The Tour de Sol Reports, 1999

Sponsored by
The AutoAuditorium System
from
Foveal Systems

A Fully Automatic, Multi-Camera System
that Produces Videos Without a Crew

www.AutoAuditorium.com


Unfortunately, this set of reports was never finished.  I still have the tapes of interviews.  Maybe someday . . .

The following is copyright Michael H. Bianchi.  Permission to copy is granted provided each Report is presented without modification and this notice is attached.  For other arrangements, contact me at +1-973-822-2024 .
For more on the NESEA Tour de Sol, see the web page at

http://www.nesea.org


Official NESEA Tour de Sol information is available from the sponsor, the Northeast Sustainable Energy Association (NESEA) at 413 774-6051 , and 50 Miles Street, Greenfield, MA 01301 , and nesea@nesea.org .  All media enquiries should be addressed to ...
        Jack Groh
        Groh Associates
        email: GrohPR@aol.com
        401 732-1551 telephone
        401 732-0547 fax
	401 952-0886 cell/pager
 

Table of Contents

Report #1: The NESEA American Tour de Sol is coming.
Report #2: Categories, Scoring and Prizes
Report #3: SAE/NESEA TopTec on Hybrid vehicles
Report #4: 1999 NESEA American Tour de Sol Entrants (as of 3/1/99)
Report #5: The 1999 Route and Schedule
Report #6: Entrants as of 2 April
Report #7: Vehicles with Web Sites
Report #8: More Web Sites: Solar Tiger II
Report #9: The Magic of the Gathering
Report #10: Nissan Altra EV
Report #11: The Electric Bull
Report #12: NJ Venturer: First Fuel Cell Car in American Tour de Sol
Report #13: ParaDyne
Report #14: Solar Bolt
Report #15: Sunpacer
Report #16: Toyota RAV4-EV and Prius
Report #17: Acceleration Test Results
Report #18: C.A.T.S. (Clean Air To Spare)
Report #19: Electrifly
Report #20: Chrysler Epic
Report #21: Dodge Interpid ESX2 Concept Car
Report #22: Sunergy
Report #23: More on Electric Bull improvements
Report #24: Scoring: Winning the American Tour de Sol
Report #25: Technical Testing
Report #26: Monday's Results
Report #27: Kineticar III
Report #28: PV EV
Report #29: Sol Survivor IV
Report #30: Solar Black Bear
Report #31: Pole Position for Tuesday 25 May
Report #32: Pole Position for Wednesday 26 May
Report #33: Report #26 Formated: Monday's Results
Report #34: Pole Position for Thursday 27 May
Report #35: The Week So Far ...
Report #36: New York Power Authority CitiVan
Report #38: Finish Line Press Release
Report #39: Final Standings
Report #39: Report #37 was a Goof
Report #40: More Coming
Report #41: Acceleration and Autocross Results
Report #42: Score Components
Report #43: Green Score Details
Report #44: Helios the Heron IV
Report #45: MooRocco
Report #46: ERIDE
Report #47: Web Sites for Pictures and Teams
Report #48: Chevy S10
Report #49: Caballito Electric Scooter
Report #50: Kilowatt Kamel
Report #51: Sparky Spartan
Report #52: 2 Scooters from Singapore
Report #53: HEV Blazer and Slipstream
Report #54: Pictures on the Go on the Net
Report #55: Solar Tiger II
Report #56: HEV Blazer and Slipstream
Report #57: The Forces Are With Us
Report #58: Ovonic Solectria Force
Report #59: Electric Lion
Report #60: Pictures on the Go on the Net
Report #61: NFA Sol Machine II
Report #62: Solar Tiger II
Report #63: Artemis
Report #64: Who IS Gary Bettenhauser?
Report #65: The Goodyear Tire Van
Report #66: Helios Has Battery Trouble
Report #67: ... And Then They Change The Rules
Report #68: The Olympian
Report #69: A Sparrow, an MG, and 2 Henney Kilowatts Visit the NESEA Tour
Report #70: Sungo
Report #71: SuperForce
Report #72: Technical Testing Stories
Report #73: Viking 23
Report #74: Helping Your Competitor Compete
Report #75: Helios' Team Bus
Report #76: Orion Hybrid Bus
Report #77: The Piper on the Green


Report #1: The NESEA American Tour de Sol is coming.

It isn't even the end of winter yet, but it is time to start thinking about the 11th annual NESEA American Tour de Sol. 

From Saturday, May 22nd, through Friday, May 28th, 1999, about 50 electric and hybrid-electric vehicles will wind their way from Waterbury, Connecticut to Lake George, New York, in the Northeast's premier road rally dedicated to demonstrating the practical value of vehicles that use imaginative energy systems and design to stretch the world's resources further. 

NESEA is the North East Sustainable Energy Association, and their American Tour de Sol has been a show place for electric, solar-electric, and fuel-electric vehicles.  Their mission? Well the name says it.  To show the role sustainable energy systems have in our lives. 

Once again, I will be going along for the entire trip, interviewing the teams and reporting the results. 

This year there are five competing Categories:

  Production
    Electric and Hybrid-Electric cars, trucks, and buses that are available for
    sale and lease today.  As of this writing, there are 7 entrants. 

  Commuter
    Inovative vehicles built by students, individuals, and manufacturers that
    are optimized for daily use. 

  USDOE Hybrid
    Vehicles that use liquid or gaseous fuels in a heat engine or fuel cell
    in combination with an electric drive train to obtain long range,
    excellent economy, and ultra-low emissions. 
    Sponsored by the United States Department of Energy

  Solar Commuter
    Vehicles that are designed to meet daily transportation needs and optimized
    to get as much `fuel' as possible from solar panels fixed to the vehicle. 

  One-Person
    Electric and Hybrid-Electric commuters and motorcycles which serve as
    personal transportation. 

  Demonstration
    All vehicles not competing in the rally, such as bicycles, pre-production
    prototypes, neighborhood and off-road electric and hybrid vehicles. 

Those are pretty much the same categories as last year, but there are some differences.  For one, there won't be human-hybrid (so called "Pasta Burners") competing over the same route as the cars, trucks, and buses.  Nor will vehicles not designed for the 60+ mile legs be forced to either make major modifications or just drive until they drop.  Instead, special events, suitable for the shorter range entrants will be created. 

As of March 1st, the number of entrants, by Category, were:

   7 Production
  11 Commuter
  10 USDOE Hybrid
   2 Solar Commuter
   2 One-Person
   4 Demonstration

32 total

The Demonstration Category will include vehicles from:

  Nissan           Altra EV
  GM Ovonic        Chevy S-10
  DaimlerChrysler  EPIC minivan
  Toyota           Prius

Although the Demonstration Category vehicles will not be competing, they will be giving demonstration rides. 

While other events are _races_ where getting there first is the way to win, the NESEA Tour defines winning in many ways that do not favor the fastest team.  The NESEA Tour has long worked on getting real-world data from this event (there's that sustainability message again) and they have again worked very hard to do just that. 

For example, the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (NYSDEC) is generously offering their equipment and services to evaluate the efficiency and emissions of some of the Hybrid-Electric entrants. 

Also, all the vehicles that plug-in will have digital AC kiloWatt-hour meters at the input-end of the charger.  That, coupled with the DC kiloWatt-hour meter on the output of the battery will give us very good overall charge efficiency ratings (energy-out-of-the-battery over energy-into-the-charger). 

And, as last year, NESEA and the Society of Automotive Engineers, the USDOE, and the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority will host a SAE/NESEA Hybrid Vehicle Conference.  Here, the pioneers of Hybrid-Electric Vehicle (HEV) technology, industry leaders, researchers, vehicle users, and government officials, will participate in presentations and panel sessions addressing key issues surrounding state-of-the-art HEVs.  Participants will hear the latest news about emissions testing, components and system architectures for a variety of light-duty and heavy-duty applications, and will learn how many have already demonstrated extraordinary potential to increase fuel efficiency and reduce emissions.  Information is on the web at:

                http://www.sae.org/CALENDAR/toptecs.htm#hybrid
        or by calling
                        1-800-TEAM-SAE

So stay tuned.  Coming up in future reports will be the lists of entrants, with preliminary vehicle information, and, with luck, some early interviews with the teams. 


Report #2: Categories, Scoring and Prizes

Winning is a strong motivater in humans, and the NESEA American Tour de Sol sees some intense competition, and some wonderful examples of generousity.  In years gone past, teams down on their luck with a fried charger, or broken frame, or even dead motor controller have been helped out by their competitors.  Many is the time when I've witnessed a team help another, even at the risk of loosing their position in the standings. 

But many of the teams come to win, Win, WIN! And to feed that need NESEA and the sponsors come up with prizes. 

NEW SCORING SYSTEM & PRIZES REWARD GREEN CARS WITH GOOD PERFORMANCE

A new, easy to understand scoring system will reward vehicles that are "green," and meet the rigorous demands of the buying public.  All vehicles will be judged for reliability, acceleration and handling, as well as for fuel economy (efficiency) and emissions.  In addition, range, consumer acceptability and percent-solar-fraction will be rewarded as appropriate. 

As in past years, the point system will be based on Tour Miles, a combination of miles driven on the course, miles driven for building up total range (so called "laps"), plus merits for passing inspections readily and such, minus demerits for infractions of the rules and such.  It would be good to remember that the NESEA Tour is an "open course" event, driven in the real world, over normal roads, on normal days.  A certain amount of luck is involved, as traffic can range from light to parking lot conditions, and the course, while marked, is sometimes a navigational challenge.  One wrong turn has sent some entrants on unwanted meanderings of the New England country side.  Unlike races which reward driver skill at high speed, this more of a road rally that prizes those who are prepared and alert. 

Trophies will be awarded for:

    most Tour Miles of each category

    overall winners of light duty, heavy duty, and one-person vehicles

    greenest vehicles (the most efficient vehicles with low emissions)

    best range

    best acceleration

    best handling (autocross)

    best percent solar fraction

    best customer acceptability

as appropriate. 

CASH PRIZES

ALABC - The Advanced Lead Acid Battery Consortium is offering $1,000

        for the best vehicles using lead acid batteries. 

Blue Sky Club Sportmanship Awards - $1,000 for teams that demonstrate

        exceptional sportsmanship and team spirit. 

Other cash prizes will be announced. 

PAST NESEA American Tour de Sol RECORDS:

RANGE: Greatest distance travelled in a single day without recharging or refueling. 

     68.7 miles Heavy Duty Vehicle: Solectria CitiVan 1998

     81   miles Motorcycle: Schiller Power Group 1995

    143   miles Light Duty vehicle with lead acid batteries:
                Bolton HS with Trojan 1995

    249   miles Light Duty production car with advanced storage:
                Solectria Force NMH with Ovonic NMH 1997

    373   miles Light Duty pre-production vehicle with advanced
                storage: Solectria Sunrise with Ovonic NMH 1996

FUEL EFFICIENCY: Electric energy consumption changed to Miles per gallon equivalent (MPGe)

     19.7 MPGe  Heavy Duty Vehicle:
                Solectria CitiVan (11,000lbs) 1998

     58.7 MPGe  Utility vehicle: Ford Ecostar 1995

     70.7 MPGe  4-6 seater sedan: Solectria Sunrise 1995

     82.8 MPGe  Two-seater sedan: Ovonic-Solectria Force 1998

    245   MPGe  Motorcycle - Schiller Group's Erange 1995


Report #3: SAE/NESEA TopTec on Hybrid vehicles

As last year, NESEA and the Society of Automotive Engineers (SAE) have organized a symposium associated with the NESEA American Tour de Sol US Electric Vehicle Championship.  The details ... 

        HYBRID ELECTRIC VEHICLES HERE AND NOW

May 26-27, Marriott Hotel, Albany, NY

Organized by: The Society of Automotive Engineers and the Northeast Sustainable Energy Assn

Sponsored by: U.S. DOE, NYS Energy Research and Development Authority, and the NYSTEC- Alternative Fuels Technology Center

        OVERVIEW

Pioneers of the Hybrid Electric Vehicle (HEV) industry have started to accumulate on-road experience, but still face many tough and sensitive challenges in designing and delivering affordable vehicles that meet regulator and consumer needs.  This TOPTEC features presentations and panel sessions in which industry leaders, researchers, vehicle users and government officials address key issues surrounding state-of-the- art HEVs.  Participants will hear the latest news about emissions testing, components and system architectures for a variety of light- duty and heavy-duty applications, and will learn how many have already demonstrated extraordinary potential to increase fuel efficiency and reduce emissions. 

SAE and NESEA, with support from government and other organizations, have assembled speakers who play key roles in the emergence of HEVs.  They will provide information gained from operational experience, and insights into future technical developments and market opportunities.  As an alternative vehicle expert you have the opportunity to join an international audience to hear the latest findings and research the industry has to offer. 

        11th ANNUAL NESEA AMERICAN TOUR DE SOL

The Northeast Sustainable Energy Association (NESEA) invites participants to visit the NESEA American Tour de Sol on Wednesday, May 26 during the TOPTEC lunch hour.  NESEA has also arranged for an exclusive Ride & Drive and reception for TOPTEC participants Wednesday evening.  The NESEA Tour showcases approximately 50 electric and hybrid-electric vehicles built by auto, bus and bike manufacturers, students and individuals.  NESEA is the nation's leading regional association involved in promoting awareness, understanding and development of non-polluting renewable energy technologies for a robust economy. 

A TOPTEC registration discount is available to those who would like to assist with technical testing at the NESEA Tour on Saturday and Sunday, May 22-23, 1999. Contact NESEA for more details. (413-774-6051 ext 18)

        BY ATTENDING THIS TOPTEC, YOU WILL:

- Hear about the latest HEV operational experience

- Learn about HEV design trade-offs, and how different system architectures are emerging to satisfy various use groups

- See hybrid emission testing results, and discuss evolving HEV emission test procedures

- Choose between two focused sessions: Light-Duty Vehicle and Medium/Heavy Duty Vehicles

- Network with colleagues and people in the HEV industry from all over the world

- Participate in an exclusive Ride & Drive and visit the NESEA American Tour de Sol

- Receive an educational reference book based on the speakers' presentations

        YOU SHOULD ATTEND IF YOU ARE A(N):

- Electric/hybrid engineer, manager, or related professional

- HEV component supplier

- Battery/Energy storage development engineer

- Decision maker in the HEV industry

- Transportation Executive

- Local, state, and federal government official, both domestic and international

- Fleet manager considering alternative vehicle options for your fleet

- University researcher or faculty involved in HEV or alternative fuel propulsion

- Public Interest representatives working on transportation issues

((Lifted from the NESEA web site.  Mike Bianchi))


Report #4: 1999 NESEA American Tour de Sol Entrants (as of 3/1/99)

As of the first of March, here are the 1999 NESEA American Tour de Sol Entrants, by category. 

