Posted on 07/30/2007 1:30:10 PM PDT by GBA
With Barely a Sound, Electric Dragsters Aim for Gas-Powered Records
PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) -- Straddling a 619-pound motorcycle, Scotty Pollacheck tucks in his knees and lowers his head as he waits for the green light. When he revs the engine, there's no roar. The bike moves so fast that within seconds all that's visible is a faint red taillight melting in the distance.
Pollacheck crosses the quarter-mile marker doing 156 mph; he's traveled 1,320 feet in 8.22 seconds, faster than any of the gas-powered cars, trucks or motorcycles that have raced in the drag sprints on this weekend at Portland International Raceway.
It's particularly impressive given Pollacheck is riding a vehicle that uses no gasoline and is powered entirely by lithium-ion batteries.
(Excerpt) Read more at in.us.biz.yahoo.com ...
SONOMA, Calif. - SUMMIT FastNews - Results of round 2 eliminations in Pro Stock Motorcycle at the NHRA POWERade Drag Racing Series, 20th annual FRAM-Autolite NHRA Nationals:
Driver-—————————Speed
Steve Johnson (Suzuki)——190.54
Craig Treble (Suzuki)-——189.98
Try about 9 cents worth of electricity, or some paultry number.
It is not as expensive as you seem to think.
From:
http://www.arb.ca.gov/msprog/zevprog/factsheets/evinformation.pdf
it appears that an Electric Vehicle costs about $1 a day. which is about the cost of running a 60 watt light bulb for 24 hours.
Earth First!! Mine the other planets later.
Chains, however, are more efficient than shaft drive gears (if properly tensioned), so you wouldn't see the designer specify a shaft.
I think it is properly stated that torque is flat throughout the powerband.
Well la-dee-frikkin-da!
Who are you, the John Kerry of motorcycle racing?
“will power a car tens of thousands of miles”
So every two years or so I have to replace the batteries? That does not sound cheap.
No reason to think that what was actually meant was torque and not horsepower but, Hey, that’s ok. You and org.whodat should have a nice conversation...
all...
by...
yourselves...
My scooter has 2 55 amp batteries and can go 12 miles between charges. That is at 6 mph and with my weight on board.
I can see this thing doing a 1/4 mile easily at this speeds.
You would have to put fully charged batteries in it every time for peak performance.
lemme see here... 1000 hp = 745.699871582 Kw
for 8.2 seconds, that’s a hell of a lot more tan “nine cents”
You laugh.. but the mine where they get 90% of the nickel to make these batteries... sits in the middle of a 25 square mile environmental “dead zone”.
Given that electric motors achieve 100% horsepower at initiation, you’d think they would have a bigger chain (or possibly shaft drive). Titanium-alloy racing chain?"Just proved that you know nothing about traction and racing slicks."
From his post it is clear he is talking about energy transfer from the motor to the wheel and not, as you thought, about energy transfer from the wheel to the ground. So, traction and tires do not come into it, yet…
Before you try to belittle someone’s post, make sure you understand it first.
If they compare to the cost of rechargeable batteries for portable drills, saws, etc.; the replacement costs are going to be berrry berrry ‘spensive.
Yeah,obviously they`d have no chance against a
Pro Stock bike,but it`d be interesting if NHRA would
give them their own class if there was enough interest.
NHRA going green,would be interesting.
Love the smell of nitro in the morning tho
By “Elitist Jerk”, I assume you mean people with an education?
Horsepower equals Torque times RPM.
********************************
Sure does ,, but what I think he was getting at was that the power of an electric motor is more or less linear ,, no curve just a straight line , you have the same torque per hundred rpm at barely running and at 10k.
Just think how easy dialing in that rocket is... keeping it just below the traction threshold.
I don't see anything really unusual in the technology as it is applied. Most of the really powerful movers in the world are electrically powered. Examples: Cruise ships (diesel turbine electrical generation powering electric motors in pods); any nuclear powered ships, locomotives (diesel-electric) and large earth movers (Liebherr T 282B). Therefore its no surprise that somebody has made the jump to raw speed and power in an electric drag-racer.
Yes it is. Check out this vid, “50,000 watt go-Kart”
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-xitMWUfeLk
Caution, there’s profanity. It looks like only two large tractor batteries powering it.
Steel is stronger than titanium.
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