DailyTech - SSC Ultimate Aero Goes Electric

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Auto SSC Ultimate Aero Goes Electric
Shane McGlaun (Blog) - September 24, 2008 12:05 PM

38 comment(s) - last by Pavelyoung.. on Oct 5 at 9:40 AM

Maker promises several years between charges... say what?

Electric vehicles are getting lots of press with several major carmakers introducing hybrids, plug-in hybrids, and electric-only cars. The Tesla Roadster is currently the king of performance for all-electric vehicles, but its days are numbered if SSC is to be believed.

SSC is a name that commands respect in the exotic car segment with well-heeled buyers who shop names like Ferrari, Lamborghini, Bugatti, Koenigsegg and more. In fact, SSC's Ultimate Aero currently holds the record of world's fastest production car at 256.18 mph. The record has stood for a full year now according to Gizmag.

Performance from the SSC Ultimate Aero is impressive, but the green brigade likely has a huge problem with the fuel-swilling, hydrocarbon belching exotic. Come late 2009, the green brigade may feel completely different about SSC.

The exotic carmaker says that it plans to have a totally electric exotic called the SSC Ultimate Aero EV. The EV designation stands for Electric Vehicle. SSC says that the car will have a 500 BHP electric motor and plans to introduce a working version by 2009. Not content with one electric supercar, SSC says that an all-wheel drive 1,000 BHP version of the Ultimate Aero EV is under consideration.

The real kicker with SSC's electric exotic plans is that the company promises to deliver a "revolutionary" electric drive train that uses a power source allowing for extended time between charging. How extended? SSC says that time between charging for the vehicle could be measured in years.

To say the automotive world would be skeptical of such claims is an understatement. Most carmakers would be happy to be able to provide an all-electric car that could travel several hundred miles and charge daily. If -- and that's a big if -- SSC can deliver on a fraction of its claims, Chrysler's all electric sports car announced yesterday will be obsolete before it hits the road.

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Their power source

By FITCamaro on 9/24/2008 12:14:06 PM , Rating: 5

The arc reactor from Iron Man.

No?

How about the soul of a child. The energy potential in them is in the jigawatts.

Seriously though. Unless they've figured out a way to get the government to agree to a nuclear powered car, there's no way their claim is true. Unless you can only drive it for an hour a day since it needs to recharge the rest of the time from a solar panel on the roof.

RE: Their power source

By cgrecu77 on 9/24/2008 12:16:11 PM , Rating: 2

I'm pretty sure a nuclear engine won't fit in a car ...

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RE: Their power source

By FITCamaro on 9/24/2008 12:24:15 PM , Rating: 4

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ford_Nucleon

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RE: Their power source

By Shadowself on 9/24/2008 12:40:51 PM , Rating: 2

Think of a modern, updated SNAP-10A. It would definitely fit within a car. Most of the drawings and pictures you will find of the SNAP-10A include not only the reactor and energy conversion system, but large radiators to remove waste heat in space. On the surface of the Earth the waste heat rejection system would be much smaller since you can blow air through it.

The problem is mass. There are only two ways to lessen the radiation due to the reactor: distance and mass. Since the reactor/car needs to be small enough to fit into a "sports car" type size, we can easily ignore the first one. That leaves mass. Enough mass to shield the car's occupants would make the "sports car" about as fast as a Yugo.

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RE: Their power source

By spuddyt on 9/24/2008 6:11:19 PM , Rating: 5

they never said the driver would SURVIVE the year without charging....

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RE: Their power source

By Samus on 9/25/2008 6:08:34 AM , Rating: 1

I don't think anybody here understands how nuclear power is produced. Simply put, even if you could put a reactor into a car (which you technically can, they can be made very compact) its a moot point when you consider the thousands of tons of water required to cool the reactor during fusion. Carrying thousands of tons of water in a vehicle is impossible. If it were possible, most forms of mass-transit would be nuclear powered, especially trains and aircraft.