((This is a bit dated, I know.  I'm supposed to get the latest list very shortly.  I'll update then.  Mike Bianchi))

Abbreviations used below:

        CNG     Compressed Natural Gas (aka Methane)
        HEV     Hybrid-Electric Vehicle
        LPG     Liquid Petroleum Gas (aka Propane)
        LiIon   Lithium-Ion battery
        NiCad   Nickel-Cadmium battery
        NMH     Nickel Metal Hydride battery
        PbA     Lead-Acid battery
        TBA     to be announced

PRODUCTION CATEGORY

Ford Ranger (NMH)

	CMEEC & Northeast Utilities, Norwich, CT

RAV4 (SUV, Panasonic NMH)

	Toyota Motor Sales and HS team, Torrance, CA

TBA, (Solectria Force, PbA)

	The Ethel Walker School, Simsbury, CT

Ovonic Solectria Force (Ovonic, NMH)

	Ovonic Battery Company , Troy, MI

Nordic Challenger (Solectria Force, Ovonic NMH)

	EVermont/Solectria,
Montpelier, VT

Solectria NiCad Force, (SAFT NiCad)

	Connecticut Partership, Windsor, CT

Solectria CitiVan (PbA)

	New York Power Authority, New York, NY

DEMONSTRATION CATEGORY

Altra EV, (Sony LiIon)

	Nissan North America, Gardina, CA

Chevy S-10 (GM Ovonic NMH)

	GM Ovonic & New Hampshire Technical Institute)

EPIC minivan (TBA)

	DaimlerChrysler, Auburn Hills, MI

Prius, (Hybrid sedan, Gasoline + Panasonic NMH)

	Toyota Motor Sales, USA,
Torrance, CA

COMMUTER CATEGORY

Electric Bull (Porsche 914, Trojan PbA)

	Shadow Mountain Electric Matadors,
Phoenix, AZ

Kilowatt Kamel (Chevy S-10, Trojan PbA)

	Spartan EV Racing Team, Phoenix, AZ

MooRocco, (1984 VW Scirocco, Trojan PbA)

	Vermont Technical College, Randolph
Center, VT

Response II E (Purpose Built, TBA)

	Response TLU, Southfield, MI

Shocker IV (Toyota Tercel, Douglas PbA)

	NEAT, Conway, NC

Solar Black Bear (Chevy S-10, Trojan PbA)

	U of Maine Solar Vehicle Team,
Orono, ME

Sparky Spartan (Tercel, Trojan PbA)

	Spartan EV Racing Team, Phoenix, AZ

Speed RAMP 320 (Saturn SL, Kummerow Zinc-Air)

	West Philadelphia Soljourners,
Phil, PA

Sungo (purpose-built, Ovonic NMH)

	SEV of New Hampshire Technical Institute,
Concord, NH

The Olympian (Ford Escort, PbA)

	Pirates, Cinnaminson, NJ

UEHS Solar Tiger (Conversion, Trojan PBA)

	Solar Tiger Team, Endicott, NY

HYBRID CATEGORY

E.D. (Ford Taurus, Ovonic NMH+Diesel)

	Current Advantage, Southfield, MI

Electric Lion (Ford Escort, PbA+LPG)

	Penn State SAE HEV Team, University Park,
PA

Garnet One (sedan, Trojan PbA +CNG)

	Swarthmore College, Swarthmore, PA

Kineticar III (Pick-up, Trojan PbA +LPG)

	CSERT-NVCTC, Waterbury, CT

Slipstream, (Purpose-built, PbA + CNG)

	Cornell University, Ithica, NY

TBA, (Chevy Blazer, Hawker PbA)

	Cornell University, Ithica, NY

TBA, (TBA)

	Ovonic Battery Company, Troy, MI

NJ Venturer, (Solectria Force with H-Power fuel Cell)

	Project New Jersey Venture, Trenton, NJ

Tulsa Paradyne (Geo Metro, PbA+RFG)

	University of Tulsa, Tulsa, OK

Viking 23 (Purpse-built, SAFT NiCad + RFG)

	Team Viking 23, Bellingham, WA

SOLAR COMMUTER CATEGORY

Helios the Heron VI (VW Van, PbA)

	Riverside School, Lyndonville, VT

Sol Survivor (purpose-built)

	Monadnock Solar Racing Team, Peterboro, NH

ONE-PERSON CATEGORY

Ovonic Electric (Scooter, TBA)

	Ovonic Battery Company, Troy, MI

Sunpacer #92, (purpose-built, Deka PBA)

	C-M Sunpacer Tech Team, Cato, NY

  On hold

DUETS Bus (40 foot, HEV Diesel)

	NovaBus Inc., Roswell, NM

Of particular interest (to me, anyway) is the possibility of a fuel-cell hybrid-electric car being in the NESEA Tour! ((Go New Jersey! My home state.)) H-Power is from Bellville NJ (www.hpower.com), and the the car is being a project of the NJ Department of Transportation. 


Report #5: The 1999 Route and Schedule

The NESEA American Tour de Sol U.S. Electric Vehicle Championship follows a regular pattern.  On even number years it tends to visit major cities, like Boston, New York, Philadelphia, and/or Washington DC and paralleling the major highways.  (Some of the more experimental and exotic vehicles cannot sustain the minimum speeds of the Interstate highways.) On the odd-numbered years, it travels more around the country side, visiting smaller communities where it often receives the most grand welcomes.  Such is the route this year. 

The NESEA Tour is an "open course" event.  As part of its mission to promote the practical use of electric transportation, the teams drive their entries on the normal roads, under normal conditions, in normal traffic.  So those of you in the Western Connecticut, Western Massachusetts and eastern New York area should plan a visit to one of the public displays, or to camp along the side of the road and cheer your favorite teams along.  Fair warning: these events are subject to change, so plan to be flexible.  I'll update the schedule as it changes. 

From the Drivers' Manual:

Saturday, May 22

  Waterbury CT - Library Park and Grand Street
  "Transportation: Past, Present, & Future Festival"
        Entertainment, Food, Exhibits
  Display and Technical Testing:        10 am -  6 pm
  Junior Solar Sprint Competition:      11 am

Sunday, May 23

  Waterbury CT - Library Park and Grand Street
  "Transportation: Past, Present, & Future Festival"
        Entertainment, Food, Exhibits
  Display and Technical Testing:        10 am -  5 pm
  Junior Solar Sprint Competition:      11 am

Monday, May 24

  Waterbury CT - Library Park and Grand Street
  Tour de Sol Display                    8 am - 10 am
  Tour de Sol Starting Ceremony          9:30 am
  Route to Hartford CT:
        Route 322E through
                Marion CT
                Southington CT
        Route 10N to
        Route 364E through
                Berlin CT
        Route 71N to
        Route 71A North through
                Kensington CT
        Route 7N through
                Newington CT
                West Hartford CT
        Route 173S
        (32 miles)

  Hartford CT - Bushnell Park
  Electric Shuttle Bus from Capital Building
  Food, Exhibits
  Tour de Sol Display                   11:30 am - 3:30 pm
  Media Event                           (to be announced)
  Route to Torrington CT:
        Route 4W through
                West Hartford CT
                Farmington CT
                Unionville CT
                Burlington CT
                Harwinton CT
        (29 miles)

Tuesday, May 25

  Torrington CT - Torrington High School
  Tour de Sol Display                   7:30 am - 10 am
  Route to Pittsfield MA:
        Route 4W through
                Goshen CT
        Route 63 N through
                Cornwall CT
                Huntsville CT
        Route 7N through
                Canaan CT
                Great Barrington MA
                Stockbridge MA
                Lee MA
                Lenox MA
        (55 miles)

  Pittsfield MA - Pittsfield Town Common
  Junior Solar Sprint                   10 am
  Food, Exhibits, Entertainment
  Tour de Sol Display                   11:15 am - 4 pm
  Media Event                           (to be announced)
  Route to New Lebanon NY
        Route 20W through
                Hancock MA
        (14 miles)

Wednesday, May 26

  New Lebanon NY - Lebanon Valley Dragway
  Acceleration Tests (Not Open To Public)
  Route to Albany NY
        Route 20W through
                Brainard NY
                Nassau NY
                Schodack NY
                East Greenbush NY
        (37 miles)

  Albany NY - Empire State Plaza
  Food, Exhibits
  Tour de Sol Display                   11 am - 3:30 pm
  Route to Shaker High School
        Route 9
        (4 miles)

Thursday, May 27

  Latham NY - Shaker Jr High School
  Display for Colonie District Schools   7:45 am - 10 am
  Route to Saratoga Springs NY:
        Route 9N through
                Watervliet NY
                Latham NY
                Cohoes NY
        Route 9R N to
        Route 470N to
        Route 32N through
                Waterford NY
        Route 4N (along the Hudson River) through
                Halfmoon NY
                Mechanicville NY
                Stillwater NY
        Route 423N to
        Route 8P N to
        Route 9N
        (37 miles)

  Saratoga Springs NY - Congress Park
  Tour de Sol Display                   11:30 am - 6:30 pm
  Media Event                            1:30 pm
  Range Event                            1:30 pm - 6:00 pm

Friday, May 28

  Saratoga Springs NY - location to be announced
  Tour de Sol Display                   to be announced
  Route to Lake George NY
        Route 9N through
                Wilton NY
                Moreau NY
                Glens Falls NY
                Queensbury NY
        (28 miles)

  Lake George NY - Fort William Henry
  Tour de Sol Display                   10:30 am - 4 pm
  Autocross Event                        1:30 pm - 3:30 pm
        run by The Mohawk-Hudson Region
        Sports Car Club of America


Report #6: Entrants as of 2 April

From a NESEA e-mail to the teams ... looks like a pretty nice bunch of entrants. 

1999 NESEA AMERICAN TOUR DE SOL ENTRANTS (as of 4/2/99)

	  CNG = Compressed Natural Gas (Methane)
	   H2 = Hydrogen
	LiIon = Lithium Ion
	  LPG = Liquid Petroleum Gas (Propane)
	NiCad = Nickel Cadmium
	 NiMH = Nickel Metal Hybdird battery
	  PbA = Lead Acid Battery
	  RFG = Reformulated Gasoline
	  TBA = To Be Announced
	 VRLA = Valve Regulated Lead Acid

Veh.# Vehicle name, Team name, City, State

	Vehicle description (battery manufacturer, chemistry)

PRODUCTION CATEGORY 67 Solectria NiCad Force, Connecticut Partnership, Windsor, CT,

	1995 Solectria Force (SAFT, NiCad)

51 EPIC minivan, DaimlerChrysler, Chicago, IL,

	EPIC minivan, (SAFT, NiMH)

52 EPIC minivan, DaimlerChrysler, Chicago, IL,

	EPIC minivan, (SAFT, NiMH)

35 C.A.T.S. (Clean Air to Spare), DEC "Team Air C.AT.S.", Albany, NY,

	Solectria Force (sedan, PbA)

15 Nordic Challenger, EVermont/Solectria, Waterbury, VT,

	Solectria Force (Gold Peak, NiMH)

41 Solectria CityVan, NY Power Authority, New York, NY,

	UBC van (East Penn, PbA)

76 Ovonic Force, Ovonic Battery Co., Troy, MI,

	Ovonic Force  (Ovonic, NiMH)

53 Toyota Prius, Argonne National Laboratory, Argonne, IL,

	Toyota Prius (Panasonic NiMH + gasoline)

30 Caballito Electric, Team Caballito Electric, Kailua, HI,

	Purpose-built  Scooter (Long, PbA)

26 Ford Ranger EV, Team Ford, Hartford, CT,

	Ford Ranger EV  (GM Ovonic, NiMH)

10 Sunergy, The Ethel Walker School, Simsbury, CT,

	Solectria Force (Interstate, PbA)

27 RAV4-EV, Toyota + High School students, Torrance, CA,

	RAV4-EV (Panasonic, NiMH)

DEMONSTRATION CATEGORY:

	EPIC minivan, DaimlerChrysler, Chicago, IL,
	EPIC minivan, (SAFT, NiMH)

	ESX2, DaimlerChrysler, Chicago, IL,
	Purpose-built Hybrid prototype

	Chevy S-10, New Hampshire Technical Institute, Concord, NH,
	Chevy S-10 (Ovonic, NiMH)

	Altra EV (2), Nissan North America, Gardena, CA,
	Altra EV (Sony, LiIon)

	Prius, Toyota, Torrance, CA,
	Toyota Prius (Panasonic NiMH + gasoline)

COMMUTER CATEGORY 13 Electrifly, Enviromotive, Cannington, Ont,

	Pontiac Firefly (SAFT NiCad)

40 none, Palo Verde Electric Racing Team, Tucson, AZ,

	1985 VW Cabriolet (Trojan, PbA)

16 The Olympian, Pirates, Cinnaminson, NJ,

	Ford Escort (Electrosource, PbA)

 5	Response II E, Response LTU, Southfield, MI,
	Purpose-built (NiMH)

19 Sungo, SEV of New Hampshire Technical Institute, Concord, NH,

	Purpose-built (Ovonic, NiMH)

32 Electric Bull, Shadow Mtn. Electric Matadors, Phoenix, AZ,

	Porsche 914 (Trojan, PbA)

61 Solar Bolt, Solar Bolt Team, Bolton, CT,

	1974 Fiat (Trojan, PbA)

50 Sparky Spartan, Spartan EV Racing Team, Phoenix, AZ,

	Porsche 914 (Trojan 125, PbA)

17 Kilowatt Kamel, Spartan EV Racing Team, Phoenix, AZ,

	Chevy S-10 (Trojan 125, PbA)

37 UEHS Solar Tiger, Union-Endicott Solar Tiger, Endicott, NY,

	Purpose-built (Trojan, PbA)

US DOE HYBRID CATEGORY 14 Slipstream, Cornell University HEV Team, Ithaca, NY,

	Purpose-built (Champion GNB, PbA + CNG)

