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Zero-60 in 3.1 Seconds, Batteries Included

Posted by Zonk on from the i-even-like-the-color dept.

FloatsomNJetsom writes "Popular Mechanics has a very cool video and report about test-driving Hybrid Technologies' L1X-75, a battery powered, 600-hp, carbon-fiber roadster that pulls zero-60 in about 3.1 seconds, and tops out at 175 mph. Of course, there are few creature comforts inside, but that's mainly because the car's 200 mile range is meant for the track, not the road. Nonetheless, Popular Mechanics takes the car for a spin up 10th Avenue in NYC. Oh, and the car recharges via a 110 outlet. They also test-drove Ford's HySeries Edge, a hydrogen fuel-cell powered, plug-in series hybrid that, unlike the L1X-75, is unfortunately at least 10 years away from production and nearly 100 mph slower."

4 of 230 comments (clear)

  1. The bike (singular) is even faster by Engineer-Poet · · Score: 4, Interesting

    The Killacycle used to be powered by spiral-wound AGM cells, but the producer went out of business.

    Since then, it was repowered with A123Systems' LiFePO4 cells. It now does 0-60 in 1.5 seconds and the quarter mile in 8.16.

    Electrics need not be slow, and their range is growing by leaps and bounds. The ICE has received its terminal diagnosis; the future is electric.

    --

    Sustainability and energy independence essay
  2. How about the rest of the story? by Nom+du+Keyboard · · Score: 4, Interesting
    Oh, and the car recharges via a 110 outlet.

    Yes, and in how many days to pass that much energy back into your car. Not exactly a candidate for a quick pit stop, unless they can swap the entire battery pack in 10 seconds.

    --
    "It's the height of ridiculousness to say for those 9 lines you get hundreds of millions."
  3. Re:quarter mile time? by Bertie · · Score: 4, Interesting

    Actually I'd rather know how it does 30-70 in gear, as that's the kind of acceleration I actually need - getting up to speed for joining a motorway. Blasting away from the lights is strictly for boy racers, and how fast my car does it is of no practical value to me.

  4. Why is this red herring moderated up? by guidryp · · Score: 4, Interesting

    He makes a clear point. Electric cars break the tie to any single fuel type. That means at any point the generation is cleaned up by adding renewables/nuclear even old electric on the road benefit.

    You concentrate on the worse case scenario without even looking into it. You can look up carbon content per megajoule of energy today and do the comparison numbers.

    You will still produce much less net emissions by using an electric car because of it's much higher efficiency.

    Under no circumstance is an electric car producing more net emissions. This long tailpipe argument is an old unsupported red herring.