Part of the experience of a NASCAR race is hearing the roar of the engine, the roar of every car approaching, and its roar as it goes over 150 mph.
NASCAR presents its first electric car race saturday. in Chicago, but don’t roar when the race commissioner says “drivers, start your engines.
” It’s buzz.North America’s largest motor series has partnered with Chevrolet, Ford, Toyota and electrification company ABB to showcase a high-performance electric vehicle and gauge interest of customers in electric racing. they want to represent electric vehicles and electrification more broadly, in racing as cool, fun and accessible, said Riley Nelson, NASCAR’s chief sustainability officer.
The Associated Press gave a first look at the $1.5 million prototype. The only person to have driven it so far is semi-retired NASCAR driver David Ragan. He said the noise and smell are unlike anything he’s experienced since he took his first steps on the track at the age of 11. He felt the brakes. In gasoline cars, the sound and smell of the engine and the heat of the exhaust overshadow everything else. But after hundreds of laps, this time, Ragan’s ears stopped ringing. It was really crazy, he said. Unlike typical sports coupes, the new car is actually a shared vehicle.
A large rear wing makes it aerodynamic enough to be a racing car. It accelerates almost twice as fast as the best gasoline racing cars and can stop almost instantly. But his lap time at Martinsville Speedway in Virginia was two-tenths of a second slower because he runs slower because of his heavier weight. Ragan said she could go even faster; it wasn’t pushing this particular vehicle to its limits. The risk is for the race, not the test, he said.
Eric Warren, who heads global motorsports for General Motors, said market research showed that more than half of avid NASCAR fans surveyed would be more interested in buying an electric vehicle if exposed to it. One of the main messages is to pay attention to energy and optimism, he said. “We’re committed to electric vehicles,” Warren said. “The motorcycle provides a great platform to discuss many of these concepts and educate the fans. It is a laboratory for us to test new technologies and learn to educate.” Burned gas pollutes the air and produces carbon dioxide, which warms the air atmosphere and leads to more extreme weather conditions.Burning a gallon produces about 19 pounds of carbon dioxide, according to the US Energy Information Administration. Buying food uses thousands of liters of water in a weekend.
The event would certainly be quieter with more electric cars, although many fans love the roar of the engines when the green flag drops. If NASCAR moves to electric racing, John Probst, NASCAR’s senior vice president and director of race development, said he thinks they could reinvent the fan experience. One option could be a DJ.”Our goal is to entertain our fans,” he said.
“If our fans tell us that’s what they want to see, we know how to create a series of races for almost anything. NASCAR is not the first motorsports organization to venture into electric car racing. Formula E is an all-electric racing series that started ten years ago, but its fan base is much smaller than that of NASCAR.The new car is part of a wider sustainability plan. from NASCAR.
ABB is now NASCAR’s official electrification partner. It will help NASCAR generate more electricity from renewable sources. NASCAR also has 15 tracks in the United States, many of them along major highways.
ABB plans to install its electric vehicle charging stations on these tracks and connect them to the grid. They will be compatible with mainstream electric cars and accessible to everyone, not just racing fans. By 2028, NASCAR says it will introduce sustainable racing fuel, recycle at all events and use 100% renewable electricity in facilities. the tracks you own. By 2035, it aims to reduce operating emissions to “net zero”.Therefore, the number 35 appears on the car in black and white, with ABB.
The body is made of plant materials, a linen composite from the Swiss company Bcomp, instead of the typical carbon fiber composite NASCAR is also exploring hydrogen-powered cars. IMSA, NASCAR’s sports car series, is switching to hybrid engines in 2023.
A competing racing series, IndyCar, will debut its hybrid engines this weekend in Ohio. Formula 1 plans to use sustainable fuel in all cars from 2026 as part of new engine regulations.
Ford Performance alone has built the last eight electric demonstration vehicles in four years.”Fans want to have a connection or a relationship with the race car,” said Mark Rushbrook, global director of Ford Performance Motorsports. . “As more and more customers buy fully electric vehicles, we believe there will be an increasing number of people who want to watch fully electric racing.”
Sales of electric vehicles in the United States rose 7% overall during the first half of the year, according to preliminary figures released Tuesday by Motorintelligence.com.
Electric vehicles accounted for 7.6% of the US new vehicle market, roughly the same percentage as all of last year. Michael Plaster, executive vice president of ABB, hopes that children who see the new car at NASCAR events can ask questions about the transition to a future that runs on clean electricity and that one day they will be able to work on products and electrical solutions.
ABB is investing billions to expand its operations in the United States. In terms of getting interest and attention, and having the forum to talk about this whole energy transition, I can’t think of a better way to do it,” said Michael Plaster. Climate and environment coverage of Associated Press receives financial support from several private foundations.
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