24 to be named, Cornell University HEV Team, Ithaca, NY,

	Chevrolet Blazer (Hawker PbA + gasoline)

18 Kineticar III, CSERT-NVCTC, Waterbury, CT,

	Chevy S-10 (Trojan, PBA + LPG)

 7	Paradyne, Hurricane Motorworks, Tulsa, OK,
	1992 GeoMetro (Concord PbA + RFG)

 4	E.D., LTU Hybrid Drive, Southfield, MI,
	1996 Ford Taurus (Ovonic NiMH + diesel)

25 Ovonic Prius, Ovonic Battery Co., Troy, MI,

	Toyota Prius conversion  (Ovonic NiMH + gasoline)

 8	Electric Lion, Penn State SAE HEV Team, University Park, PA,
	1992 Ford EscortWgn )(New Castle PbA + LPG)

11 Power Lion, Penn State SAE HEV Team, University Park, PA,

	1984 Pontiac Fiero (Ultracapacitors + RFG)

 9	New Jersey Venturer, Project New Jersey Venture, Trenton, NJ,
	Solectria Force (SAFT NiCad + H2 Fuel Cell)

28 Garnet One, Swarthmore College, Swarthmore, PA,

	Chevy Beretta (Trojan PbA + CNG)

23 Viking 23, Team Viking 23, Bellingham, WA,

	Purpose-built  (Saft NiCad + RFG)

SOLAR COMMUTER 38 Artemis, BHS FAMS '00, Brighton, MI,

	Purpose-built (Johnson Controls VRLA, PbA)

93 Helios the Heron VI, Riverside School, Lyndonville, VT,

	1971 VW Van, (Deka Dominator, PbA)

83 Sol Survivor IV, Sol Survivor, Peterborough, NH,

	Purpose-built (Interstate, PbA)

20 Solar Black Bear, U. Maine Solar Vehicle Team, Orono, ME,

	Chevy S-10 (Trojan, PbA)

ONE-PERSON CATEFORY 92 Sunpacer, C-M Sunpacer Tech Team, Cato, NY,

	Purpose-built (Deka Dominator, PbA)

36 Futura EVs, GFR Technologies, Singapore,

	Motor scooter (Gold Peak, NiMH)

 3	Ovonic Electric Scooter, Ovonic Battery Co., Troy, MI,
	Scooter (Ovonic, NiMH)

89 Envirocycle III, Solar Electric Research Team, East Haddam, CT,

	Suzuki motorcycle (GNB, PbA)

58 N.F.A Sol Machine II, Team Newburgh, NY USA, Newburgh, NY,

	Purpose-built (PM Batteries, PbA)

WAITING LIST (in waiting list order)

 6	ERIDE, ERAD (Electric Racing and Auto Design), Phoenix, AZ,
	TBA (conversion 1994 Chevy s-10,Trojan, PBA)

66 ReCharger, University of New Haven, West Haven, CT,

	1984 Ford Ranger (Trojan, PbA)

31 PEV-1, Panther EV Club, Pittsburgh, PA,

	1975 ElCar Zagati Purpose-built (Trojan PbA)

33 Metro P.E.P, Solar Electric Research Team, East Haddam, CT,

	TBA (Trojan PbA + LPG)

59 59 Berkeley, Boston University/TBA, Hanover, MA,

	1959 Berkeley (Berkeley)

	TBA, Team New England, Boston, MA


Report #7: Vehicles with Web Sites

It's the age of the Internet (sung to the tune for "The Age of Aquarius"), and as you might expect, many entrants have World Wide Web sites for their vehicles and/or sponsors.  For those interested in chasing down details on the vehicles, these sites can be either very informative, or a bit of a disappointment.  (As anyone who tries to keep a web site current knows, it is an unending and often thankless task.) Still, the surfers among you may enjoy reading about and seeing pictures of some of the vehicles we are expecting for the NESEA Tour. 

 Vehicle Number        3
 Vehicle Name          Ovonic Electric Scooter
 Category              ONE PERSON CATEGORY
 Team Name             Ovonic Battery Co. 
 Organization          Ovonic Battery Company
 Town                  Troy
 State                 MI
 Description           Scooter (Ovonic, NiMH)
 www                   http://www.ovonic.com

 Vehicle Number        8
 Vehicle Name          Electric Lion
 Category              USDOE HYBRID CATEGORY
 Team Name             Penn State SAE HEV Team
 Organization          Penn State Society of Automotive Engineers
 Town                  University Park
 State                 PA
 Description           1992 Ford Escort Wagon (New Castle PbA + LPG)
 www                   http://www.lf.psu.edu/sae/hev

 Vehicle Number        9
 Vehicle Name          New Jersey Venturer
 Category              USDOE HYBRID CATEGORY
 Team Name             Project New Jersey Venture
 Organization          Project New Jersey Venture
 Town                  Pennington
 State                 NJ
 Description           Solectria Force (SAFT NiCad + H2 Fuel Cell)
 www                   http://www.civeng.rutgers.edu/venturer/

 Vehicle Number        11
 Vehicle Name          Power Lion
 Category              USDOE HYBRID CATEGORY
 Team Name             Penn State SAE HEV Team
 Organization          Penn State Society of Automotive Engineers
 Town                  University Park
 State                 PA
 Description           1984 Pontiac Fiero (Ultracapacitors + RFG)
 www                   http://www.lf.psu.edu/sae/hev

 Vehicle Number        12
 Vehicle Name          MooRocco
 Category              COMMUTER CATEGORY
 Team Name             Vermont Technical College
 Organization          Vermont Technical College
 Town                  Randolph Center
 State                 VT
 Description           1984 VW Scirocco  (Trojan, PbA)
 www                   http://www.vtc.vsc.edu/clubs/solar/

 Vehicle Number        14
 Vehicle Name          Slipstream
 Category              USDOE HYBRID CATEGORY
 Team Name             Cornell University HEV Team
 Organization          Cornell University HEV
 Town                  Ithaca
 State                 NY
 Description           Purpose-built (Champion GNB, PbA + CNG)
 www                   http://www.ee.cornell.edu/~hev

 Vehicle Number        15
 Vehicle Name          Nordic Challenger
 Category              PRODUCTION CATEGORY
 Team Name             EVermont/Solectria
 Organization          EVermont/Solectria
 Town                  Waterbury
 State                 VT
 Description           Solectria Force (Gold Peak, NMH)
 www                   http://www.evermont.org

 Vehicle Number        18
 Vehicle Name          Kineticar III
 Category              USDOE HYBRID CATEGORY
 Team Name             CSERT-NVCTC
 Organization          Naugatuck Valley Comm Tech College (NVCTC)
 Town                  Waterbury
 State                 CT
 Description           Chevy S-10 (Trojan, PBA + LPG)
 www                   http://www.nvctc5.commnet.edu

 Vehicle Number        20
 Vehicle Name          Solar Black Bear
 Category              SOLAR COMMUTER CATEGORY
 Team Name             U. Maine Solar Vehicle Team
 Organization          University of Maine
 Town                  Orono
 State                 ME
 Description           Chevy S-10 (Trojan, PbA)
 www                   http://www.ume.maine.edu/solar

 Vehicle Number        24
 Vehicle Name          to be named
 Category              USDOE HYBRID CATEGORY
 Team Name             Cornell University HEV Team
 Organization          Cornell University
 Town                  Ithaca
 State                 NY
 Description           Chevrolet Blazer (Hawker PbA + gasoline)
 www                   http://www.ee.cornell.edu/~hev

 Vehicle Number        25
 Vehicle Name          Ovonic Prius
 Category              USDOE HYBRID CATEGORY
 Team Name             Ovonic Battery Co. 
 Organization          Ovonic Battery Company
 Town                  Troy
 State                 MI
 Description           Toyota Prius conversion  (Ovonic NMH +
 www                   http://www.ovonic.com

 Vehicle Number        30
 Vehicle Name          Caballito Electric
 Category              PRODUCTION CATEGORY
 Team Name             Team Caballito Electric
 Organization          Personal Electric Transports, Inc. 
 Town                  Kailua
 State                 HI
 Description           Purpose-built  Scooter (Long, PbA)
 www                   http://www.evpet.com

 Vehicle Number        35
 Vehicle Name          C.A.T.S. (Clean Air to Spare)
 Category              PRODUCTION CATEGORY
 Team Name             DEC "Team Air C.A.T.S."
 Organization          NYSDEC
 Town                  Albany
 State                 NY
 Description           Solectria Force (sedan, PbA)
 www                   http://www.dec.state.ny.us

 Vehicle Number        41
 Vehicle Name          Solectria CitiVan
 Category              PRODUCTION CATEGORY
 Team Name             NY Power Authority
 Organization          New York Power Authority
 Town                  New York
 State                 NY
 Description           Solectria Citivan (East Penn, PbA)
 www                   http://www.nypa.gov

 Vehicle Number        58
 Vehicle Name          N.F.A Sol Machine II
 Category              ONE PERSON CATEGORY
 Team Name             Team Newburgh, NY USA
 Organization          N.F.A Sol Machine
 Town                  Newburgh
 State                 NY
 Description           Purpose-built (PM Batteries, PbA)
 www                   http://www.solmachine.org

 Vehicle Number        67
 Vehicle Name          Solectria NiCad Force
 Category              PRODUCTION CATEGORY
 Team Name             Connecticut Partnership
 Organization          Rideshare Company (The)
 Town                  Windsor
 State                 CT
 Description           1995 Solectria Force (SAFT, NiCad)
 www                   http://www.rideshare.com/ev

 Vehicle Number        76
 Vehicle Name          Ovonic Force
 Category              PRODUCTION CATEGORY
 Team Name             Ovonic Battery Co. 
 Organization          Ovonic Battery Company
 Town                  Troy
 State                 MI
 Description           Ovonic Force  (Ovonic, NiMH)
 www                   http://www.ovonic.com


Report #8: More Web Sites: Solar Tiger II

From: Pete Hatton <phatton@stny.rr.com> Subject: #37 UEHS Solar Tiger website

   UEHS Solar Tiger #37 also has a web site http://solartiger.dhs.org. 
We plan on having updates on our site during the TdS. We will have an onboard computer during the tour logging data from the E-Meter.  Examples of this can be seen at
	http://solartiger.dhs.org/solar2/data_collection.html
We also have a nearly complete photo album of last year's tour showing all but 6 vehicles. 
    We have made several improvements to our vehicle during the last
year.  The most important is replacing our charger which gave out on us during the first night of last years Tour de Sol.  We have also redone our steering/suspension system to improve handling.  The car is actually ready for driving now so we will be able to put a few miles on it before the tour to test it.  In previous years we only had about a week before the tour for testing.  From our short drives we have already done we estimate that we should easily be able to go 60 miles, much better than our longest run at last years tour of only 30 miles. 

 Vehicle Number   37
 Vehicle Name     Solar Tiger II
 Category         COMMUTER CATEGORY
 Team Name        UEHS Solar Tiger
 Organization     Union-Endicott High School
 Town             Endicott
 State            NY
 Description      Modified Sebring-Autocycle Zzipper (Trojan PbA)
 www              http://solartiger.dhs.org

    Pete Hatton
        Technical Advisor
            UEHS Solar Tiger
                http://solartiger.dhs.org


Report #9: The Magic of the Gathering

I have a fond memory from when I was about 10 years old in 1958.  My family was in Atlantic City NJ and there was a Car of the Future on display; I think it was by GM.  I was pushed up against the velvet rope, firing questions at the guy explaining it, and he was dipping into my popcorn, giving me discounts on my purchase of the car for every handful.  Here was a car with electrically powered doors and windows that opened by remote control, low, sleek body lines, air conditioning and all sorts of things that made it seem futuristic.  It would be interesting to compare that car with what has actually happened in the intervening 40 years.  I see some vans now offer wireless remote control of the sliding door, but not of the driver's door as on the car which I'm still waiting for, with my discounts. 

Saturday, on the first day of the gathering of the electric vehicle tribe on the fields of Library Park in Waterbury Connecticut the future is becoming the present.  Some of the future is being created by the corporations who are brining their electric and hybrid electric cars, vans and trucks here.  Toyota, DaimlerChrysler, Ford, and Nissan are expected to be here.  We are expecting teams from small companies from as far away as Hawaii and Singapore, colleges and high schools as far away as Washington state, Arizona and Michigan, and a middle school (4th through 8th grades) from Vermont. 

We expect vehicles that use lead-acid, nickel-cadmimum, nickel metal hydride and lithium-ion batteries.  We expect hybrids that burn gasoline, reformulated gasoline (RFG), compressed natural gas (CNG, aka methane), and liquid petroleum gas (LPG, aka propane), and a hybrid that doesn't burn (but does oxidize) hydrogen.  We expect cars, trucks, vans, and motor scooters.  And a visit (in Hartford and Albany) from a hybrid bus.  We expect conversions of gasoline vehicles and things built from the ground up.  We expect teams defending past titles, and teams trying to take them from themselves.  We'll reacquaint ourselves with old friends and make new ones. 

Some come along to Waterbury if you can, or anywhere along the route, and see the future being built before your eyes.  For those unable to visit the tour, these Reports will be your eyes and ears. 