For the mean time, nuclear powered transit is left to water craft such as submarines and ships.

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RE: Their power source

By Dreamwalker on 9/25/2008 6:28:56 AM , Rating: 5

It's nuclear fission, not fusion, because nuclear parts get splitted (uranium, plutonium...). Fusion is the process where 2 atomic parts join together (isotopes of hydrogen, lithium...) and helium is created.

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RE: Their power source

By Pavelyoung on 10/5/2008 9:40:43 AM , Rating: 2

Actually you wouldn't need the water. You could use a liquid metal salt for cooling and that system would fit within the confines of the car.

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RE: Their power source

By Jedi2155 on 9/24/2008 1:55:29 PM , Rating: 2

So sure now???? If they used a RTG then they could fit a few.

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RE: Their power source

By ArcliteHawaii on 9/24/2008 7:51:55 PM , Rating: 2

I interpret this to mean the car can sit for years and not discharge its batteries. I think that makes a lot more sense than a car that can be driven for years without recharging.

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RE: Their power source

By JWalk on 9/24/2008 11:34:40 PM , Rating: 2

Bingo! That was my first thought too. They have come up with a way to store the electricity for years after charging, as long as the vehicle isn't used during those years. Still impressive, but not exactly a "perpetual motion" machine. ;)

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RE: Their power source

By mvisconte on 9/25/2008 9:58:46 AM , Rating: 2

quote:
How about the soul of a child. The energy potential in them is in the jigawatts.

Yes, the energy potential is there, but when you try to seperate it from the containment field, it dissipates rapidly.

I am going to guess that they're thinking about ultracapacitor technology. It's young and unknown enough that people can make fantastic claims. As long as you don't undo the math, they are really impressive!

"They will store 500 kWH in a device the size of a dish washer. You can recharge it in 5 minutes, at your home. You can drive your car for over a week between charges..."

Man, I want one of those!

Of course, I can only do about 6.6kW from our 220v service, but maybe I'm not winding it tight enough.

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RE: Their power source

By rbfowler9lfc on 9/25/2008 11:58:24 PM , Rating: 2

Er, a small detail the article forgets to mention, the car is supplied with a 800km superconducting extension cord and must be fed with 230kV from a tri-phase transmission line.

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RE: Their power source

By rbfowler9lfc on 9/25/2008 11:54:51 PM , Rating: 2

Today is April 1st, 5769 on the Hebrew Calendar and SSC's board of directors are Jewish =)

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RE: Their power source

By darcotech on 10/2/2008 9:58:57 AM , Rating: 2

Hi,
well if you read about life and work of Nikola Tesla you will find many surprising detail.You can start with this one:

http://waterpoweredcar.com/teslascar.html

I read a lot about him and and it seems if the that man lived long enough, there will be never problem with petrol, as there will be never need for it.

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They copied my idea!

By mindless1 on 9/24/2008 8:24:43 PM , Rating: 5

I envisioned this car a long time ago. There are only 4 things needed.

1) Typical sports car

2)

3) Black Hole created in front of car.

4) Car perpetually rolls towards black hole when brake is released.

RE: They copied my idea!

By shin0bi272 on 9/24/2008 9:33:49 PM , Rating: 5

I think you need a bit more explanation in step 2

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RE: They copied my idea!

By UNHchabo on 9/25/2008 11:30:28 AM , Rating: 3

What he meant to say:

1) Typical sports car

2) ???

3) Black Hole created in front of car.

4) Car perpetually rolls towards black hole when brake is released.

5) Profit!

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RE: They copied my idea!

By mindless1 on 9/25/2008 7:04:40 PM , Rating: 2

I wasn't counting on the profit part, just investors.

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Finally

By corduroygt on 9/24/2008 12:11:29 PM , Rating: 3

They invented Mr. Fusion!

RE: Finally

By FITCamaro on 9/24/2008 12:15:06 PM , Rating: 2

We'll finally be able to fuel our cars on egg shells and beer!

