back to article British lord sets new world electric vehicle speed record

Former UK science minister Lord Paul Drayson has piloted his Drayson Racing Lola B12 69/EV Le Mans Prototype to a new world's electric-vehicle speed record of 204.185mph (328.6kph). Drayson Racing Lola B12 69/EV Le Mans Prototype The Drayson Racing Lola B12 69/EV Le Mans Prototype is powered by lithium ion phosphate …

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  1. Matt Piechota

    Oil

    I'm looking forward to this brave new world where British cars only leak oil from the drive train.

    1. Anonymous Coward
      Anonymous Coward

      So

      So it can go fast, but can it get me to the shops 6 miles away?

    2. MJI Silver badge

      Re: Oil

      Aghhh

      I have a German assembled car, with French gearbox and British engine.

      Guess which bit leaks oil?

      1. Frankee Llonnygog

        Re: Oil

        "Guess which bit leaks oil?"

        The M&S salad in your lunchbox?

        1. MJI Silver badge

          Re: Oil

          My sandwiches are home made!

          I think it is the crank seal, or a cam cover gasket again.

  2. Anonymous Coward
    Mushroom

    Two rich dudes on el reg ...

    Rich British dude (Drayson) spends gobs of money advancing the state of the art in electric vehicles.

    Rich American dude (Parker) spends gobs of money on vulgar, derivative & destructive wedding.

    Where's your plus one going ?

    1. Anonymous Coward
      Facepalm

      Re: Two rich dudes on el reg ...

      Yes - clearly, all Americans are thoughtless, greedy and destructive, whereas Brits are uniformly heroic and innovative.

      1. jubtastic1
        Trollface

        Re: Two rich dudes on el reg ...

        A small sample yet representative all the same.

  3. markw:

    Crash

    Lithium batteries in a shunt? Hmm ...

    1. Esskay

      Re: Crash

      petrol tank in a shunt, diesel tank in a shunt, ethanol tank in a shunt, LPG tank in a shunt, hydrogen tank in a shunt...

      Most methods for storing large amounts of energy in a small space carry an inherent risk of combustion. The important thing is how that risk is mitigated. There are methods for protecting batteries just as there are methods for protecting fuel tanks.

      1. markw:

        Re: Crash

        I'm more afraid of a Dreamliner-style self-sustaining fire. Deforming a liquid fuel tank in a shunt is usually not a problem. Deforming a lithium battery pack is more worrying. A liquid fuel tank can be penetrated by debris without incinerating the driver. With lithium batteries — well I'd want a Bond-style ejector seat.

        1. Esskay

          Re: Crash

          True, puncture risk is much higher - but there are methods of preventing punctures, kevlar blankets for one, carbon fibre casings, and battery design means they can be put in places unlikely to get punctured. The fact remains that it's only an issue because it's an alternative to what we're used to dealing with. If we had batteries for the last 100 years, developing and improving their safety continuously, the idea of putting combustible liquid in a tank next to the driver, which can potentially leak, crack, rust, or in the event of an accident, spill its contents onto the roadway, we'd probably see it as being a deadly option.

          Not to mention the idea of getting the highly combustible fluid from the tank, under the car in a fuel line, into a hot engine bay, past a spark ignition system, next to a hot exhaust manifold and into a hot Cylinder head...

  4. Allan George Dyer
    Joke

    But...

    Does it deliver milk?

    Seriously, good one guys!

  5. Katie Saucey
    Thumb Up

    Pretty cool

    Seem encouraging that people like Drayson are given a chance to run things in the UK. Compare him with his US counterpart, Lamar S. Smith, who is a lawyer, and <shudder> Christian Scientist (you need to look this up to fully understand how terrifying it is). While Drayson was pushing engineering limits, Lamar was probably hard at work drafting his next anti-abortion bill.

  6. jake Silver badge

    "four-cylinder Mopar A4 Midget racing engine"

    Uh, no.

    It's a 368ci (roughly 6L) V8, twin turbo, built by Kenny Duttweiler.

