Lambo’s EV hypercar
Innovative energy storage planned Self-healing tech in bodywork Autonomous EV has four motors
Dramatic Terzo Millennio has ‘self-healing’ bodywork
LAMBORGHINI has revealed a futuristic electric hypercar concept, built in collaboration with the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT). Called the Terzo Millennio, the model demonstrates innovative energy storage systems and ‘self-healing’ carbon fibre technology.
The concept made its debut at MIT’S Emtech conference last week, and is the culmination of a year-long partnership between the Italian marque and the world-renowned American university.
It’s based on a lightweight forged composite monocoque chassis, with a carbon fibre bodyshell. It’s no ordinary carbon, however; the project aims to develop a way of storing energy in the bodywork itself then using it to power the car’s functions. That’s not the most interesting development in material tech, though, because the team also wants the car to self-heal. It will be able to detect any damage to the carbon fibre structure, while tiny channels in the bodywork will allow the damaged area to fill with “healing chemistries” that can bond the cracks.
The Terzo Millennio is autonomous and powered by a quartet of electric motors, one mounted in each wheel to give the car four-wheel drive. MIT engineers are also exploring new energy storage systems, and Lambo aims to use electric supercapacitors to store energy rather than batteries. They can charge in a few minutes, and have a life cycle around 100 times that of a battery.
“Tiny channels in the bodywork will allow the damaged area to fill with ‘healing chemistries’”