ARIEL

P40: the British electrified sports car with gas turbine

British factory Ariel made a name for itself with its minimalist leisure cars. The asphalt-engineered Atom and its gravel-optimized cousin, the Nomad, have embraced the principle that if a car is light, it doesn't need mind-blowing engine power to deliver a compelling driving experience.

The situation is different in the case of the now presented Hipercar destined for series production. Although the frame is made up of a bonded aluminum frame and aluminum front and rear subframe, and the body with extreme aerodynamic characteristics is made entirely of carbon composite elements, the weight of the car amounts to 1,546 kg.

The water-cooled battery with a capacity of 62.2 kWh is mainly responsible for this – the Hipercar is electric. Despite the large battery, the range is only 240 kilometers, or only a fraction of that, as the car is not designed for constant speed, like any previous Ariel model.

Each wheel is powered by an electric motor of 300 hp and 450 Nm. These are not located on the wheel hub, but close to the vehicle's central axis, and contain the inverter and gearbox in a single unit.

If we fully exploit its potential, we accelerate to 96 km/h (60 mph) in 2.09 seconds. The coupe, less than 4.3 meters long and 135 cm high, accelerates to 160 km/h in 4.4 seconds. Top speed has been maximized at 250 km/h.

Driving dynamics are already very high, but Ariel is planning other improvements: it integrates an advanced torque vector control system even before series production starts, which can reduce the above values ​​to less than 2 and 4 seconds, respectively. 

An integral part of the drive chain is the on-board power generating gas turbine, which can generate 35 kW of power at 110,000 revolutions per minute and charge the battery with it, thus increasing range.

An optically special element of the car is a radiator uncovered in the rear wall, through which four fans push air. Furthermore, this is just one of the cooling circuits that cools the rear electric motors (inverter, stator and rotor, left and right) as well as the generator, charging system and associated current converters.

Another was created at the front, responsible for cooling the front electric motors and the high voltage battery, in addition to air conditioning the passenger compartment. This first circuit also manages the heating of the passenger compartment and the battery, if the outside temperature so requires.

Although it is not yet known when it will be available and how many copies of the Hipercar will be produced, it has already been announced that it will later be produced in a rear-wheel drive version, which means that it will have half the total power and torque of the system.

Mundoquatrorodas