A team of engineers in Australia working on advanced electric vehicle design have claimed a new world record. The University of New South Wales Sydney (UNSW) Sunswift 7 solar-powered car recently took part in a round of testing where it traveled 1,000 km (621 miles) on a single charge in less than 12 hours. now, an achievement that goes far beyond when it comes to aerodynamics and efficiency.

Engineers at UNSW have been producing solar-powered cars since 1996, and in recent years we’ve seen them set several speed records for electric vehicle performance. Sunswift 7 is UNSW’s newest solar-powered car and weighs just 500 kg (1,100 lb), or about a quarter the weight of a Tesla.

To achieve this light weight, engineers had to eliminate air conditioning, ABS brakes, airbags, windshield wipers and other features you’d expect to find on a legal production vehicle. on the road, focusing instead on aerodynamic efficiency and rolling resistance. While the Tesla Model S has a drag coefficient of 0.208, the Sunswift 7 has a drag coefficient of only 0.095.

Richard Freeman/UNSW

The team spent two years creating Sunswift 7 with the goal of achieving a Guinness World Record, hoping to demonstrate the fastest solar-powered electric car over a distance of 1,000 km. This record attempt recently took place at the Highway Circuit test track at the Australian Automotive Research Centre, with the Sunswift 7 completing 240 laps on a single charge.

However, it wasn’t all smooth sailing as the team had to overcome battery management issues and punctured tires to complete the journey. Driver changes also take place every few hours, with the car completing the 1,000 km trip in 11 hours, 53 minutes and 32 seconds, with an average speed of nearly 85 km/h (52 mph).

This unofficially places the Sunswift 7 as the fastest electric car over 1,000 km on a single charge, although the team is awaiting official confirmation of the car’s timing and telemetry data to obtain a Certificate of Record Guinness World.

“In this record, energy consumption was only 3.8 kWh/100 km (62 miles), while even the most efficient electric cars on the road today are only 15 kWh/100 km and the average is around 20 kWh/100 km,” said Professor Richard Hopkins, Group Principal. “Sunswift 7 is not the commercial vehicle of the future because we have sacrificed comfort and the cost is too high. But we have shown that if you want to make cars more efficient, more sustainable, more environmentally friendly, it is possible.”

Sunswift 7 will also participate in the Bridgestone World Solar Challenge in 2023.

Source: University of New South Wales