From the Drivers' Manual:

Saturday, May 22

  Waterbury CT - Library Park and Grand Street
  "Transportation: Past, Present, & Future Festival"
        Entertainment, Food, Exhibits
  Display and Technical Testing:        10 am -  6 pm
  Junior Solar Sprint Competition:      11 am

Sunday, May 23

  Waterbury CT - Library Park and Grand Street
  "Transportation: Past, Present, & Future Festival"
        Entertainment, Food, Exhibits
  Display and Technical Testing:        10 am -  5 pm
  Junior Solar Sprint Competition:      11 am

Monday, May 24

  Waterbury CT - Library Park and Grand Street
  Tour de Sol Display                    8 am - 10 am
  Tour de Sol Starting Ceremony          9:30 am
  Route to Hartford CT:
        Route 322E through
                Marion CT
                Southington CT
        Route 10N to
        Route 364E through
                Berlin CT
        Route 71N to
        Route 71A North through
                Kensington CT
        Route 7N through
                Newington CT
                West Hartford CT
        Route 173S
        (32 miles)

  Hartford CT - Bushnell Park
  Electric Shuttle Bus from Capital Building
  Food, Exhibits
  Tour de Sol Display                   11:30 am - 3:30 pm
  Media Event                           (to be announced)
  Route to Torrington CT:
        Route 4W through
                West Hartford CT
                Farmington CT
                Unionville CT
                Burlington CT
                Harwinton CT
        (29 miles)

Tuesday, May 25

  Torrington CT - Torrington High School
  Tour de Sol Display                   7:30 am - 10 am
  Route to Pittsfield MA:
        Route 4W through
                Goshen CT
        Route 63 N through
                Cornwall CT
                Huntsville CT
        Route 7N through
                Canaan CT
                Great Barrington MA
                Stockbridge MA
                Lee MA
                Lenox MA
        (55 miles)

  Pittsfield MA - Pittsfield Town Common
  Junior Solar Sprint                   10 am
  Food, Exhibits, Entertainment
  Tour de Sol Display                   11:15 am - 4 pm
  Media Event                           (to be announced)
  Route to New Lebanon NY
        Route 20W through
                Hancock MA
        (14 miles)

Wednesday, May 26

  New Lebanon NY - Lebanon Valley Dragway
  Acceleration Tests (Not Open To Public)
  Route to Albany NY
        Route 20W through
                Brainard NY
                Nassau NY
                Schodack NY
                East Greenbush NY
        (37 miles)

  Albany NY - Empire State Plaza
  Food, Exhibits
  Tour de Sol Display                   11 am - 3:30 pm
  Route to Shaker High School
        Route 9
        (4 miles)

Thursday, May 27

  Latham NY - Shaker Jr High School
  Display for Colonie District Schools   7:45 am - 10 am
  Route to Saratoga Springs NY:
        Route 9N through
                Watervliet NY
                Latham NY
                Cohoes NY
        Route 9R N to
        Route 470N to
        Route 32N through
                Waterford NY
        Route 4N (along the Hudson River) through
                Halfmoon NY
                Mechanicville NY
                Stillwater NY
        Route 423N to
        Route 8P N to
        Route 9N
        (37 miles)

  Saratoga Springs NY - Congress Park
  Tour de Sol Display                   11:30 am - 6:30 pm
  Media Event                            1:30 pm
  Range Event                            1:30 pm - 6:00 pm

Friday, May 28

  Saratoga Springs NY - location to be announced
  Tour de Sol Display                   to be announced
  Route to Lake George NY
        Route 9N through
                Wilton NY
                Moreau NY
                Glens Falls NY
                Queensbury NY
        (28 miles)

  Lake George NY - Fort William Henry
  Tour de Sol Display                   10:30 am - 4 pm
  Autocross Event                        1:30 pm - 3:30 pm
        run by The Mohawk-Hudson Region
        Sports Car Club of America


Report #10: Nissan Altra EV

A number of vehicles are coming to the NESEA Tour as demonstration vehicles.  While they will not be competing, they will be on display at all the public events. 

Nissan North America, Gardena CA, has brought a 1998 Nissan Altra EV.  This is the first EV in the NESEA to run on lithium-ion (Li-ion) batteries, which are light weight and energy efficient.  The Altra EV claims a useful driving range of 80 to 100 miles per charge. 

I spoke with Rick Rienhard of Nissan Research and Development.  "It uses the Sony lithium ion batteries with the cobolt metallic.  This is the 30th vehicle produced, the last of the demo fleet." They are leased to employees and some public utility companies.  In 2000, they'll build 100 more and lease those through municipalities and some employees.  These cars are used to collect data on how they are driven and operate. 

During the design process for the Altra, they designed for alternative fuel applications.  So this chassis and body is used for the Altra and a Japanese market car with a 4 cylinder gasoline motor. 

A demonstration fleet of hybrid cars is just being started in Japan.  There will be 20 vehicles which will be driven a half a million miles during the program.  Rick thought they are called a "Tino". 


Report #11: The Electric Bull

The returning champion from Phoenix Arizona is the `Electric Bull', a Porsche 914 gone electric.  Having won first place in the Commuter Category in the 1998 NESEA Tour, they went home and won a first in the first Tour de AZ (Arizona). 

 Vehicle Number        32
 Vehicle Name          Electric Bull
 Category              US DOE Commuter Category
 Organization          Shadow Mountain High School Electric Car Club
 Team Name             Shadow Mtn.  Electric Matadors
 Program Name          Shadow Mtn.  Electric Matadors
 Town                  Phoenix
 State                 AZ
 Description           Porsche 914 (Trojan, PbA)
 new this year?        returning car and team
 No People in Project  13
 Months to Build       1 1/2
 Motor                 Advance DC; 9.5"; 21kw cont./63kw peak
 Batteries             Trojan/1300 lbs.; PbA; 21,000 wh/120 v
 Controller            Curtis; 500 Amp
 Charger Offboard      Home-built; Transformer; Rectifier
 PV Array type amount  5.1 w; Siemens; Monocrystalline
 Construction          1972 Porsche 914; Steel Frame; Steel Body
 Conversion            1972 Porsche 914
 Dimensions LxWxH      7' 9"; 4' 6"; 3' 5"
 No of Passengers      2
 Maximum Speed mph     75
 Range miles           90
 Weight pounds         3000
 Mfg GVW               2800
 Capacity pounds       400
 Brakes                Front Disc ; Rear Disc; Non-regen
 Wheels Tires          4 Michelin; Proxima
 Program blurb
                       The Shadow Mountain Electric Bull was built
                       by the students in the club with the help of
                       our advisor Michael Golden.  We have a
                       Porsche 914 that has an advanced DC 9.1 motor
                       that is powered by 20 Trojan PbA batteries. 
                       We also have a Curtis 550 amp controller. 
                       Shadow Mountain took first place in the
                       Commuter Category at the 1998 NESEA American
                       Tour de Sol. 

When I asked Michael Golden what his students have done to improve the car for the 1999 NESEA Tour, he said they added fender skirts, made some other aerodynamic changes and bought new low rolling resistance tires. 

The Tour de AZ proved a good testing ground for the `Electric Bull' improvements.  It has rules very similar to the NESEA Tour.  "It ran smooth; it ran just like this event.  We had two days of range events, which I really liked, instead of just one day.  We even had a good rain day." (Last year's Tour de Sol was very, very, very wet.) They finished up at the a big merchant's association spring street fair and had 75,000 people there.  (To get in touch with the Tour de AZ, call Michael Golden at 602-524-7699 or Jesse James or 602-968-8068)

The prize for winning the Tour de AZ was a paid entry fee to the NESEA Tour de Sol, but `Electric Bull' already had one for winning in the 1998 NESEA Tour.  So they donated their entry to the Palo Verde team, #40 `PV EV'. 


Report #12: NJ Venturer: First Fuel Cell Car in American Tour de Sol

In last year's NESEA Tour, the first fuel-cell powered hybrid vehicle was entered, but it didn't come from any of the expected sources nor in the expected form.  It was a hybrid fuel-cell/battery/human tricycle entered by Mount Everett Regional High School in Sheffield MA.  Yes! A High School!

Well, this year the first fuel-cell powered _car_ to show up is from a consortium of state government, industry and educational institutions. 

 Vehicle Number        9
 Vehicle Name          New Jersey Venturer
 Category              USDOE HYBRID CATEGORY
 Organization          Project New Jersey Venture
 Team Name             Team New Jersey
 Town                  Trenton
 State                 NJ
 Description           Solectria Force (SAFT NiCad + H2 Fuel Cell)
 new this year?        returning car and team
 No People in Project  200
 Months to Build       6
 Motor                 Solectria; AC Induction; 24kw cont./42 kw pk
 Batteries             27 SAFT/700 lbs.; NiCad; 15,600 wh/156 v series
 Controller            Solectria; AC Inverter
 Fuel Cell             H-Power, 5 kWatt, 125 pounds, 12" x 10" x 10"
 Charger Offboard      Neocon; K&W high frequency charger
 PV Array type amount  18 w; Solarex; Polycrystalline
 Construction          1996 Geo Metro; Steel Frame; Steel Body
 Dimensions LxWxH      13' 6"; 5' 8"; 4' 6"
 Hybrid                H Power Fuel Cell; 5kw-Hydrogen
 No of Passengers      2
 Maximum Speed mph     60 mph
 Range miles           400
 Weight pounds         2700
 Mfg GVW               2755
 Capacity pounds       400
 Brakes                Front Disc; Rear Drum; Regen
 Wheels Tires          4 Goodyear
 www                   http://www.civeng.rutgers.edu/venturer/
 Program blurb
                       The NJ Venturer, is a NJ state-owned
                       Solectria Force electric vehicle equipped
                       with a fuel cell Power Generator.  The
                       project team chose the Force, which is based
                       on a GeoMetro, because it is a safe, reliable
                       and energy efficient four-door car.  The
                       Force includes an AC motor/controller, drive
                       system, regenerative braking system and a
                       battery thermal management system.  To
                       minimize costs and help pave the way for fuel
                       cell commercialization, a five kilowatt fuel
                       cell was chosen as a "range extender."  The
                       vehicle will be equipped with advanced nickel
                       cadmium batteries and 12 hydrogen bottles
                       that will take the NJ Venturer over 400 miles
                       at 45 mph. 

The web site has lots of pictures.  It will also have daily updates from the Tour there. 

The following is largely lifted from their web site and press reports ... 

The vehicle concept was introduced by the NJ Department of Transportation's Technology Bureau.  Consortium partners include NJ based technology firms with fuel cell, electronic integration and energy supply system expertise:

        H Power Corporation                     (fuel cells)
        MG Industries                           (gas supply)
        Advanced Power Associates               (power conversion)
        Neocon Technologies                     (system integrator)
        Fully Independent Residential Solar Technologies
                                                (energy systems)
        NWL Corporation                         (power supply systems)
        Diversatech                             (metal fabrication)

Wenzel & Company of Pennington, NJ will furnish communications and marketing support. 

Rutgers University's Center for Advanced Infrastructure Technology (CAIT) will provide technical and administrative support.  Other institutional partners include:

        Rowan University
        Burlington County College (BCC)
        New Jersey Institute of Technology (NJIT)
        Cinnaminson High School
        Hunterdon County Polytech
        Hunterdon Central High School

University and school involvement is a very important part of Project Venturer.  Students will receive classroom and "real world" experience.  The education curriculum will include fuel cell and system introduction, system management, system diagnostics, aerodynamic modeling, thermal dynamics, fluid mechanics, control system design, component assembly/testing and integration. 

From interviews ... 

Mike Strizki first proposed the Venturer project 7 months ago, and has been working his tail off to make it happen ever since.  Getting funding, sponsorships, partnerships, logistics, and the actual work on the car done has consumed the man.  "I've donated about 3000 hours to this project in the past 7 months.  I got about 3 hours sleep in the past 5 days."

Is the car running? "We drove it last night (Friday, 21 May).  We had some stupid problems that would drive you crazy.  We fired up the fuel cell last night and couldn't get any hydrogen pressure.  7 hours later we determined we had too much `in' pressure on the solenoid valve.  All we had to do was turn down the pressure and the value was working fine again.  We had the car up to 70 miles per hour last night on I84; it performed very well."

There a number of different voltage systems in the car.  There's 12 Volts, 24 Volts, 38 Volts and 190 Volts in separate subsystems.  A `buck' converter boosts the 38 Volts output from the fuel cell up to the 190 Volts of the NiCad battery pack, acting as a charger. 

In addition the the traction system, they have made a number of structural changes.  The center of gravity is now lower.  Sway bars front and rear help stability, and an active air suspension in addition to the coil springs compensates for body roll in the curves and lets them adjust the riding height.  They will use different levels when they run in the autocross and when they do their acceleration tests. 

The fuel cell is under the front hood of the Geo, below the controller.  "The fuel cell system, with tanks and everything, weighs a little over 300 pounds.  The composite carbon fiber hydrogen tanks only weigh 9 pounds apiece." A fuel cell is totally quiet, but the air compressor made a bit of noise.  They managed to tone it down considerably by putting a filter over the inlet. 

They designed a water recovery system for the fuel cell.  The air going in the fuel cell should be humid for maximum efficiency.  Originally they carried 10 gallons of water to satisfy that need.  But the "exhaust" from the fuel cell is pure water and steam.  So their recovery system catches that, reduces the steam to water and stores it in the window washer tank.  From their it is pumped back up to the main reservoir.  (I hope no one puts window cleaner in the window washer tank!)

The team here for the NESEA Tour numbers 50 people, I'm told, between students, the technology companies, and NJ state.  The team from Cinnaminson High School, #16 `The Olympian', are also part of Team New Jersey, so there are a lot of identical T-shirts here.  Mike says that they will have a number of volunteers helping NESEA with Tour logistics. 


Report #13: ParaDyne

Last year this team from Oklahoma showed up with parallel hybrid that proved to be quite successful taking 2nd place in the hybrid category. 

 Vehicle Number        7
 Vehicle Name          ParaDyne
 Category              USDOE HYBRID CATEGORY
 Organization          University of Tulsa
 Team Name             Hurricane Motorworks
 Town                  Tulsa
 State                 OK
 Description           1992 GeoMetro (Concord PbA + gasoline)
 new this year?        returning car and team
 No People in Project  25
 Motor                 Solectria ACgtx20; 144AC Inductor; 12kW
                       cont./22kW peak
 Batteries             Concord/416 lbs.; PbA; 6,000 Wh/144 V series
 Controller            Solectria AC-320/Z-world; Vector Inverter
 Charger               Zivan N63; high frequency solid state
 PV Array type amount  10.3 W; United Solar; Amorphous silicon
 Construction          1992 GeoMetro; Steel Frame; Steel Body
 Dimensions LxWxH      12' 2"; 5' 1"; 4' 5"
 Hybrid                Suzuki; 3 cyl-1.0L/parallel; gasoline/55mpg
 No of Passengers      4
 Maximum Speed mph     85
 Range miles           ???
 Weight pounds         2300
 Capacity pounds       1000
 Brakes                Front Disc; Rear Drum; Regen
 Wheels Tires          4 Goodyear Eagle GA; P185/65R14
 Program blurb
                       The TU ParaDyne is a parallel-hybrid vehicle
                       based on a converted 1992 Geo Metro with a
                       1.0 liter engine and a 22kW electric motor. 
                       The University of Tulsa's team consists of
                       20 undergraduate mechanical and electrical
                       engineers, one graduate student, and three
                       faculty advisors. 

