us. "It makes more manufacturing sense to build smaller motors and couple them together than trying to build one big motor. Today that motor is putting out about 1,000 horsepower in the dyno, but it's capable of 1,500." The team is continuing to develop the powertrain—particularly the inverter control—to give VBB-3 the 3,000hp it needs.

 

 

 

Idk what half of this stuff means.

 

 

 

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Keeping the motors cool enough during the car's minute-long runs is crucial. "The real limit to how hard you can push the motors is ensuring you don't exceed the temperature limits of the magnets and electrical windings and insulation," Cooke said. "These motors have oil cooling jackets over the stator, and we also pump oil over the magnets for the best possible cooling."

 

 

 

I wonder if they could collab with EK and Noctua to come up with a better cooling solution for ultimate silence.

 

I'm just kidding please do not take that seriously.

 

 

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"This is a very, very prototype vehicle," Cooke admits. "A Great example from this year is the gearbox—we really needed to be able to slow down the motors faster to reduce the speed to implement the shift." Decreasing the shift speed down to half a second means adding three components to the car. Pointing at a part of the suspension frame, Cooke explained that "we're even looking at slicing this tube or modifying this part of the chassis. With carbon you'd now have this beautiful million dollar monocoque that's useless because there's no way to modify it."

 

 

 

Well, this was educational. All that car needs is a flux capacitor and it'd be able to go back to the paleolithic era and kill that Loch Ness monster that keeps bugging me about $3.50.

 

I wonder if we'll see electric car drag races. Part of the experience for me when I went to my first drag race was hearing the loud as hell cars just idling before the race even began. Electric cars don't have an exciting sound like that, I don't believe. Who knows, though.

[Prysin]

7 minutes ago, Kloaked said:

snip

there is already EV races in EU. They run modified formula Ford/Formula Renault.

 

ALso, once you rev a EV high enough, you get that crazy RC car sound.... just deeper and more raw. Although, it does require the EV to hit 22-25,000 RPM

 

EDIT:

"As a southerner" i guess you only want to know if it can turn left

[Admiral Naismith]

I'm so fucking hyped because it's from Columbus. This state and city doesn't get any attention for decades except during election time, now it's got MLG Columbus, a CS:GO map (Nuke 2), f*cking fast cars, etc..

Finally all that tax dollars towards 'improving' the freeways is paying off /s.

[Maslofski]

it was either one of those cars or a bugatti kind of deal. too bad

[corsairian]

5 hours ago, Kloaked said:

Well, this was educational. All that car needs is a flux capacitor and it'd be able to go back to the paleolithic era and kill that Loch Ness monster that keeps bugging me about $3.50.

Ill give ya tree fitty for that car. 

[Guest Kloaked]

Just now, corsairian said:

Ill give ya tree fitty for that car. 

GAT DAMN LOCH NESS MONSTA