Norwalk, CT - A high-speed electrical car, powered by ABB motors and drives, will attempt to break the land-speed record for an electrical vehicle on May 5 in Nevada, U.S.The 32-foot (10 meter) long, mustard-yellow ABB e=motion car will try to beat the current official FIA (Fédération Internationale d'Automobile) electric land-speed record of 245 mph (394 kph) and become the first-ever electrically powered vehicle to break the 300 mph (483 kph) barrier.The car, whose main sponsor is the global engineering company ABB, will make the record attempt on a closed, secured section of paved road near the city of West Wendover, northeastern Nevada.The FIA, the world's leading motor sports ruling body, will monitor and certify the attempt.
To qualify as an official land speed record under FIA rules, the car must perform two recorded runs at better than 252 mph over a distance of 0.622 miles (one kilometer).The e=motion car is the brainchild of Britons Mark Newby and Colin Fallows.
It has already delivered spectacular acceleration during tests in the U.K., easily reaching 146 mph (237 kph) in just 1,000 yards (914 meters) - the longest distance available to the team in the U.K. - and unofficially breaking the 139 mph U.K. record for an electric vehicle."
With this sort of performance, we're confident that our car will easily beat the existing electric car land speed record," says Newby.The ABB e=motion car has no mechanical gears ? acceleration is controlled entirely by ABB variable speed drives regulating two 50-horsepower electric motors from ABB.
"ABB technology has put this car in the super-speed league, and demonstrates our unique ability to meet unusual technology challenges with a pioneering spirit," said Ron Kurtz, ABB U.S. spokesman.The current FIA electric car record is held by the White Lightning team from the U.S.
Other record attempts have been made, but not under FIA rules.An ABB e=motion attempt to break the record on salt flats of Tunisia in 2004 was postponed after the surface was deemed unsafe due to unusual weather conditions, but there are no such doubts about the road in Nevada.For more information visit www.abb.com