Matthew Norris told me about this year's improvements.  "Last year we didn't have a braking system in EV mode.  So we installed a vacuum system for that.  We have an after-market ignition system we are testing for a company, that improved our fuel economy quite a bit.  Highway mileage alone, on just the engine, is a little over 60 miles per gallon." They haven't tried to get numbers as a hybrid, "so this is going to be the first real test of the whole shebang. 

Under the hood, the engine and the electric motor share the same automatic transmission.  The engine is pushed back from the transmission housing by about a housing about 2.5 inches wide.  It contains a toothed belt on an overrunning Dana sprague (spelling?) clutch.  The clutch uses a series of interconnected cams around the shaft to engage and release the clutch.  This is more stable than with a roller clutch. 

The car is about 300 pounds lighter than last year, mostly due to new batteries that are a bit lighter. 

Between Tour de Sols, the car is displayed to the public and Tulsa area schools.  They have had Brownies Days at school and there have been two hundred brownies climbing in and out of the car.  "They are starting a big technology development effort in the state of Oklahoma, funded by the state government.  I'm sure this will take part in that."

Inside, the control system is still manual, although there is an effort to make it much more automatic with a digital control system.  "If you just press the start button, you can drive away in hybrid mode.  All those other switches and dials are for adjusting parameters, but you can just push the start button and go." If you want to switch to pure electric mode, just turn off the switch labeled "Ignition".  Since there is an automatic transmission, the motor runs at an idle speed when the car is in pure electric mode, to keep the torque converter pumped up. 

John Henshaw, who teaches mechanical engineering at University of Tulsa, told me he likes the hands on nature of these projects.  "We have built hybrid electric vehicles for about seven years.  We did the three years of the first HEV Challenge.  Then we were out for two years, and now this is our second American Tour de Sol."

They are already working on the car they hope to bring next year.  Called the Inferno HEV, it should meet the Partnership for New Generation of Vehicles specifications. 

There is a brass plaque on the passenger door that says, "In Memory of Erin T. White, 1995 - 1997, TU HEV Team".  She was a member of the team that died of cancer. 


Report #14: Solar Bolt

The NESEA Tour has always had some pleasant surprises.  Back in 1995, when the Bolton High School Team was last with us, they were surprising people by performing on par with the professional entries.  At the end of the day, they had a lead-acid battery range of 143 miles per charge, and a low Watt-hours/mile number to match.  You should have seen kids' faces light up when told that a high school team was giving the corporate teams a run for their money!

We have not seen them in 4 years, but they are back with the same car, but with a few improvements, "to try and hold our record and beat it."

 Vehicle Number        61
 Vehicle Name          Solar Bolt
 Category              COMMUTER CATEGORY
 Organization          Bolton High School
 Team Name             Solar Bolt Team
 Town                  Bolton
 State                 CT
 Description           1974 Fiat X19 (Trojan, PbA)
 new this year?        returning team after 4 years absence
 No People in Project  50
 Months to Build       1 year
 Motor                 Advanced DC; FB1-4001
 Batteries             Trojan 145/1450 lbs.; PbA;
                       22,000 Wh/120 V series
 Controller            Curtis; 1231C-8601
 Charger Offboard      Solar CarCorp; AAE120-150RIBL
 PV Array type amount  11; Uni-solar; Amorphous
 Construction          Fiat; Steel Frame; Steel Body
 Dimensions LxWxH      12' 0";  5' 4";  4' 0"
 No of Passengers      2
 Maximum Speed mph     75
 Range miles           142
 Weight pounds         2892
 Mfg GVW               2892
 Capacity pounds       400
 Brakes                Front Disc; Rear Disc; Non-regen
 Wheels Tires          4 Bridgestone; P145/80R13
 Program blurb
                       The Solar Bolt  Team of Bolton H. S. began in
                       May 1992 with two donated Fiats.  Lead by
                       Roger Titus, the Industrial Technology
                       teacher, and Tino Bertolini, the curriculum
                       coordinator, the team researched the various
                       aspects of the car, including the tires,
                       motor, and battery selection.  A new
                       aerodynamic exterior was also designed.  A
                       core group of about 25 students and teachers
                       worked throughout the year on the project. 
                       Support from various departments and from
                       the local community has been essential to the
                       success of the project. 

They have a new controller, with a 9 inch fan over it to cool it down.  The solar panel on the back of the car run a pair of small cooling fans that blow towards the driver and passenger.  "We keep our windows closed for aerodynamic purposes and its like you're baking in an oven." The interior is all done in black. 

Major work went into updating the car for this year.  The battery boxes were redone, as was the wiring, the brakes and master cylinder. 

The secret to the Solar Bolt's range record was a fanatical attention to the details of achieving low aerodynamic drag and low friction.  The car has an air dam at the front that diverts the relative wind around the car instead of under it.  Moon disc hub caps continue the air flow down the side of the car.  A long faring from the top of the roof line to the rear keeps the flow over the top of the car smooth.  And turning the brake callipers pistons, making them perfectly round so they fully retract when not braking, ensure that the brake pads down rub on the rotors except when actually braking.  The resulting lower loss of energy to drag and friction showed up in the efficiency performance of the car. 

The car went to the annual EV race held in Arizona last March.  There they took a first in range and a second in acceleration.  Which brings up something I noticed with several of the cars that go to the Arizona Electric Races; they tend to not have on-board chargers.  Instead they keep their chargers in the pits, which makes sense if the car's mission is to as fast as possible to get right back to where it started.  Since the American Tour de Sol is a road rally from hither to yon, most other vehicles have their chargers on board. 

There are a couple of personal thanks among the corporate logo decals on the car.  One is to Mrs. Ruth Grose, who donated a considerable amount of money when the car was first built, and another is by Beverly Koerner in memory of Valentino Bertolini, who work on the the original car and died in 1997. 


Report #15: Sunpacer

Jason Peckham, Travis Smith Art Bratt, Kristen Lunkenheimer are with Sunpacer, a perennial entrant in the American Tour de Sol.  This is a solar racing car from the old school, with a large photovoltaic panel mounted on a sloped back and a rounded front.  It looks like a very large door stop edge on three wheels; two in front and one in the back under the trailing thin edge.  It hasn't changed much over the years in general appearance, but every year it does get some improvements.  "We work on it all year getting it ready for this." This year there is new plastic in the windshield and "we worked on getting the brakes working a bit better."

Kristen is the driver this year, and she has a little over 100 miles of experience with the car. 

 Vehicle Number        92
 Vehicle Name          Sunpacer
 Category              ONE PERSON CATEGORY
 Organization          Cato-Meridian Sunpacer Tech Team
 Team Name             C-M Sunpacer Tech Team
 Town                  Cato
 State                 NY
 Description           Purpose-built (Deka Dominator, PbA)
 new this year?        returning car and team
 No People in Project  5
 Months to Build       18
 Motor                 Advanced D.C.; 6hp; 6kW cont./8.5kW peak
 Batteries             6 Deka/480 lbs.; PbA; 6,000 Wh/36 V Series
 Controller            Seveon; Solid State
 Charger Offboard      Marquette; Transformer/ Rectifier
 PV Array type amount  300 W; Hoxan; Monocrystalline
 Construction          Purpose-built; Steel tubing Frame;
                       Aluminum Body
 Dimensions LxWxH      15' 6"; 4' 10"; 3' 6"
 No of Passengers      1
 Maximum Speed mph     45
 Range miles           75
 Weight pounds         1080
 Capacity pounds       250
 Brakes                Front Disc; Rear Disc; Non-regen
 Wheels Tires          4 Motorcycle wheels; 2.5" X 17"
 Program blurb
                       The Sunpacer has been an ongoing
                       engineering activity for Earl Billing's
                       high school technology students at Cato-
                       Meridian High School.  Sunpacer has been
                       in the NESEA Tour for 7 straight years in
                       the 1-person commuter class and has
                       finished first in 1992, 95, 96, 97 and 98. 
                       This year's team has three members
                       returning from last year's squad: Art
                       Bratt, Crew Chief, and driver Travis
                       Smith.  Joining Travis as a driver this
                       year is Kristen Lunkenheimer.  Jason
                       Peckham is in his 2nd year as navigator. 


Report #16: Toyota RAV4-EV and Prius

Toyota Motor Sales has been a major participant in the NESEA Tour for several years now, and is one of the Silver Sponsors of the 1999 event.  This year they are bringing along students from North Torrance High School, near their corporate headquarters.  Matt Ash, Daryl Ryan, and Lisa Garcia were picked by their principal to be the drivers of the RAV4-EV. 

 Vehicle Number        27
 Vehicle Name          RAV4-EV
 Category              PRODUCTION CATEGORY
 Organization          Toyota Motor Sales, U.S.A, Inc. 
 Team Name             Toyota & North Torrance H.S. 
 Town                  Torrance
 State                 CA
 Description           RAV4-EV (Panasonic, NiMH)
 new this year?        returning car, new team
 Motor                 Toyota; Permanent Magnet
 Batteries             Panasonic/992 lbs.; NiMH; 28,224wh/288 v
 Controller            Toyota
 Charger               Toyota
 Charger Offboard      SCI
 PV Array type amount  none
 Construction          Toyota Rav4; Steel Frame; Steel Body
 Dimensions LxWxH      13' 0"; 5' 7"; 5' 6"
 No of Passengers      5
 Maximum Speed mph     79
 Range miles           126
 Weight pounds         3373
 Capacity pounds       827
 Brakes                Front Disc; Rear Drum; Regen
 Wheels Tires          4 Yokohama; 195/80R16
 Program blurb
                       Toyota has teamed up with high school
                       students in California to make their
                       educational, not only to the spectators,
                       but also to the many students that will
                       be involved.  The students will
                       demonstrate that "anyone" can drive the
                       RAV4-EV, the only electric sport utility
                       vehicle on the market.  The RAV4-EV has
                       a driving range of over 100 miles on a
                       charge. 

I asked if they were involved in some sort of technology program that made them a natural for this? "No.  We're just outstanding students," said Lisa.  "Well, Matt is." He works a lot with computers and such. 

They are only driving the RAV4-EV in the Tour de Sol, but they have had an opportunity to drive the Prius also.  Daryl said, "It's a bit complicated because the steering wheel is on the right side (because it is set up as a Japanese car), which means the blinker is on the right side which means every time we signal to turn we turn the the windshield wiper on." Lisa also found that driving on the right made it difficult to judge her position on the road. 

But they won't be driving the Prius.  They'll handle the RAV4-EV, which is left hand drive, and also has you sitting high, looking out over the world.  "Look for us to come out on top!" said Daryl. 

Jeremy Barnes from Toyota was also there, and we spoke a bit about how the RAV4-EV is doing in the American fleet market place.  "For calendar year 1998, it was the best selling EV in the nation." 358 vehicles were leased.  It is available for sale at $42,000, or a single pay lease of $16,000 for 3 years, or $457 per month.  "Every customer we have has chosen to lease it.  For most fleet operations, leasing is preferable to leasing to purchasing.  They don't want to get stuck with product down the road that they cannot use or maintain when the technology changes." Toyota was also the first manufacturer to meet the Memorandum of Agreement with the state of California to build 322 EVs.  "We have over 375 on the road in California right now." Production, which was running at 1.5 vehicles a day, is ramping down as Prius production is ramping up. 

The Prius will serve again as the Pace Car for the NESEA Tour. 

 Vehicle Name          Prius
 Category              DEMONSTRATION CATEGORY
 Organization          Toyota Motor Sales, U.S.A, Inc. 
 Team Name             Toyota & North Torrance H.S. 
 Town                  Torrance
 State                 CA
 Description           Prius (Panasonic, NiMH + gasoline)
 Motor                 Toyota; Permanent Magnet; 30 kW peak
 Batteries             Panasonic/330 lbs.; NiMH; 6,000 Wh/288 V
 Controller            Toyota
 Construction          Toyota Prius; Steel Frame; Steel Body
 Dimensions LxWxH      10' 0'; 4' 0"; 3' 5"
 Hybrid                Toyota 1.5 liter; parallel; gasoline
 No of Passengers      5
 Maximum Speed mph     95
 Range miles           450
 Weight pounds         3000
 Capacity pounds       1200
 Brakes                Front Disc; Rear Drum; Regen

"As we said in the past, battery electrics are probably never going to be a mainstream consumer product.  Consumers are unwilling to put up with the trade offs of battery electrics: the range, the cost, the recharge time, the lost of that `freedom'.  Hybrids give you all of that and more." Prius should prove to be clean running, quiet, very efficient, and refueling anywhere with 87 octane gasoline.  It should go on sale throughout the United States in about a year. 


Report #17: Acceleration Test Results

As of Monday afternoon, 24 May, the Acceleration Test was the only official test result from the tests performed on Saturday and Sunday.  It was used to establish the Pole Positions for the start in Waterbury CT.  The rest of the test results will be ready on Tuesday morning. 

