The electric dream machine - lithium battery pack
When Alex Shea told his professor at Imperial College London that he gave up his master's to build the sexiest and most efficient car in the world, not only can Engineering undergraduates build this, but by the end of 2008, when the economy collapsed, funding was impossible.
"They said I was a naive dreamer," recalls Alex, 23 . ".
"Instead of accepting my idea of designing electric cars, they are trying to stop the project, which will fundamentally change the negative public perception of these cars.
I was told that I was a mediocre engineer and couldn't organize myself from paper bags, not to mention raising 500,000 and opening up new fields of science.
"But this week, realizing this dream, his work SRZero was exhibited at the Science Museum as part of the antenna Gallery exhibition, showcasing new scientific breakthroughs.
Alex will answer questions there.
There is a big story behind the existence of the car.
First Alex inspired 35 corporate sponsors to support him and then he organized a 10-
The Imperial College students under the age of 25 have formed a strong group, claiming to be the racing green endurance team.
For the next nine months, the team worked 16 hours a day in a garage rented by Ladbroke Grove, the longest in the world --range all-
Great technical challenges have been overcome.
In last July, after months of testing, they drove two
Take SRZero to Alaska and embark on an extraordinary journey of more than 16,000 miles
Five people drive along the American Highway. Their 140-
The day adventure from the edge of Alaska's Arctic Circle to the southern tip of Argentina is an eight-
BBC World News documentary
They have traveled through 14 countries and through challenging terrain:
The peaks covered by the Andes pass through the rainforest and through the super of Chile
The dry Atacama Desert
They were welcomed by the British ambassador and interviewed by the TV station.
Hundreds of local newspaper headlines along the way.
"For many countries, this is the first electric vehicle they have ever seen, and therefore it has aroused great interest," Alex said . ".
"At the traffic lights, the driver will stop by us and say, 'Come on, get that engine up and let's hear what you're doing '.
We will say, 'You can't hear anything becauseelectric'.
Then we will leave silently. the car does 0-100kph (0-
62 miles/hour) in 7 seconds-
You should look at their faces!
They couldn't believe the car was powered by electricity.
"Most people think electric cars are stupid and weak --the G-
Wiz can't exceed 50 miles per hour, only 48 miles away
But the top speed of our car is 160 kilometers per hour.
4 miles/hour, 500 km (310 miles) for a charge of just £ 5, the longest-
Electric vehicles worldwide.
A normal car could cost 3,000 for petrol, but our operating cost is 350.
Alex, from west London, said he inherited the adventurous spirit of the late father Eric, who died three years ago in a paragliding accident in the Alps with a businessman and excellent light aircraft pilot, aged 48.
"My dad has been taking risks, and I 've known from an early age that adventure is part of life.
When I was a teenager, I turned our garage into a secret lab where I would capture hydrogen on the electrodes and explode.
When my dad found out that I was making an explosive hydrogen bottle, he didn't tell me that he liked it more than I did!
"After Alex and his classmates built a hydrogen fuel car, he first thought of building an electric car.
Electric Hybrid
Their courses include karting and electric motorcycles.
In January 2009, he came into contact with a radical sports car with some sketches, one of the major manufacturers of gasoline --
Power rail car for amateur racing drivers.
"Basically, I asked them to give me a £ 120,000 railcar for free and help us redesign the chassis so we don't have to fuel --
It can accommodate a lithium iron phosphate battery pack of 550 kg and power the car through electricity.
"Here I am, 21-year-
Old, they must have thought I was crazy, but I did enough to convince them that I was serious --
After 10 days, they decided to go and we got a lift. off.
"Through the first leg of snow --
Travel was smooth in Alaska and North America, but in Guatemala
America's highways have collapsed into pitted gravel tracks, and in 10 years they have been hit by the wettest weather of 10 days, threatening the entire business.
"The car has an open top and the rain falls on the horizontal sheets, which means not only that the visibility is zero, but that if the water goes into the battery connection we get electrocuted to death.
We decided to go ahead and hope we had finished our homework and the carefully sealed battery would stay dry and thankfully it did.
"Driving SRZero is" exciting, "Alex said, but you have to stay awake --
You are only 8 cm away from the road and you can't be seen by the truck.
We have police escorts in Central America and we do presentations at school to inspire young people to be engineers.
The car is also on display at the Science Museum in Panama.
"At the end of November 16, we drove to Ushuaia and drank champagne.
This is only pure joy.
After returning to the UK, Alex and his team decided to set up their own consulting firm.
"We are interested in further developing our technology to make electric vehicles affordable and attractive to the mass market.
We believe that their time will come.
"The critics of Alex's Imperial College were generous with their praise.
The president, Sir Keith O'Nions, held a reception to commemorate the "great achievements ".
Alex said: "doing such a big thing, being so young, will be a very difficult behavior to follow.