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Audi will unveil its e-tron supercar EV concept next month
Audi's first all-electric car, the 2019 e-tron, hasn't even made its global debut yet, but the car manufacturer is already teasing its next venture. The PB 18 e-tron, billed as an "electric-drive supercar concept", will be unveiled next month during the Pebble Beach Concours d'Elegance.
Mercedes-Benz will join Formula E in 2019
Last October, Mercedes-Benz announced that it had reserved a spot in the Formula E racing championship for the 2018/19 season and today it revealed that it would officially be entering the competition during the 2019/20 season. To do so, the automaker will be leaving another competition, the Deutsche Tourenwagen Masters (DTM), in order to focus on Formula E. In the 18 years it has competed in the DTM, Mercedes-Benz has won a slew of drivers', team and manufacturer titles. "Our years in the DTM will always be held high as a major chapter in the motorsport history of Mercedes," said head of Mercedes-Benz Motorsport Toto Wolff in a statement.
Audi drops Le Mans in favor of Formula E
Here's an unusual turn of events: Audi is dropping its best-known presence in motorsports. The car maker is terminating its FIA World Endurance Championship commitment, which includes 24-hour Le Mans races, in favor of a Formula E factory-backed team. If you ask executives, it's about reflecting long-term goals. Audi's regular cars are going electric in ever-larger numbers -- when its race cars are "technological spearheads," they have to go electric as well. The company already has a partnership in the league, but it'll have technical involvement from 2017 onward.
Panoz wants an all-electric, arrow-shaped car racing at Le Mans
Panoz's arrow-shaped DeltaWing car concept technically hit the race track last year when Nissan's ZEOD RC prototype participated in Le Mans, but it wasn't exactly a dream come true. Nissan was no longer part of the DeltaWing program at that point, and the ZEOD RC completed just a few laps -- only one of which was under electric power. The automaker isn't deterred, however. It's planning to field an all-electric DeltaWing racer at Le Mans, and it intends to go the full 24 hours. Not that this will be easy. The planned swappable battery would only let the EV run for 50 minutes per charge, so Panoz could replace power packs 29 times during the event unless it takes advantage of weight savings to load up on extra batteries. As it stands, Le Mans already has racers in the experimental Garage 56 class lined up through 2017 -- Don Panoz and company can afford to take their time getting it right.
Nissan's ZEOD RC prototype racer completes first all-electric lap at Le Mans
The 24 Hours of Le Mans (check after the break for details on how to watch, for free) hasn't even started yet and already history has been made. During warmups, Nissan wheeled its ZEOD RC prototype race car around the 8.47-mile Circuit de la Sarthe track running only on battery power, a first. ZEOD stands for "Zero Emissions On Demand" with the car squeezing a 1.5-liter three cylinder engine that produces 400hp, two electric motors and the regenerative breaking of a Leaf RC into a frame similar to the DeltaWing prototype that raced at Le Mans before. Did we mention that it has no rear-view mirrors? Ray Harroun would be appalled. Update: Unfortunately the ZEOD RC's time in the actual race was quite brief, as it succumbed to a suspected transmission issue after just 5 laps around the circuit. Nissan plans to take the experience and include it in their LM P1 race car next year, the GT-R LM Nismo.
Nissan shows off 185 mph ZEOD RC electric prototype, plans to race it at Le Mans
Nissan's just pulled the covers off its fancifully styled ZEOD RC race car that may eventually hit speeds of up to 300km/h (about 185mph). Though the acronym stands for "zero emissions, on demand," the vehicle could end up being a hybrid model that switches between gas and EV modes (as opposed to a pure electric car) by the time it hits Le Mans in 2014. Regardless, the company's Nismo racing division (creator of the all-electric Nismo RC) plans to enter it in the so-called Garage 56 class of the famed race, reserved for vehicles that showcase breakthrough technology. While the company flaunted the design at Circuit de la Sarthe in France today, the car won't start trials until later this summer, after which the final drivetrain will be chosen. Prior to hitting the track, though, it'll have its work cut out just to top Toyota's P001, the current EV lap-speed champ.