 C  Commuter Category
 H  Hybrid Category
 O  One Person Category
 P  Production Category
 S  Solar Commuter Category

                                                                      Accel
vehicle team veh # cat (sec) ___________________________________________________________________________ Kilowatt Kamel Spartan EV Racing Team 17 C 3.75 Sungo SEV of NHTI 72 C 3.76 Ford Ranger EV EV Rangers 26 P 3.78 Viking 23 Team Viking 23 23 H 3.84 Electrifly Enviromotive 13 C 3.89 PV EV Palo Verde Electric Racing 71 C 3.90 Nordic Challenger Evermont/Solectria 15 P 4.07 Solar Bolt Solar Bolt Team 61 C 4.10 Sol Survivor IV Monadnock Sol Survivor 83 S 4.12 Epic DaimlerChrysler 52 P 4.20 Epic DaimlerChrysler 51 P 4.28 Recharger U New Haven 66 C 4.30 Paradyne Hurricane Motor Works 7 H 4.35 CATS NYSDEC 35 P 4.37 Sparky Spartan Spartan EV Racing Team 50 C 4.45 ERIDE ERAD 6 C 4.47 Electric Bull Shadow Mtn Electric Matadors 32 C 4.63 Futura EVs GFR Technologies 36 O 4.66 MooRocco Vermont Technical College 12 C 4.70 Ovonic Solectria Force Ovonic Battery Co 76 P 4.75 The Olympian Pirates 16 C 4.84 Solectria NiCad Force CT Partnership 67 P 4.91 UEHS Solar Tiger Solar Tiger Team 37 C 4.97 RAV4 EV Toyota, North Torrance HS 27 P 5.00 Solar Black Bear UMaine Solar Vehicle Team 20 S 5.00 Caballito Electric Person Elec.  Trans 30 P 5.03 HEV Blazer Cornell University HEV Team 24 H 5.18 Helios the Heron VI Riverside School 93 S 5.20 Sunergy Ethel Walker 10 P 5.26 Slipstream Cornell University HEV Team 14 H 5.40 NJ Venturer Team New Jersey 9 H 5.47 Electric Lion Penn State SAE HEV Team 8 H 5.60 Kineticar III CSERT-NVCTC 18 H 5.70 Artemis BHS FAMS'00 38 S 6.00 Solectria CitiVan NYPA 41 P 6.10 Solectria SuperForce Team New England 11 C 6.25 NFA Sol Machine II Team Newburgh 58 O 7.00 Sunpacer C-M Sunpacer Tech Team 92 O 7.25 Electric scooter GFR Technologies 39 O 7.33


Report #18: C.A.T.S. (Clean Air To Spare)

 Vehicle Number        35
 Vehicle Name          C.A.T.S. (Clean Air to Spare)
 Category              PRODUCTION CATEGORY
 Organization          NYSDEC
 Team Name             DEC "Team Air C.A.T.S."
 Town                  Albany
 State                 NY
 Description           Solectria Force (sedan, PbA)
 www                   www.dec.state.ny.us
 No People in Project  6
 Motor                 Solectria; AC Induction; 35kW cont. 
 Batteries             Solectria/690 lbs.; PbA; 3800 Wh/156 V series
 Controller            Solectria
 Charger               Solectria; BC3300; high frequency/solid state
 Construction          Geo Metro; Steel Frame; Steel Body
 Dimensions LxWxH      13' 6"; 5' 8"; 4' 6"
 No of Passengers      4
 Maximum Speed mph     70
 Range miles           50
 Weight pounds         2460
 Mfg GVW               2756
 Capacity pounds       750
 Brakes                Front Disc; Rear Drum; Regen
 Wheels Tires          4 Goodyear; Invicta P165/70R13
 Program blurb
                       The New York State Department of
                       Environmental Conservation(NYSDEC) is a
                       first time Tour de Sol entrant.  The
                       Department has actively supported
                       advancements in alternative fuel technology
                       as an effective way to reduce Air Pollution. 
                       NYSDEC is leading NY State agencies in their
                       efforts to upgrade the NY State fleets to
                       include vehicles that employ alternative
                       fuel options.  The DEC Team "Air C.A.T.S."
                       has selected an electric fleet pool vehicle
                       using Lead-Acid Batteries for this year's
                       Production Category competition
                       demonstration. 

I asked Lawerance D'Arco of the New York Division of Air Resources why they had a car in the American Tour de Sol.  "We have had 10 of these Solectrias in our fleet state wide, since the summer of 1998, and 8 electric trucks (Ford Ranger EVs and Chevy S-10 EVs) and they are used just like any other fleet vehicle for state workers to do trips within the range of the vehicles.  They are also part of our promotion of energy efficient and clean vehicles, and there is also the federal mandate that state fleets must purchase a certain percentage of non- gasoline alternative fuel vehicles." They also have vehicles that use Liquid Petroleum Gas (LPG) and Compressed Natural Gas (CNG). 


Report #19: Electrifly

Monte Gisborne takes the prize as the most northernly person to participate in the 1999 NESEA Tour, as he hales from Cannington, Ontario Canada.  He has upgraded the vehicle that has been here twice before with new, nickel cadmium batteries.  In the process the car weighs 700 pounds less. 

 Vehicle Number        13
 Vehicle Name          Electrifly
 Category              COMMUTER CATEGORY
 Organization          Enviromotive
 Team Name             Enviromotive
 Town                  Cannington
 State                 Ont
 Description           Pontiac Firefly (SAFT Ni-Cd)
 new this year?        returning car and team
 Motor                 General Electric; Series Wound; 15kW cont/45kW
                       peak
 Batteries             24 Saft/700 lbs.; NiCd; 12,000 Wh/144 V series
 Controller            General Electric; Model EVT100
 Charger Offboard      Zivan; High frequency
 PV Array type amount  15 W; Innovative Cons.  Prod.; Monocrystalline
 Construction          1991 Pontiac; Steel Frame; Steel Body
 Dimensions LxWxH      7' 5"; 5' 0"; 4' 0"
 No of Passengers      2
 Maximum Speed mph     70
 Range miles           70
 Weight pounds         2400
 Mfg GVW               2400
 Capacity pounds       540
 Brakes                Front Disk; Rear Drum; Non-regen
 Wheels Tires          4 Goodyear; 175/70R13
 Program blurb
                       Often referred to as the Gary Bettenhauser of
                       the NESEA American de Sol, Monte has refused
                       to back down from this annual challenge and
                       retire to the cold climes of Canada.  To
                       guarantee this year's success, Monte and
                       teammates have cooked up a special elixir to
                       increase range. 

The batteries are brand new, so Saft in Scarbourgh Ontario cycled the pack 10 times using their chargers and resister banks. 

Monte has his own company, Enviromotive, and has a project to build a purpose-built EV for the summer of 2000.  Called the Canadian Clean Air Challenge, it will be the first trip of an electric vehicle across Canada, from Vancouver Island British Columbia to St Johns Newfoundland.  Canadian Tire is sponsoring the event and, since there are Canadian Tire stores _everywhere_ in Canada, there will be no problem finding places to stop, display and charge.  He expects to do 200 miles per day in two 100 mile legs.  A fast charger will make the midday stop reasonably short. 

Monte is the President of the Durham Electric Vehicle Association.  "We have a growing EV community in Canada.  There are three electric car associations in Ontario where I live, and there is one in Vancouver on the wet coast, as we call it."

Last year, the Electrifly was a family affair, as Monte's support team was his parents.  They did not come along this year, but they will watch the progress of the Tour via the Internet. 

(And, no, I don't know who Gary Bettenhauser is, but I'm going to find out.)


Report #20: Chrysler Epic

There are three(!) Chrysler Epic electric vans here at the NESEA Tour.  Two are entered in the Production Category (numbers 51 and 52) and one is here as a demonstration vehicle. 

Jennifer Starmann, who works in Chrysler's public relations department, makes the point that these vehicles are aimed at fleets and governments where there is infrastructure to support them.  In fact, as part of the Tour de Sol's visit to Albany NY on Wednesday, 26 May, Chrysler will deliver the first four Epics to New York State for lease.  88 Epics have been sold since 1993. 

 Vehicle Number        51
 Vehicle Name          EPIC minivan
 Category              PRODUCTION CATEGORY
 Organization          DaimlerChrysler Corporation
 Team Name             DaimlerChrysler & LTU
 Town                  Chicago
 State                 IL
 Description           EPIC minivan, (SAFT, NMH)
 No People in Project  85-90
 Motor                 Northrop Grumman; AC Induction; 75kw
                       cont./100kw peak
 Batteries             Saft; NiMH; 31,899 Wh/336 V series
 Controller            Northrop Grumman; AC Induction
 Charger Offboard      Lockheed; Martin
 Construction          DaimlerChrysler; Steel Frame; Steel Body
 Dimensions LxWxH      15' 5"; 6' 4"; 5' 7"
 No of Passengers      2
 Maximum Speed mph     80
 Range miles           80-90
 Weight pounds         4875
 Capacity pounds       925
 Brakes                Front Disc; Rear Drum; Regen
 Wheels Tires          4 Goodyear; P205/75R115
 Program blurb
                       This is the first year that
                       DaimlerChrysler is entering a vehicle in
                       the NESEA Tour - and in fact they are
                       entering two! The EPIC electric minivan
                       is equipped with liquid cooled nickel
                       metal hydride batteries.  It has a
                       certified range of 96 miles with a top
                       speed of 80 MPH, and is being sold in
                       California. 


Report #21: Dodge Interpid ESX2 Concept Car

Craig Rasamen, from DiamlerChrysler, is a Liberty Technician; someone who builds concept vehicles and he helped build the Intrepid ESX2 diesel-electric hybrid which is being displayed at all the display stops during the Tour de Sol.  It is uses a 1.5 liter, 3-cylinder, turbo direct-injected diesel engine combined with a 133 pound lead- acid battery to deliver 70 miles per gallon and 12 second 0-to-60 miles per hour acceleration.  The diesel engine is the main power source, feeding a modified Neon 5 speed transmission and touched automatically by a computer.  The 20 horsepower AC induction motor kicks in for added acceleration and hill climbing. 

An aluminum frame supports a "carbon-fiber body made to simulate plastic panel technology that Chrysler has been working with.  The overall vehicle weight is in the 2300 pound range.  The coefficient of drag is about 0.2." It runs as a fueled car, that is it is never plugged in.  All the electricity needed is generated on board.  This model would have a projected price of $35,000. 

The side-view mirrors are not mirrors.  Instead a pair of tiny cameras are mounted what would be the mount points for regular mirrors, and a small LCD television monitor on the front corner of each door points towards the driver.  "It's not terribly functional right now.  Varying lighting conditions cause the display to wash out.  It's just another trick to get the aerodynamics down.  "A little palmtop computer is linked to the car with an infrared connection.  You can use it through a cellular modem to get real-time traffic information, or vehicle diagnostics, or the service manual.  You can also get readouts from the Heat/Ventilation/Airconditioning subsystem and the radio.  It's not required for the vehicle to run; its something the customer can add."

The vehicle was built as a kind of report car on where Chrysler is in the Partnership for a New Generation of Vehicles (PNGV) federal government program. 


Report #22: Sunergy

Number 10 is called "Sunergy" and is being driven by young women from the Ethyl Walker School, an all girls school teaching grades 7 through 12. 

 Vehicle Number        10
 Vehicle Name          Sunergy
 Category              PRODUCTION CATEGORY
 Organization          Ethel Walker School
 Team Name             The Ethel Walker School
 Town                  Simsbury
 State                 CT
 Description           1992 Solectria Force (Interstate,PbA)
 No People in Project  20
 Months to Build       9
 Motor                 Solectria; AC Induction; 25kW cont./42kW peak
 Batteries             Interstate; Wet PbA; 10 kWh/144 V series
 Controller            Solectria; AMC 325 DC--AC
 Charger               Solectria BC 1000 (x2); Hi-freq./solid state
 PV Array type amount  180 W; Astropower
 Construction          1992 Geo Metro; Steel Frame; Steel Body
 Dimensions LxWxH      9' 0"; 4' 10"; 4' 2"
 No of Passengers      4
 Maximum Speed mph     65
 Range miles           70
 Weight pounds         2570
 Mfg GVW               2450
 Capacity pounds       700
 Brakes                Front Disc; Rear Drum; Regen
 Wheels Tires          4 Bridgestone; P165/65 R13
 Program blurb
                       The Ethel Walker's all female electric car
                       team is made up of 15 students from the
                       Honor's Physics class.  They have been
                       studying electric vehicles as a unifying
                       theme in physics this year and we are hoping
                       they will consider college majors and
                       careers in physics and engineering as a
                       result of their exposure to the exciting
                       world of electric vehicles. 

I spoke with Lesley Northrop, Tammy Baroody, and Liz Herbert. 

A grant from the Charles Edison Foundation allowed them to purchase a used Solectria Force last fall and bring it up to snuff.  A teacher has been using the car when they haven't been working on it.  After the NESEA Tour, the car will be used as one of the fleet they have to take students to doctor appointments. 


Report #23: More on Electric Bull improvements

Lori Hilbert of the Shadow Mountain "Electric Bull" (number 32) told me more about what the did to their Porsche 914.  "We worked on the tension bars, put new springs in the back, and put a new plastic hood on it to reduce weight.  We worked on the aerodynamics by putting a cover in the back."

Weylin Brown explained how they found air turbulence that increases drag.  "We put little pieces of string all over the car and where they fluttered around we deduced that there was turbulence." They created an air dam to block the air flow originally designed to cool the gasoline engine.  Behind the rear window the air created a circular flow designed to dive into the engine compartment behind the seats.  By blocking that grill with a piece of metal they have smoothed the air flow in that area. 

Electric Bull only had to have some minor changes to pass the technical and safety inspections.  "We had to put in another fuse so we have two (traction) fuses.  We had to cover some wires.  We have to put on a sheet that tells about the PV (PhotoVoltaic) array, explaining that it charges the little 12 Volt battery that powers the little energy meter; the E-Meter."


Report #24: Scoring: Winning the American Tour de Sol

The scoring this year is very much different than in years past.  Before there was a system of Tour Miles, where each mile driven was a Tour Mile, and then Tour Miles were added or subtracted to reward certain aspects of the vehicle's and team's performance and subtracted for infractions of the rules.  No more. 

Now a vehicle's and team's performance is measured with a point system that is breaks down as:

  36%   "Greeness"
                20 points       Fuel Economy
                20 points       Greenhouse Gas Emissions
  53%   Performance
                20 points       Reliability
                10 points       Acceleration
                10 points       Handling
                PRODUCTION CATEGORY
                        10 points       Handling
                        10 points       Consumer Acceptability
                SOLAR COMMUTER CATEGORY
                        20 points       Solar Energy Fraction
                Other Categories
                        20 points       Range

  11%   Bonuses
                 1 point        Passed Technical Inspection on 1st Try
                 1 point        Technical Specification Form Completed
                                on Time
                 2.5 points     Team Assistants show up and work
                                during the event
                 2 points       Customer Acceptability (all vehicles)
                 2 points       Engineering Elegance
                 2 points       Educational Display Board and Team
                                Appearance
                 2 points       Low Noise Pollution

And there is a long list of infractions with associated point penalties, ranging from traffic and safety violations, to being caught with a radar detector in a vehicle, to being late for the public displays. 

Not that speed along the course does not enter into the discussion.  Being the first under the FINISH banner does not impart any benefit.  (Well, the Tour organizers would like to believe so.  In fact, the competetive spirit can run fairly deep with some teams and drivers, so the first ones through are likely to get more cheering and people like to be cheered at.)


Report #25: Technical Testing

These are the results of the technical testing performed on Saturday and Sunday in Waterbury CT. 