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RE: Finally

By judasmachine on 9/24/2008 6:57:32 PM , Rating: 2

Maybe egg shells, as the beer is for me. I'm more interested in a robotic driver, so I can enjoy said beer.

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RE: Finally

By choadenstein on 9/25/2008 9:26:28 AM , Rating: 4

Awesome!!! Oh, and I took a sneak preview of the car's owner manual... just wait till you here what it does at 88 MPH.

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news flash from 2010

By andylawcc on 9/24/2008 12:18:42 PM , Rating: 5

"Vaporware of the Year"

RE: news flash from 2010

By Shadowself on 9/24/2008 12:28:29 PM , Rating: 2

Most certainly!

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Years between charges?!?

By Mclendo06 on 9/24/2008 12:14:58 PM , Rating: 2

Is this some sort of nuclear powered car or something? I mean, I don't know how much these thing go for, but I suppose a couple million could pay for the decay-type reactor that they put on satellites and space probes. That sure would be something.

RE: Years between charges?!?

By Shadowself on 9/24/2008 12:30:25 PM , Rating: 2

And those

quote:
decay-type reactor

systems output hundreds of watts at most. Certainly not enough to keep a sports car charged.

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Um...

By foolsgambit11 on 9/24/2008 3:42:17 PM , Rating: 4

Is it April 1st already?

I suppose...

By MrWho on 9/24/2008 5:30:56 PM , Rating: 4

... they will pack a bunch of hamsters-on-wheels in the trunk?

Either that or cranks and pedals for the passenger...

Several years between recharging

By PrinceGaz on 9/24/2008 7:24:56 PM , Rating: 1

What Koenigsegg are suggesting is nothing new, and implies fuel-cell technology. You don't recharge a fuel-cell in the conventional sense of pumping electricity back into it, you replace the fuel in it as required. That is probably what they are trying to say (in a rather obtuse manner).

Alternatively, it could be said that many existing electric-cars using conventional rechargeable electrochemical cells can also go for several years between recharging-- if you don't draw any power from them during that period.

RE: Several years between recharging

By sigilscience on 9/24/2008 10:30:44 PM , Rating: 3

All I know is I want a bit of what these guys are smoking.

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RTG

By HanSolo71 on 9/25/2008 1:11:06 AM , Rating: 2

Someone posted about using RTG the problem with that is the most capable candidate for the fuel is P238 also known as plutonium this would not be something I personally would want given out to the general public in this day in age

RE: RTG

By mmcdonalataocdotgov on 9/25/2008 11:05:42 AM , Rating: 2

If you get a couple of suicide bombers in these RTG powered cars traveling towards each other at 256 mph, collision of the critical masses could result in a nuclear mushroom cloud. Now that would be some IED.

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"Measured in years"

By Trippytiger on 9/25/2008 11:42:23 AM , Rating: 3

It can go for about 0.00274 years between charges.

nuclear power?

By cgrecu77 on 9/24/2008 12:13:14 PM , Rating: 2

not likely .. :)

they must have some kind of super exotic solar panels that could recharge the car during the day?? Or they signed a contract for a revolutionary engine with an engine company from Finland ...

Flux Capacitor!

By pauldovi on 9/24/2008 12:33:42 PM , Rating: 2

Doc was right!

V8 hemi

By mattclary on 9/24/2008 1:14:51 PM , Rating: 2

A V8 acting as a generator would fit the bill. What they aren't saying is they are going for all that torque an electric gets, not the mileage. They never said the thing wouldn't use gasoline. ;)

>><<

By shin0bi272 on 9/24/2008 9:37:22 PM , Rating: 2

What will happen is they will either do a gasoline engine charging a bank of lithium ion batteries or they will "encounter difficulties" along the way and be forced to reexamine their claims upon actual production.

This is where ideas turn a hairpin turn and slam right into a brick wall called reality.