Replacing Oil

How do you get people excited about electric vehicles? Get a successful Le Mans racing team to drive one in the EV Cup!

From Minister Of Science To Race Car Driver

Former British Government Minister of Science, Lord Paul Drayson has extensive experience as a scienctific entrepreneur and an advocate of future energy technologies. He has served as a panel member on the FIA, been Honorary President of the MIA.

Drayson Racing is comitted to making motorsports a more environmentally responsibile eneavor. They have shown that they can compete against the best racing teams in the world using green technologies. Last year Drayson Racing finished third in the Intercontinental Le Mans Cup (ILMC) Championship is the first to earn a pole position in the Le Mans Series with a car running 100% bio-ethanol.

This August Team Drayson will be switching their focus from biofuels to electric vehicle racing as they compete in the first ever all electric vehicle circuit race series, the EV Cup.

Historic First For Motorsports

Green motorsport will become a reality this summer as the EV Cup stages races in the UK, Portugal, Spain, and the United States. There will be two main competitions one for smaller city cars and another for more adventerous open top sports cars. Race-prepared urban THINK cars will run the City EV cup Edition and Westfield iRacers in the Sports EV Class.

Fast Light And All Electric

Team Drayson plans on competing in the Sports EV Class driving a open top track focused race vehicle. The iRacer has independant motors in the rear wheels producing a combined 730 pound-feet of torque. The 600kg car accellerates from 0-60mph in less than 5 seconds.

Although the the entire car is lighter than an average V8 Engine block stability shouldn’t be an issue. About half of the lithium phosphate batteries, around 100kg are to be placed under the floor to give the car a lower center of gravity. Unlike in conventional motorsports, batteries can easily be placed wherever needed without increasing the overall weight of the vehicle.

Excitement For EV Engineers and Spectators

The EV Cup will be the first time that a zero emission vehicle manufacturer has had the opportunity to develop and test their technology in authentic racing conditions. The flexibility of battery placement and weight distribution should add a competitive element unique to racing EVs.

Assuming this year’s series is successful, we’re likely to see a great deal more EV manufacturers clamoring to enter the EV Cup. The simplicity of EVs over combustion vehicles presents opportunities for innovation that should excite both engineers and spectators, without all the noise and pollution.