    1. Hubert Thrunge Jr.
      Mushroom

      Re: "four-cylinder Mopar A4 Midget racing engine"

      Uh yes - http://speeddemon.us/i/HRDP-081000-DEMON.pdf

    2. ShipArrivingTooLateToSaveADrowningWitch
      Facepalm

      Re: "four-cylinder Mopar A4 Midget racing engine"

      Uh yes...

      http://speeddemon.us/i/HRDP-081000-DEMON.pdf

      They're using a Mopar midget engine. 4 cylinder at 179ci (roughly 2.9L).

  7. jake Silver badge

    Uh, no.

    http://speeddemon.us/

    It's all in the details ...

  8. jake Silver badge

    Uh, yes ...

    I stand corrected. Mea culpa.

  9. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    To put Drayson's achievement in some perspective...

    The EV Lola isn't a straight line speed record vehicle, it's an actual racing car with down-force.

    The speed records aren't really comparable.

    1. Intractable Potsherd

      Re: To put Drayson's achievement in some perspective...

      Upvote for saying what I was going to say. This is designed for proper motorsport use, not namby-pamby super-drag racing.*

      *Drag racing is only any good for the sound of top-fuellers making my organs resonate. Electric drag racing will have all the excitement of watching paint dry.

    2. big_D Silver badge

      Re: To put Drayson's achievement in some perspective...

      That was my thought as well.

      I'd be interested to know what the range is.

      1. Anonymous Coward
        Anonymous Coward

        Re: To put Drayson's achievement in some perspective...

        I'd be interested to know what the range is.

        Doing the maths (I think) with a 640KW motor and a 30KWh battery pack it's got 2 min 50 seconds

        of full power. So not great... :D

        Still, people forget that a Ferrari burning along at 6mpg (racing) gets through a 10-20g tank pretty fast.

        1. Danny 14

          Re: To put Drayson's achievement in some perspective...

          if it can manage 10 miles at full tilt (without melting) then thats not too bad really. it might do better on a real track with regenerative + kers etc.

  10. John Smith 19 Gold badge
    Thumb Up

    It's fast, it's electric and it can do *turns*

    Most land speed record vehicles lack a certain nimbleness in the manoeuvring department.

    What's not to like.

  11. Ol'Peculier
    Happy

    NIMBY's

    At least electric car testing will shut up the annoying locals round Elvington that keep trying to get the place closed down due to noise pollution.

    I'm sure they would have complained when there were bombers taking off from there in WWII as well...

    1. Intractable Potsherd

      Re: NIMBY's

      The Elvington NIMBYs are typical "I moved to the area knowing about the airfield, and now I want it closed! wankers. The (common) law needs changing so that a person moving to a known source of potential nuisance (and due diligence would be expected) cannot successfully bring an action to get that source closed down, or otherwise interfere with its operation. Any action could only be successfully brought if there were plans to change the operation such that the nuisance might get significantly worse, or crate a new risk, in which case only the proposed operations would be under scrutiny, not the old ones.

  12. Squander Two

    That's one hell of an assumption.

    Why wouldn't Eric Schmidt like Yorkshire?

    1. Matt Bryant Silver badge
      Joke

      Re: Squander Two Re: That's one hell of an assumption.

      Have you been to Yorkshire?

      1. Ol'Peculier
        Happy

        Re: Squander Two That's one hell of an assumption.

        Have you?

        1. Danny 14

          Re: Squander Two That's one hell of an assumption.

          I have. Wife worked in barnsley on a saturday night (at the theatre then pharoahs night club). Not a great place to be at chucking out time hence why i picked her up after work.

  13. squigbobble
    Megaphone

    Not the fastest e-VEHICLE

    Just the fastest e-car

    http://phys.org/news/2011-08-fastest-electric-bike-tops-mph.html

    1. Danny 14

      Re: Not the fastest e-VEHICLE

      and thats a production bike too! Sure it isnt cheap but it does the business.

      1. squigbobble
        Happy

        Re: Not the fastest e-VEHICLE

        Almost the same price as a Ducati 1098 R, a slightly more conventional beast.

        For bonus points, a Lightning just blew away every other bike in this year's Pikes Peak hillclimb. http://www.engadget.com/2013/07/01/lightning-electric-motorcycle-bests-gas-powered-bikes-at-pikes-pe/

  14. David Kelly 2

    *The* Land Speed Record

    The ultimate land speed record is 6,400+ mph set at Holloman AFB in 2003 on a 9.5 mile rail.

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