Italian companies launch hybrid racecar
Italy's N.Technology SpA and Tatuus srl announced this weekend that they have inked a deal to manufacture the N.T07 open-wheeled hybrid-powered racecar for a one-design series that will launch in 2007.The N.T07 will be built by Tatuus, which builds the Formula Renault series cars, and will be powered by a 2-liter, four-cylinder engine putting out 250 hp. The car will apparently also be fitted with a "hybrid engine system," although no details are available at present.
The race series will run in conjunction with the European rounds of the World Touring Car Championship. N.technology is currently running an Alfa Romeo team in the 2006 WTCC.
Given the short timeframe to design and build a grid full of brand new racecars for the 2007 season, it seems likely that the N.T07 will be a modification of Tatuus' current Formula Renault 2000 (shown at right), which closely resembles the N.T07 sketch.[Source: N.technology via Gizmag]
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
2009 Ford Mustang 4:32PM (8/28/2006)
Is anyone at all excited to watch hybrid racing? I think it's great that these people are trying to improve on hybrid technology, but i just dont see how marketable this sort of racing would be.
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apex 5:12PM (8/28/2006)
Well you had better get used to some sort of it. F1 seems to be heading in the direction of some changes. Whether it is E85, hybrid, or regenerative braking no one seems to know yet.
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there's little point to this 10:02PM (8/28/2006)
There's little point to a hybrid open-wheel car. First of all, hybrids work to mitigate the weight of the car. Open-wheel cars are very light.
Second of all, if you decelerate harder than you accelerate, you lose all the energy from the extra deceleration.
So, if your car can accelerate at 1G, you can only absorb energy at the rate of 1G (at most, assuming the electric motor was producing all the power to start with). If you decelerate faster than that, you have to use the brakes to do so, and that energy is lost. If the electric motor only contributed half your acceleration, then you lose everything beyond slowing at 0.5G.
So, if your car's acceleration comes half from electric power and you can accelerate at 1G and decelerate at 3G, you lose 2.5 of the 3G on braking. you lose 5/6ths of the power. And that's before you count the fact that the hybrid system makes the car heavier.
In reality, although you may accelerate at more than 1G, you're going to get more than 75% of your power from the gas engine, so you'll lose even more energy.
I just can't see much point to this.
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amp 10:22AM (8/29/2006)
Actually, there’s potentially a lot to be gained by this, including faster lap times and better fuel economy (think fewer pit stops). The downside of this would be added cost and complexity.
Even if the hybrid system couldn’t fully absorb all of the cars kinetic energy under braking, it would at least capture some of it, which could be used later to augment the engine power during acceleration. A race car’s braking performance is still limited by tire grip. By adding regenerative braking to a car, you can reduce the thermal capacity of the brakes compared to a non-hybrid car. This savings in weight (unsprung at that!) will help partially offset the weight of the hybrid components.
Further weight can be saved by downsizing the engine as long as you want to keep total power output the same. Or if you wish, you could keep the engine displacement the same, take the weight hit of the hybrid components and see stronger acceleration. The fastest answer probably lies somewhere in the middle.
I could go on, but here are just a few more benefits of a hybrid race car:
- Less drag (smaller brakes need less cooling)
- Better fuel economy, fewer pitstops
- Packaging flexibility could lead to lower C.G. and less inertia
- Potential for AWD (who says the motor can’t drive the front wheels?)
There are some downsides, mainly the cost of the components and the complexity that will arise. Weight could also be an issue, although I think a cleverly integrated hybrid race car could end up weighing less that its non-hybrid counterpart.
However, this discussion is more applicable to series with a more open rule structure, such as ALMS. Although the N.T07 sounds like it will be used in a spec series, it’s a good place to start.
Oh, and my bet on energy storage for this car isn’t on batteries, their too slow and heavy, but those slick super caps that BWM used on their X3 concept. They can absorb energy a lot quicker and weight a good deal less.
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Patty 4:13PM (9/05/2006)
It's about time. How better to inspire advances on Hybrid cars than competition. Gas engine race cars are having to be modified from speed. The hybrid needs to develope into more power on a less combustable fuel system. Sportier styles are also needed. Bring it on!
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johnnym 8:56PM (9/01/2006)
If it doesn't have at least 700 BHP, is very light weight and is FAST, there is now and will be no call for it.
It'll be a waste of our time, the producers money and the public's interest (which has little enough as it is).
Forget it. (Ho-o hum)
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Michael B. Arnold 1:52PM (9/13/2006)
Innovations and improvements have always come from racing gas burners.
Why not hybrids too or, even straight electrics?
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Dwayne 10:16PM (9/01/2006)
This is actually not a big suprise here. motorsports has always been the proving ground for many of the
current items already found on the everyday cars that you and i drive to work and play...fuel injection, turbo-charging,radial tires, pressurised fuel tanks etc etc. nessesity has always been the mother of invention when it comes to getting the edge for higher speeds and efficincy (please forgive the bad spelling)
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Scott 11:36PM (9/01/2006)
May as well race hybrids, we already race lawn tractors...and they said that would never catch on!
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Cage 11:53PM (9/01/2006)
THREE WORDS: NASCAR is BETTER!!!
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Rick Badman 10:03AM (9/02/2006)
I have designed advanced rotary engines that use plasma igniters instead of spark plugs so that any fuel, even water, could be combusted in the engine that could be one of the smoothest types of engines ever designed. Couple it with flywheels and the hybrid could be the fastest one in the world. A five-indentation 4-rotor rotary I have designed would be like a 160 cylinder engine since the igniters would fire five times per revolution. The engine would be thirsty and would need the flywheels to store the excess energy since the glorified 2-cycle engine with twin superchargers might be rated at over 2000 horses at 30,000 RPMs. Expect speeds in excess of 300 mph.
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Mark 4:21AM (9/02/2006)
The technology is sooo new.
How can anyone predict what it will do with a few years at the races?
Some of the best auto tech came from the track.
I'll bet in 10 years all of them will have a hybrid engine.
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Don 4:48AM (9/02/2006)
Raceing is Raceing
I don't care were it is or what it's in, it's fun to watch and just like most people if I was in a position to race something, Just point it out! Reckin-out is the only thing that could stop me! I'm not at all concerned with how it goes fast, just that is does.
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