                              Form   Pass on   Customer   Engineer.    Educa. 
No. Car Complete 1st try Accep Elegance Display
                            0-1        0-1      0-2        0-2        0-1

    PRODUCTION
 10 Sunergy                   1          1        1.9        1.8        2
 15 Nordic Challenger         1          1        1.96       2          1.75
 26 Ford Ranger EV                                1.88       2          1.75
 27 RAV4 EV                                                  2          1.75
 30 Caballito Electric        1                              2          1.75
 35 CATS                                                     2          1.75
 41 Solectria CitiVan                    1        1.96       2          1.75
 51 Epic                                 1        2          2          1.75
 52 Epic                                 1        2          2          2
 67 Solectria NiCad Force     1          1        2          2          2
 76 Ovonic Solectria Force               1        1.76       2          1.75

    COMMUTER
  6 Eride                                         1.8        1.7        1.75
 11 Super Force                          1        1.72       2          1.75
 12 MooRocco                  1                   1.72       2          1.75
 13 Electrifly                           1        2          2          1.25
 16 The Olympian              1          1        1.62       1.8        1.75
 17 Kilowatt Kamel                       1        1.48       1.6        1.75
 32 Electric Bull             1          1        1.44       2          2
 37 UEHS Solar Tiger          1                   1.4        1.5        1.75
 50 Sparky Spartan                                1.6        2          1.75
 61 Solar Bolt                1          1        1.52       1.75       2
 66 Recharger                            1        1.92       1.8        1.75
 71 PV EV                     1          1        1.6        1.5        1.5
 72 Sungo                                         1.28       2          1.75

    DOE HYBRID
  7 Paradyne                             1        1.84       2          1.5
  8 Electric Lion             1          1        1.8        2          1.75
  9 NJ Venturer                                   1.8        2          1.75
 14 Slipstream                1                   1.44       2          1.75
 18 Kineticar III             1                   1.94       1.9        1.75
 23 Viking 23                 1          1        1.2        2          1.75
 24 HEV Blazer                1          1        1.9        2          1.75

    SOLAR COMMUTER
 20 Solar Black Bear          1                   1.74       1.7        2
 38 Artemis                   1                   1.16       1.8        1.75
 83 Sol Survivor IV           1          1        1.2        2          1.75
 93 Helios the Heron VI       1          1        1.68       1.7        1.5

    ONE PERSON
 36 Futura EVs                                               2          1.75
 39 Elextric scooter                                         2          1.75
 58 NFA Sol Machine II        1                   1          2          1.75
 92 Sunpacer #92                                             1.3        1.75

No Car Noise Cone Accel Noise Cone Accel

                             (dba)   (sec)   (sec)     0-2   2.5-10   2.5-10

     PRODUCTION
10 Sunergy 69 9.74 5.26 1.85 7.60 6.84 15 Nordic Challenger 70 8.08 4.07 1.78 9.00 9.33 26 Ford Ranger EV 74 9.39 3.78 1.48 7.90 9.94 27 RAV4 EV 10.74 5 6.76 7.38 30 Caballito Electric 68 5.03 1.93 0.00 7.32 35 CATS 70 9.63 4.37 1.78 7.70 8.70 41 Solectria CitiVan 82 12.01 6.1 0.89 5.70 5.08 51 Epic 72 9.06 4.28 1.63 8.18 8.89 52 Epic 72 9.32 4.2 1.63 7.96 9.06 67 Solectria NiCad Force 68 8.49 4.91 1.93 8.65 7.57 76 Ovonic Solectria Force 67 8.28 4.75 2.00 8.83 7.91

     COMMUTER
 6   Eride                     72      9.84   4.47    1.63     7.52     8.49
11 Super Force 69 10.87 6.25 1.85 6.65 4.76 12 MooRocco 69 9.17 4.7 1.85 8.08 8.01 13 Electrifly 69 9.06 3.89 1.85 8.18 9.71 16 The Olympian 69 9.03 4.84 1.85 8.20 7.72 17 Kilowatt Kamel 76 7.2 3.75 1.33 9.74 10.00 32 Electric Bull 73 6.89 4.63 1.56 10.00 8.16 37 UEHS Solar Tiger 80 11.54 4.97 1.04 6.09 7.44 50 Sparky Spartan 69 7.59 4.45 1.85 9.41 8.53 61 Solar Bolt 69 8.81 4.1 1.85 8.39 9.27 66 Recharger 72 9.27 4.3 1.63 8.00 8.85 71 PV EV 68 7.55 3.9 1.93 9.45 9.69 72 Sungo 76 8.34 3.76 1.33 8.78 9.98

     DOE HYBRID
 7   Paradyne                  92      9.04   4.35    0.15     8.19     8.74
 8   Electric Lion             70      7.55   5.6     1.78     9.45     6.12
 9   NJ Venturer               69      8.97   5.47    1.85     8.25     6.40
14 Slipstream 75 8.54 5.4 1.41 8.61 6.54 18 Kineticar III 70 9.07 5.7 1.78 8.17 5.91 23 Viking 23 80 8.06 3.84 1.04 9.02 9.81 24 HEV Blazer 80 10.02 5.18 1.04 7.37 7.00

     SOLAR COMMUTER
20 Solar Black Bear 77 9.99 5 1.26 7.39 7.38 38 Artemis 76 8.45 6 1.33 8.69 5.29 83 Sol Survivor IV 69 9.68 4.12 1.85 7.65 9.22 93 Helios the Heron VI 74 15.81 5.2 1.48 2.50 6.96

     ONE PERSON
36 Futura EVs 4.66 0.00 8.09 39 Elextric scooter 7.33 0.00 2.50 58 NFA Sol Machine II 94 9.93 7 0.00 7.44 3.19 92 Sunpacer #92 76 1.33 0.00 0.00

Car# Car Total

                                Points
       PRODUCTION

 10    Sunergy                  23.99
 15    Nordic Challenger        27.82
 26    Ford Ranger EV           24.95
 27    RAV4 EV                  17.89
 30    Caballito Electric       13.99
 35    CATS                     21.93
 41    Solectria CitiVan        18.37
 51    Epic                     25.44
 52    Epic                     25.64
 67    Solectria NiCad Force    26.15
 76    Ovonic Solectria Force   25.25

       COMMUTER
  6    Eride                    22.89
 11    Super Force              19.74
 12    MooRocco                 24.41
 13    Electrifly               25.98
 16    The Olympian             24.94
 17    Kilowatt Kamel           26.90
 32    Electric Bull            27.15
 37    UEHS Solar Tiger         20.22
 50    Sparky Spartan           25.15
 61    Solar Bolt               26.77
 66    Recharger                24.95
 71    PV EV                    27.66
 72    Sungo                    25.12

       DOE HYBRID
  7    Paradyne                 23.42
  8    Electric Lion            24.90
  9    NJ Venturer              22.05
 14    Slipstream               22.75
 18    Kineticar III            22.45
 23    Viking 23                26.81
 24    HEV Blazer               23.06

       SOLAR COMMUTER
 20    Solar Black Bear         22.47
 38    Artemis                  21.02
 83    Sol Survivor IV          25.68
 93    Helios the Heron VI      17.82

       ONE PERSON
 36    Futura EVs               11.84
 39    Elextric scooter          6.25
 58    NFA Sol Machine II       16.39
 92    Sunpacer #92              4.38


Report #26: Monday's Results

Monday 25 May was the first day of travel for the NESEA Tour.  In mostly fog with some wind and rain, the tour left Waterbury CT and headed to Hartford CT for a noon-time stop.  After displaying during the afternoon, inspite of some very heavy rain and wind, but not the hail that was forecast, the tour then moved on to Torrington CT for its overnight charging. 

These are the results for that first day of travel. 

See the Report on Scoring for a discussion of the point system used this year. 

.TS l s s s s l s s s n l s s s s l s s s n l s s s s l s s s n l s s s s l s s s l n l n n n n n n n n.  American Tour de Sol 1999 Total distance all legs: 225.0 Waterbury to Hartford to Torrington CT

				Maximum Mileage Points				5.4
				Deductions				Day 1 Total
Car# Car Name Avg Total Late Bonus
		MPH	Miles	Points	Codes	Pts.	Points	Poimts

	PRODUCTION
10 Sunergy 15.73 60.4 2.6 2.8 15 Nordic Challenger 23.28 60.4 0 5.4 26 Ford Ranger EV 26.51 60.4 0 5.4 27 RAV4 EV 22.23 60.4 0.9 1 0.5 4.0 30 Caballito Electric 18.34 60.4 0 5.4 35 CATS 22.56 60.4 0 5.4 41 Solectria CitiVan 19.83 60.4 0 5.4 51 Epic 25.01 60.4 0 5.4 52 Epic 25.03 60.4 0 5.4 67 Solectria NiCad Force 23.69 60.4 0 5.4 76 Ovonic Solectria Force 25.23 60.4 0 1 0.5 4.9

	COMMUTER								
6 Eride 9.13 52.6 0.2 4.5 11 Super Force 21.64 60.4 0 1 0.5 4.9 12 MooRocco 9.75 51.9 0 4.6 13 Electrifly 13.36 57.4 0 1 0.5 4.6 16 The Olympian 17.04 60.4 0 5.4 17 Kilowatt Kamel 16.38 60.4 0.2 5.2 32 Electric Bull 21.44 60.4 0 5.4 37 UEHS Solar Tiger 3.94 43.6 2.3 1 0.5 1.1 50 Sparky Spartan 16.61 60.4 0 5.4 61 Solar Bolt 18.19 60.4 0 5.4 66 Recharger 18.67 60.4 0 5.4 71 PV EV 20.93 60.4 0 5.4 72 Sungo 16.63 60.4 0.4 5.0

	DOE HYBRID								
7 Paradyne 17.59 60.4 0 5.4 8 Electric Lion 18.45 60.4 0 5.4 9 NJ Venturer 20.19 60.4 0 5.4 14 Slipstream 18.10 60.4 0.7 1 0.5 4.2 18 Kineticar III 21.68 60.4 0 1 0.5 4.9 23 Viking 23 22.33 60.4 0 1 0.5 4.9 24 HEV Blazer 17.98 60.4 0.2 1 0.5 4.7

	SOLAR COMMUTER								
20 Solar Black Bear 16.07 60.4 0.3 5.1 38 Artemis 13.05 60.4 2.4 3.0 83 Sol Survivor IV 2.01 35.6 1.2 0.5 1.5 93 Helios the Heron VI 2.27 36.1 1.5 1.7

	ONE PERSON								
36 Futura EVs 0.00 31.6 0.9 1 1 0.9 39 Elextric scooter 0.00 31.6 5.5 1 1 0.0 58 NFA Sol Machine II 0.00 0.0 0 0.0 92 Sunpacer #92 14.43 57.9 0.9 1 0.5 3.7

	CONTROL								
Ford Kathleen Strizki 1.73 60.4 80.3 0.0 Geo Joe Sherman 24.57 60.4 0 5.4 Van Danuta Drozdowicz 25.04 60.4 0 5.4 .TE


Report #27: Kineticar III

A team with long history with the American Tour de Sol is the series known as Kineticar.  The third by that name is with us again this year. 

 Vehicle Number        18
 Vehicle Name          Kineticar III
 Category              USDOE HYBRID CATEGORY
 Organization          Naugatuck Valley Comm Tech College (NVCTC)
 Team Name             CSERT-NVCTC
 Town                  Waterbury
 State                 CT
Description Chevy S-10 (Trojan, PBA + LPG)
	www                   www.nvctc5.commnet.edu
 new this year?        returning car and team
 No People in Project  10
 Months to Build       3
 Motor                 Advanced DC; Series; 24kW cont/48kW peak
 Batteries             Trojan/1120 lbs; PbA; 17,600 Wh/96 V
 Controller            Curtis; Model 1231c
 Charger Offboard      Lester; Ferro reson. 
 PV Array type amount  25 w; Uni-Solar; Amorphous
 Construction          1989 Chevrolet S-10; Steel Frame; Steel Body
 Dimensions LxWxH      15' 0"; 5' 4"; 5' 0"
 Hybrid                Suzuki/; 1L  Parallel; LPG/24 mpg
 No of Passengers      2
 Maximum Speed mph     70
 Range miles           400
 Weight pounds         4000
 Mfg GVW               3598
 Capacity pounds       400
 Brakes                Front Disc; Rear Drum; Non-regen
 Wheels Tires          4 Goodyear; P195/60R15
 Program blurb
                       KINETICAR III is a parallel hybrid vehicle. 
                       It has a range of 400 miles.  In-town
                       driving is electric and on the highway the
                       motor and IC engine are used.  In the 1997
                       NESEA American Tour de Sol, KINETICAR set a
                       new range record.  We believe a low-
                       polluting hybrid offers the best potential
                       for future vehicles. 

A clever arrangement places the electric motor and LPG-burning engine so that either can drive the transmission, making this a parallel hybrid. 

I asked Ted Gallucci (Crew Chief and faculty advisor) what was new and different.  He said they have a new multi-disc clutch, new bearings and a little bit of alignment work. 


Report #28: PV EV

Those of us who have had our heads mostly in the Tour de Sol these past few years, and I count myself in that group, are discovering that electric vehicle racing has a long and honorable history elsewhere.  The Palo Verde High School certainly participates in that history, as evidenced by their entry in the NESEA Tour, named PV EV. 

 Vehicle Number        71
 Vehicle Name          PV EV
 Category              COMMUTER CATEGORY
 Organization          Palo Verde Magnet High School
 Team Name             Palo Verde Electric Racing Team
 Town                  Tucson
 State                 AZ
 Description           1985 VW Cabriolet (Trojan, PbA)
 new this year?        new car and team
 Motor                 Advanced DC; 9" 4001 series wound; 21kW
                       cont./63kW peak
 Batteries             Trojan/1400 lbs.; PbA; 1,320 Wh/120 V series
 Controller            Auburn; 680 amp-Kodiac
 Charger Offboard      Lester; Transformer; Rectifier
 PV Array type amount  5 W; Solar Aide; NA
 Construction          1985 VW Cabriolet; Unibody  steel Frame;
                       Steel Body
 Dimensions LxWxH      13' 0"; 5' 6"; 4' 10"
 No of Passengers      2
 Maximum Speed mph     70
 Range miles           100
 Weight pounds         3300
 Mfg GVW               3031
 Capacity pounds       450
 Brakes                Front Disc; Rear Drum; Non-regen
 Wheels Tires          4 Michelin; P165/70R13
 Program blurb
                       The Electric Racing Team won their spot in
                       the NESEA Tour by placing in the Tour de AZ,
                       held in March.  The team has been converting
                       and racing electric cars since 1993.  As
                       defending champions of the 1998 National
                       Student Competition in Phoenix, Arizona, the
                       team placed first in the braking and
                       handling competition and second overall in the
                       year long series.  A total of four electric
                       vehicles have been completed.  Arizona
                       Public Service and Tucson Electric Power are
                       two of our major sponsors. 

