EVLN(KAZ: Keio Advanced Zero-emission vehicle)
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--- {EVangel}
http://straitstimes.asia1.com.sg/asia/story/0,1870,146112,00.html
This 8-wheeler can go up to 310 kmh
TOKYO - It looks like something out of Star Trek, runs like
a train but eats up the road - the eight-wheel-drive KAZ is
the world's fastest electric vehicle.
Lithium-ion batteries that deliver 55 kw of power to each
wheel drive the car's sleek silver body at speeds in excess
of 310 kmh, which would give any Japanese bullet train a run
for its money.
KAZ, which stands for Keio Advanced Zero- emission vehicle,
is the culmination of a five-year joint project between
Tokyo's prestigious Keio University and the state-run
science- promotion body, the Japan Science and Technology
Corporation.
The project was headed by Keio engineering professor Hiroshi
Shimizu and the vehicle designed by the Italian firm of
I.DE.A Institute.
The space-age car uses the same battery technology as cell
phones and was produced in cooperation with 14 Japanese
companies including tyre maker Bridgestone Corp.
The toughest part of the 500-million-yen (S$7.3-million)
project had been getting KAZ up to high speed.
'Our goal was to generate a maximum speed of around 300 kmh
but we had only a week to test-drive in Italy and had to
work day and night to fix problems,' Prof Simizu said after
taking his 'baby' for a test drive, turning heads in central
Tokyo at the weekend.
'When KAZ succeeded in running at 311 kmh, it was so fast
that our photographer couldn't take a picture.'
It was too early to say when KAZ would be on sale.
'We have to go through tests to ensure safety, reliability
and productivity. Right now, KAZ is not ready for
mass-production,' he said.
But it will be ready for motor shows in Seoul and Detroit
later this year. --AFP
The world's fastest electric car
The KAZ electric car measures 6.7 m long, 1.95 m wide and
1.68 m high. With its 600-horsepower motor, the
eight-seater can reach a speed of 100 kmh in a mere seven
seconds.
It runs on 84 lithium-ion batteries - commonly used for cell
phones - as the sole power source. The car has a range of up
to 300 km after the batteries have been charged for one
hour.
Its spacious cabin with individual leather seats evokes the
feeling of sitting in the first-class section of an
airliner.
It is the seventh electric vehicle created by Professor
Shimizu during his 20-year engineering career.
KAZ could be used as the basis for a bus, truck or passenger
car of the future.
Professor Shimizu said he was talking to Japan Toyota Motor
Corp, Nissan Motor and the German-US car giant
DaimlerChrysler AG about possible commercial uses for the
car.
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