It’s the ultimate ecoefficiency challenge
HEN the Zwartkops Raceway, near Pretoria, was built in the sixties I’m sure none of the designers envisaged that one day quiet little solar-powered cars would be testing their braking distances at the venue.
But fast forward half a century to this past Monday and it looked like tiny UFOs had taken over the facility, with their flat and raised bodies, little domes for the pilots, and the odd whizzing sound as they cruised by.
It’s all part of the Sasol Solar Challenge which started earlier this week, and includes entries from around the globe. South Africa forms part of the international calendar, with the other leg this year taking place in the US. Held every two years under the auspices of Motorsport South Africa and the FIA (the world motorsport governing body), this eco-efficiency challenge has teams demonstrating the sophistication and performance of their green vehicles.
The South African leg started in Pretoria on Tuesday with 13 teams taking part over the 11 day, 5 400km trek through the country. The teams will navigate a route that includes Bloemfontein, East London, Cape Town and Upington among others, before ending back in Pretoria on September 28.
And South Africa has a lot to be proud of.
Besides being chosen as a host country, the local entry list this year includes University of the Witwatersrand (two entries), University of Johannesburg (three entries), Nelson Mandela Metropolitan University, North West University, German School Johannesburg, University of KwaZulu Natal and the
WWinstone Jordaan, yes.
He envisages solar panels on the roof of your house charging batteries that will charge your car and the appliances in your home.
Jordaan reckons that the Challenge has shown not only an advancement in electric motors in cars, but an improvement in battery technology resulting in a wider driving range.
The solar-powered entries, under controlled conditions, are capable of a top speed in the region of 160km/h to 180km/h. The Challenge stipulates though that the entries maintain the speed limit.
When fully charged they can maintain an average speed of 120km/h, with a range of around 150km. A full solar charge when stationary should take around two to three hours.
Jordaan also said that these solar-powered cars can be charged continuously on the go, with batteries capable of storing reserve energy for night-time driving.
And these are expensive toys. The research into developing them costs millions of dollars, while the actual cost to build one is approximately R1-million and takes between six and twelve months.
“But you could build a bottom-end solar car for eighty grand,” said Jordaan.
See www.sasolarchallenge. for regular updates.