GreenGT H2 eyes-on: the first fuel cell-powered racer to tackle Le Mans
The 24 hour race at Le Mans held every year is among the most punishing automotive tests on the planet: race-bred machines running top-speed (or close) for a full day. Recently, gasoline-powered cars have had their dominance usurped by diesels, who themselves are now losing to hybrids. The next step? It could be EVs. The GreenGT H2 will take the grid of next year's 24 hour race as an experimental entry, driving the full race distance pushing only water vapor out its tailpipe. Hydrogen is stored in the two large tanks running down the sides, while the massive fuel cell stack itself is situated behind the driver. Power output is somewhere north of 500 horsepower, which is quite healthy for a car that the company hopes will be down under 1000Kg (2,200 pounds) by the time it hits the track in anger. Enough to win Le Mans? Almost certainly not, but it'll be fun to watch it try. Steve Dent contributed to this report.
Audi's e-Tron becomes the first hybrid to win Le Mans, saves the planet at the same time
Audi's R-18 e-Tron diesel-electric hybrid has become the first car of its kind to win the Le Mans 24-hour endurance race. Audi and Toyota both submitted environmentally friendly racers, but the latter's LMP1 crashed, which left the German automaker to a 1-2 finish (while a pair of non-hybrid racers placed third and fifth, respectively). Unlike battery-based hybrids, the R-18 uses a hefty turbo-diesel V6 pushing power to the back wheels, along with a flywheel to recover braking energy and drive a motor attached to the front wheels. The company has revealed that it's actually testing this far cheaper, battery-free system in a production vehicle, so perhaps it's only a matter of time before you'll be able to go a full day on a tank -- give or take the odd rest stop.
Audi R18 Hybrid spotted in the flesh, sounds as good as it looks
Remember that gorgeous looking R18 hybrid from Audi that raced into our hearts earlier this week? Well, we found this video of it in action. If you can look past the flock of applauding suits, you'll get a sneak-peek at this beast on the track. Sadly we'll have to wait until Le Mans before we can really smell the rubber, but in the meantime, there's a gallery of renders below to keep you going. %Gallery-149377%
Audi goes hybrid and ultralight with R18 Le Mans racers
Generally, when we talk hybrids, we're talking about a car that either powers itself on batteries at low speeds, only firing up the internal combustion engine when a little extra giddy-up is needed, or an electric car that turns the gas-powered piston pusher inside into a glorified power plant. Audi's e-tron quattro is a little different, though. The R18 sports a four-wheel drive system that powers one axle with an electric motor, while the other gets its juice from a 510 hp V6. The e-tron quattro also has a sibling, the Audi R18 Ultra, which seeks to compensate for the added weight of a hybrid drive train by using extremely lightweight materials, like carbon fiber, wherever possible -- including the gearbox. Both cars will be making their debut at the Le Mans 24 Hour on June 16th. For more details check out the PR after the break.
Inhabitat's Week in Green: electric vehicles gear up to race, Apple's new HQ, and living architecture
Each week our friends at Inhabitat recap the week's most interesting green developments and clean tech news for us -- it's the Week in Green. This week we revved up Chevrolet's Volt and hit the streets for an elusive test drive of the hotly-anticipated electric vehicle. We also saw electric aviation soar to new heights as the pint-sized Cri-Cri airplane broke the electric aircraft speed record. The world of EV racing is also picking up the pace as GreenGT unveiled an all-electric supercar for the Le Mans race and Honda's CR-Z Hybrid beat out scores of gas-guzzling autos in a 25 hour vehicular marathon. High-tech architecture broke new ground as Apple announced that world-renowned architect Norman Foster is designing its new headquarters, and researchers revealed work on a living skin that could one day reinforce buildings and infrastructure with a hard, coral-like armored coating. We also watched as a crop of gorgeous bubble gardens popped up in the streets of Paris, and an abandoned warehouse in Brooklyn was updated with a high-tech transforming facade. In other news, this week the energy world was buzzing about a new type of organic solar cell inspired by wasp exoskeletons, and the largest photovoltaic plant in the United States officially opened in Nevada. We also saw several eco technologies take hold on the home front: researchers developed a hot solar-piezoelectric hybrid fiber that could be used to create energy-generating clothes, and Lavish & Lime rolled out a cute set of digital shower timers that are perfect for kids.
Panasonic's EVOLTA bot sets his doe-eyed sights on new endurance record
After risking life and limb to show off Panasonic's double-As in a harrowing climb up the Grand Canyon, EVOLTA is back for more record setting hijinks. This time, however, he's been tasked to pedal his adorable little heart out on a miniature tricycle. The plan is to take this year's Le Mans race by storm and break some sort of world record for distance traveled by a robot -- though we're not sure how exactly that's defined, since EVOLTA isn't exactly a speed demon. This new version of the bot has been completely revamped to ride a bike and follow an infrared path blazed by his superiors. A couple of videos are after the break. [Thanks, Alex]
