This Nascar EV Goes Fast and Cuts the Carbon. Catch It at New York’s Climate Week.
It’s time for Climate Week in New York City which brings politicians, academics, and corporate executives to talk about technology and strategies to manage climate change.
Nascar is there too.
Monday, on Manhattan’s West Side, robotics and electrification technology giant ABB showed off its all-electric Nascar EV prototype. It’s a pretty cool car. Three motors, 1,000 horsepower, all-wheel drive, encased in a fiberglass-like body that’s made from natural fibers.
“[I’ve] probably [gone] 150, 145…There’s no question this car could go over 200 miles an hour at Daytona, Talladega,” said David Ragan, ABB’s test car driver.
Pushing the car at those speeds can drain the battery pack, which is about the same as a Tesla
TSLA
4.93%
Model Y, in about 30 minutes. How an EV is driven impacts range just like it impacts gas mileage. And on an oval track like Daytona, an EV doesn’t get much benefit from regenerative braking that slows the car down using the electric motor, recharging batteries a little bit in the process.
That might not be enough range to have a compelling race and no all-electric Nascar races are planned. Still, the car is about more than proving electric cars go fast.
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