Please read that headline one more time. Now, again, and aloud. So, a contraption that looks like an improvised go-kart (it's essentially that!) reached 62 mph or 100 kph in just 0.956 seconds!! And the double exclamation mark is not a typo.
Well, well, well, if this isn't one of those moments where you think there's nothing humans cannot achieve, I don't know how to call it. Years after their latest attempt, a student-built EV called "Mythen" by the guys from AMZ and ETH Zurich, plus the Lucerne University of Applied Sciences and Arts, broke the world record for vehicular acceleration with a hand-built racing car.
I don't know how the (lady) driver feels right now, but she sprinted from a standstill to 100 kph (62 mph) in 0.956 seconds over a distance of just 12.3 meters. That's a little over 40 feet, by the way! Right now, I just came from screaming a lot of mental interjections at the audacity and craziness of going so fast in so little time and space. Frankly, it gives me hope that we, as a race, still have a chance of survival.
If only we would let the right ones call the (political) shots, not folks who only think about themselves and their five minutes of glory and ten hours of wealth. Anyway, let's return to the story of AMZ (Academic Motorsports Club Zurich), ETH Zurich, and Lucerne University of Applied Sciences and Arts. After all, AMZ's members started building EVs in 2010, so they have a fair share of experience with racing and records.
On this occasion, their latest EV – called 'Mythen,' and the team was on the military airfield in Duebendorf, Switzerland, directly across the students' shop, with Kate Maggetti at the wheel. Their objective was clear – they didn't care about Tesla Model S Plaid's zero to 60 mph (96 kph) time of 1.98 seconds or about Lucid Air Sapphire's 1.89s sprint. Instead, they had to beat a team from the University of Stuttgart that set the record in September 2022 with a time of 1.461 seconds!
"Working on the project in addition to my studies was very intense. But even so, it was a lot of fun working with other students to continually produce new solutions and put into practice what we learned in class. And, of course, it is an absolutely unique experience to be involved in a world record," says Yann Bernard, head of motor at AMZ.
By the way, nothing is off the shelf, and this little gadget with go-kart looks and drag slicks is entirely unique – all components, from PCBs (printed circuit boards) to chassis and batteries, were developed by the students. To achieve this incredible feat, the race car weighs just 140 kg (309 lbs), and its four-wheel hub motors churn out 240 kW – or about 326 hp. Additionally, because they couldn't use F1-like aerodynamics as they needed perfect traction from zero mph, they also developed a bespoke "kind of vacuum cleaner that holds the vehicle down to the ground by suction."
Yep, we could insert a few jokes about how EVs clean the world in more than one way, but we won't. Instead, let us remember that the AMZ guys and gals are at it for quite a while – they also broke the record back in 2014 and again in 2016. Since then, it's been a constant 'war' against the team from the University of Stuttgart, so it's going to be interesting to keep an eye on their reply, right?
Aurel has aimed high all his life (literally, at 16 he was flying gliders all by himself) so in 2006 he switched careers and got hired as a writer at his favorite magazine. Since then, his work has been published both by print and online outlets, most recently right here, on autoevolution. Full profile
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