Electric Car sets World Acceleration Record

Student-built EV accelerated to 100kph in just over 1.51 seconds, stamping on previous 1.78 second EV world record

An electric racing car built by a group of students in Switzerland has broken the world record for fastest acceleration by a battery-powered vehicle.

The car, which was developed by students at ETH Zurich and Lucerne University of Applied Sciences and Arts, accelerated to 100 kph (62 mph) in 1.513 seconds, over a distance of less than 30m, on Wednesday. The previous world record, set last year by a team at the University of Stuttgart in Germany, stood at 1.779 seconds.

The record was set on a track on the Dubendorf air base near Zurich.

The Grimsel electric car was developed by a team of 30 student engineers from the Academic Motorsports Club Zurich (AMZ) who compete annually in the Formula Student competition, the largest competition worldwide for engineering students.

Built in less than a year, the EV weighs just 168 kg, thanks to extensive use of carbon-fibre materials. It is powered by four hub motors, while a traction control system allows individual control of each wheel, allowing the car’s acceleration to be increased even further.

“Grimsel is AMZ’s fifth electric vehicle and sets new standards in lightweight construction and electric drive technology,” ETH Zurich said in a release. “No large-scale production car – even one with a combustion engine – can reach an acceleration comparable to the Grimsel.”

– Jocelyn Timperley