British speed record bike debuts radical new design thinking
British electric challenger poised to prove it can smash world speed
Anew British company from the motorsports heartlands of Northamptonshire have revealed the radical new machine to attempt both British and world electric land speed records over the next year.
Rob White, founder and driving force behind White Motorcycle Concepts, has been working on the WMC250EV for more than two years, creating a bike with ground-breaking aerodynamics and two-wheel-drive that’s already managed to attract considerable funding and support. Conventional motorcycle top speed designs involve sitting the rider as low as possible, in an attempt to reduce the frontal area of the bike, while smoothing the airflow plassing over the machine. WMC have gone in a different direction by sticking to a conventional seat height but adding a vast duct, dubbed ‘V-Air’ that runs straight through the bike. Testing, both in simulators and MIRA’s wind tunnel, has shown the design to reduce wind resistance by 70% compared to the most aerodynamic production bikes. The V-Air system should also improve grip, which is important for high speed runs as getting the power down can be a struggle with larger machines on drag strips and salt flats. It also reduces front-end lift, allowing the firm to drive the front wheel as well as the rear to maximise traction, while a third innovation – called ‘F-Drive’ – features a fully-enclosed chain drive inside the swingarm that improves efficiency over a conventional design.
The WMC250EV name reflects the intention to top 250mph, shattering the 228mph record set by Max Biaggi on the Voxan Wattman last year. Initially, the firm are targeting 200mph and a British record later this year using four electric motors – two powering the back wheel and another pair in the front hub – with a total of 134bhp. That power will be upped for the world record attempt at the world’s largest salt flats, the Salar de Uyuni, in Bolivia in 2022.
“If you want to demonstrate to the rest of the world that you’ve just invented a new aerodynamic concept that lets you go faster for a given power, the best thing to do is go as fast you can,” says White. “That’s why we created the WMC250EV high-speed demonstrator, the most radical version of this concept, to challenge for the world land speed record.”
He believes the same thinking can still provide significant benefits when toned down for roadgoing bikes, saying: “While this technology allows you to go faster, it also allows you to go much further for the same amount of energy. This has a direct and tangible benefit on carbon dioxide reduction.”
The firm’s next project, a 300cc three-wheeled scooter based on the Yamaha Tricity 300, illustrates potential at the other end of the performance envelope, with claims of a 25% drag reduction as well as the addition of a hybrid system to the existing combustion engine to offer 500cc performance and 50% lower CO2 emissions.
‘It lets you go faster for a given power’ ROB WHITE