Eliica

The Eliica (or the Electric Lithium-Ion Car) is a battery electric vehicle prototype, or concept car designed by a team at Keio University in Tokyo, led by Professor Hiroshi Shimizu. The convert|5.1|m|abbr=on car runs on a lithium-ion battery and can accelerate from 0–convert|100|km/h|abbr=on in four seconds (faster than the Porsche 911 Turbo at the time). [cite web |url=http://www.drive.com.au/Editorial/ArticleDetail.aspx?ArticleID=8754&vf=23 |title=Electric shock: it's faster than a Porsche 911 |publisher="Sydney Morning Herald" |date=November 12, 2004 |first=Peter |last=Lyon] In 2004, the Eliica reached a speed of convert|370|km/h|abbr=on on Italy's Nardò High Speed Track. The team's goal is to exceed convert|400|km/h|abbr=on, breaking the record set by today's street-legal gasoline-powered vehicles.

Kaz

The Eliica is a refinement of the earlier KAZ, a convert|6.7|m|abbr=on limousine-sized 8-wheel electric vehicle prototype that also set speed records. [cite web |url=http://www.electrifyingtimes.com/kaz.html |title=Super car "Kaz" EV Limo to the Stars! |date=October 1, 2002 |publisher=ElectrifyingTimes.com] [cite web |url=http://freeenergy.ca/news/118/ARTICLE/1250/2007-03-14.html |date=March 14, 2007 |title=Keio Advanced Zero-Emission vehicle |publisher=FreeEnergy.ca]

Design details

The Eliica weighs in at convert|2400|kg|abbr=on and seats the driver and three passengers. The body was tested in a wind tunnel. The front doors open forward and the rear doors open upward like wings. The car's platform contains 4 tracks of 80 batteries, which make up one third of the vehicle's cost. They currently require about 10 hours of recharging from empty to full charge, and can be easily charged off a residential power grid.

The car has eight wheels enabling it to be closer to the ground for better traction. Each of the wheels has a convert|60|kW|abbr=on electric motor, giving a convert|480|kW|abbr=on eight wheel drive which can tackle all kinds of road surfaces. The four front wheels steer. The electric motors mean that the Eliica can deliver a smooth acceleration free from gear shifts of about 0.8 "g". Each wheel contains a disc brake and employs a regenerative brake system to recover energy.

There are currently (as of 2005) two versions of the Eliica: a "Speed model" and an "Acceleration model". The Speed model is made to challenge gasoline-based records and has a top speed of convert|370|km/h|abbr=on with a range of convert|200|km|abbr=on. The Acceleration model is made for the street and has a top speed of convert|190|km/h|abbr=on with a range of convert|320|km|abbr=on.

The estimated cost of development was in excess of US$320,000. Once the team receives corporate sponsorship, they plan to produce at least 200 units. As of early 2007, the projected pricetag was ¥30,000,000, or about $255,000 US.

On December 19, 2005, the Prime Minister of Japan Junichiro Koizumi tested this vehicle in a 10-minute ride to the Parliament. In 2006, the car was tested by Shintaro Ishihara, the governor of Tokyo, as well as by the Crown Prince Naruhito.

ee also

* Electric vehicle
* Battery electric vehicle

;Land speed record electric vehicles
* La Jamais Contente
* Buckeye Bullet

References

External links

* [http://www.eliica.com/ Official site] (currently Japanese)
** [http://www.eliica.com/blog/ Official blog] (currently Japanese)
* [http://www.keio.ac.jp/index-en.html Keio University]
* [http://www.exn.ca/dailyplanet/view.asp?date=3/22/2005 Daily Planet video]
* "Popular Science" article [http://www.popsci.com/popsci/auto/article/0,12543,463605,00.html] (link broken)
*
(An article referencing Dr. Shimizu's EV calculations.)