The Palo Verde Electric Racing Team is a club of 6 students and 2 advisors, that converted a teacher's personal VW Cabriolet convertible to electric drive.  Ken Paulin still uses the car as an everyday vehicle, but it's here now for the NESEA Tour. 

The club has two other cars they have built, a 1980 VW Rabbit and a 1987 Nissan 300ZX.  The cars are quite different with different sizes and brands of motors and controllers.  They fund their activities by getting sponsorships from local businesses, and getting parts and services from local auto shops, body shops, and salvage yards. 

In the past season they have won 3 first place and 1 second in five events. 

Part of their winnings in the Tour de AZ was that Reliable Car Carriers paid the entry fees and shipped the cars cross country to the NESEA Tour. 


Report #29: Sol Survivor IV

One of the vehicles that _never_ fails to turn heads as it goes by is the bright yellow, thin, aerodynamic Sol Survivor IV.  The previous three Sol Survivors also appeared at the NESEA Tour, and got well deserved attention, but this one has such clean lines that I've never met anyone who was not impressed.  Add that it was built by high school students, and "impressive" is too little praise for the Solar Commuter entry. 

They have a proud history.  They were the first high school team to enter the American Tour de Sol, in 1990.  In 1991 they finished 1st in range and efficiency, beating several colleges. 

 Vehicle Number        83
 Vehicle Name          Sol Survivor IV
 Category              SOLAR COMMUTER CATEGORY
 Organization          Monadnock Solar Electric Race Car Team
 Team Name             Sol Survivor
 Town                  Peterborough
 State                 NH
 Description           Purpose-built (Interstate , PbA)
 new this year?        returning car and team
 No People in Project  18
 Months to Build       12
 Motor                 Solectria; AC Induction; 15kW cont./16kW peak
 Batteries             Interstate; liquid PbA; 120 V series
 Controller            Solectria; AC-300
 Charger               Purpose-built; high frequency/solid state
 PV Array type amount  268 W; Solarex; Monocrystalline
 Construction          Purpose-built; Steel tube frame; Fiberglas
                       Body
 Dimensions LxWxH      15' 0"; 5' 6"; 4' 1"
 No of Passengers      2
 Maximum Speed mph     70
 Range miles           70
 Weight pounds         1500
 Capacity pounds       410
 Brakes                Front Disc; Rear Disc; Regen
 Wheels Tires          4 Cheng-shin or Uni-royal; Motorcycle tires
 Program blurb
                       The Sol Survivor, designed and built by a
                       group of engineers and students in New
                       Hampshire, uses a 30 hp electric motor
                       powered by ten deep cycle batteries.  It has
                       a cruising speed of 50-55 mph and gets one
                       third of its energy from solar panels mounted
                       on the roof and rear wing.  Styling of the
                       narrow tear-drop shape body was done by Jud
                       Holcombe and Jim Earl, ex GM and Ford
                       stylists.  The car has a space tube frame,
                       independent suspension, four wheel disc
                       brakes and disc emergency brakes as well as a
                       regenerative braking system.  The car was
                       designed to allow two people to commute 25
                       miles to work. 

I asked Sarah Bay, Christel Becker, and Chris Huber what has changed this year.  "Not much.  We've only done what we need to do to stay in this league, but we are working on a different car.  We couldn't bring it hear because it doesn't fit into any of the categories." (More on this new car in a moment.)

In last year's NESEA Tour, where it rained almost constantly for the first 5 days, water got into the controller and it wouldn't control.  They were able to fix it then, so this year they have the it protected better.  They have also strapped the batteries down better to comply with stricter American Tour de Sol rules.  A second E-Meter has been added to show the energy performance of the solar panels, something they have not had before. 

But clearly what had these kids psyched was their new car that they are finishing for the race up Mount Washington this summer at the end of June.  Sol Survivor IV has done the climb in 23 minutes.  Now they have built what they call the "Hill Climb Car".  The goal is to drive up Mount Washington in 13 minutes, which will take the record from Sungo, number 72 in this year's ATdS, from New Hampshire Technical Institute. 

The Hill Climb Car is based on a mini-sprint frame.  The battery boxes are on either side of a space frame of made of welded tubing.  There is a separate motor driving each rear wheel via a chain drive.  One controller drives both motors. 

We also spoke about the problems of raising money to support building these cars.  The Monadnock Solar Electric Race Car Team is not associated with any school.  The first Sol Survivor was a school project, but the team has been an independent organization since 1991.  So they take both the Sol Survivor and Hill Climb Car to events where they are displayed, and to races where they test them.  When they took the Hill Climb Car to a race track to test it (I presume in a drag race) "they made the noise for us, (so we would sound `real')." It gives them exposure and helps them raise money. 

The club is also working on an electric "Hydro-plane Boat". 

To contact the club ... 

        Sol Survivor IV
        Monadnock Solar Race Car Team
        32 Pine Street
        Peterborough NH  03458
        603 924-9818

        http://www.solarcarteam.org


Report #30: Solar Black Bear

Long, low, and very, very shiny-black with blue lettering, number 20, the Solar Black Bear, cuts quite a figure, especially with the 1 kiloWatt solar panel mounted above the truck from the tip of the front bumper to the end of the extended tail gate. 

 Vehicle Number        20
 Vehicle Name          Solar Black Bear
 Category              SOLAR COMMUTER CATEGORY
 Organization          University of Maine
 Team Name             U. Maine Solar Vehicle Team
 Town                  Orono
 State                 ME
 Description           Chevy S-10 (Trojan, PbA)
 www                   www.ume.maine.edu/solar
 new this year?        New car and team
 Motor                 Advance DC; 13.2kW cont./60kW peak
 Batteries             Trojan/1400 lbs.; PbA T-145; 120 V
 Controller            Curtis; 1231C-8601
 Charger Offboard      Alltech Electronics; AAE120-150R1BC;
                       Transformer/Rectifier
 PV Array type amount  1020 W; BP Solar; Monocrystalline
 Construction          Chevy S-10; Steel Frame; Steel Body
 Dimensions LxWxH      17' 5"; 6' 2"; 5' 0"
 No of Passengers      2
 Maximum Speed mph     75
 Range miles           60
 Weight pounds         3920
 Mfg GVW               3856
 Capacity pounds       1433
 Brakes                Front Disc; Rear Drum; Non-regen
 Wheels Tires          4 Goodyear; 19514
 Program blurb
                       The students of the University of
                       Maine have constructed their first
                       electric/solar powered vehicle. 
                       Their interest was to explore
                       environmentally clean alternative
                       energy options and to inform others
                       of their possible uses.  Their team
                       is comprised of 11 multi-discipline
                       members.  Through the generous
                       support of many local sponsors,
                       they are entering a converted 1987
                       Chevy S-10 pickup. 

Paul VanSteenberghe and Ben Dresser (faculty advisors), Dennis Keyser, Mike Stewart, and Matt Albert (students) told me they are here "for the fun of it and for the experience of working in an emerging, growth industry.  Setting up the solar panels like we have has given us a whole new understanding of solar power issues."

The Chevy S-10 base car was converted originally by Bangor HydroElectric where it was used as a meter-reader vehicle.  It sat for several years, so they donated it to the University of Maine.  They upgraded from 120 to 144 Volts, installed a pulse-width modulated controller, and put on the solar panel.  The solar panel can be tilted to either side to improve the angle so the sun is more effective.  A ram-air scoop directs air directly over the controller; otherwise it makes odd noises when it gets hot. 

They were fund-raising until February, and then started working on the truck.  A team of about 16 students did the work.  It's been running about two weeks. 

"It's our first trip (to the NESEA Tour).  We don't care if we win or loose.  We're just here to take a look at everything."

"We figure we've already won by being here."


Report #31: Pole Position for Tuesday 25 May

The order of the cars for the start on Tuesday 25 May is based on the accumulated points from Technical Testing, Monday and Tuesday.  Here they are listed by Overall Points. 

American Tour de Sol 1999 Pole Position : Day 2 Car Overall

 #   Points  Vehicle Name             Cat.   Code   Team
 15   33.19  Nordic Challenger         P      SA    Evermont/Solectria
 71   33.03  PV EV                     C      SL    Palo Verde Electric Racing
 32   32.52  Electric Bull             C      SL    Shadow Mtn Electric Matadors
 61   32.14  Solar Bolt                C      SL    Solar Bolt Team
 17   32.07  Kilowatt Kamel            C      UL    Spartan EV Racing Team
 23   31.68  Viking 23                 H      SA    Team Viking 23
 67   31.52  Solectria NiCad Force     P      SA    CT Partnership
 52   31.01  Epic                      P      UA    DaimlerChrysler
 51   30.81  Epic                      P      UA    DaimlerChrysler
Van 30.80 Danuta Drozdowicz P Control
 13   30.59  Electrifly                C      SA    Enviromotive
 50   30.52  Sparky Spartan            C      SL    Spartan EV Racing Team
 26   30.32  Ford Ranger EV            P      UA    EV Rangers
 66   30.32  Recharger                 C      UL    University of New Haven
Ford 30.31 Kathleen Strizki P Control
 16   30.31  The Olympian              C      SL    Pirates
  8   30.27  Electric Lion             H      SL    Penn State SAE HEV Team
 76   30.12  Ovonic Solectria Force    P      SA    Ovonic Battery Co
Geo 30.11 Joe Sherman P Control
 72   30.09  Sungo                     C      SA    SEV of NHTI
 12   29.03  MooRocco                  C      SL    Vermont Technical College
  7   28.79  Paradyne                  H      SL    Hurricane Motor Works
 24   27.73  HEV Blazer                H      UL    Cornell University HEV Team
 20   27.54  Solar Black Bear          S      UL    UMaine Solar Vehicle Team
  9   27.42  NJ Venturer               H      SL    Team New Jersey
  6   27.37  Eride                     C      UL    Erad
 18   27.32  Kineticar III             H      UL    CSERT-NVCTC
 35   27.30  CATS                      P      SL    NYSDEC
 83   27.15  Sol Survivor IV           S      SL    Monadnock Sol Survivor
 14   26.92  Slipstream                H      SL    Cornell University HEV Team
 10   26.76  Sunergy                   P      SL    Ethel Walker
 11   24.61  Solectria SuperForce      C      SA    Team New England
 38   23.99  Artemis                   S      SL    BHS FAMS'00
 41   23.74  Solectria CitiVan         P      UL    NYPA
 27   21.86  RAV4 EV                   P      UA    Toyota, North Torrance HS
 37   21.30  UEHS Solar Tiger          C      SL    Solar Tiger Team
 93   19.53  Helios the Heron VI       S      UL    Riverside School
 30   19.36  Caballito Electric        P      OL    Person Elec.  Trans
 58   16.39  NFA Sol Machine II        O      OL    Team Newburgh
 36   12.75  Futura EVs                O      OA    GFR Technologies
 92    8.13  Sunpacer                  O      OL    C-M Sunpacer Tech Team
 39    6.25  Elextric scooter          O      OL    GFR Technologies

      Category
      P - Production
      H - DOE Hybrid
      C - Commuter
      S - Solar Commuter
      O - One Person

      Type Codes
      S = Sedan
      U = Utility
      O = One Person

      A - Advanced Battery
      L - Lead Acid


Report #32: Pole Position for Wednesday 26 May

The order of the cars for the start on Wednesday 26 May is based on the accumulated points from Technical Testing, Monday and Tuesday.  Here they are listed by Category (Cat). 

(Yes, that is different from yesterday, but that's how they were handed to me.  I suspect the reason was that because the cars were going to be display by category on the Empire State Plaza, that was the way they were lined up.  Maybe.)

American Tour de Sol 1999 Pole Position : Day 3 Car Overall

 #   Points  Vehicle Name             Cat   Codes   Team
 15   38.9   Nordic Challenger         P     SA     Evermont/Solectria
 67   37.7   Solectria NiCad Force     P     SA     CT Partnership
 76   37.3   Ovonic Solectria Force    P     SA     Ovonic Battery Co
 52   37.2   Epic                      P     UA     DaimlerChrysler
 51   37.0   Epic                      P     UA     DaimlerChrysler
 26   36.5   Ford Ranger EV            P     UA     EV Rangers
 35   33.0   CATS                      P     SL     NYSDEC
 10   32.9   Sunergy                   P     SL     Ethel Walker
 30   30.2   Caballito Electric        P     OL     Person Elec.  Trans
 41   29.9   Solectria CitiVan         P     UL     NYPA
 27   27.5   RAV4 EV                   P     UA     Toyota, North Torrance HS

 23   37.9   Viking 23                 H     SA     Team Viking 23
  8   36.4   Electric Lion             H     SL     Penn State SAE HEV Team
  7   35.6   Paradyne                  H     SL     Hurricane Motor Works
  9   34.1   NJ Venturer               H     SL     Team New Jersey
 14   33.3   Slipstream                H     SL     Cornell University HEV Team
 18   33.0   Kineticar III             H     UL     CSERT-NVCTC
 24   32.9   HEV Blazer                H     UL     Cornell University HEV Team

 71   39.2   PV EV                     C     SL     Palo Verde Electric Racing
 32   39.2   Electric Bull             C     SL     Shadow Mtn Electric Matadors
 61   38.8   Solar Bolt                C     SL     Solar Bolt Team
 17   38.3   Kilowatt Kamel            C     UL     Spartan EV Racing Team
 16   37.0   The Olympian              C     SL     Pirates
 50   36.7   Sparky Spartan            C     SL     Spartan EV Racing Team
 72   36.7   Sungo                     C     SA     SEV of NHTI
 66   36.5   Recharger                 C     UL     University of New Haven
 13   36.2   Electrifly                C     SA     Enviromotive
 12   33.6   MooRocco                  C     SL     Vermont Technical College
  6   33.5   Eride                     C     UL     Erad
 11   30.8   Solectria SuperForce      C     SA     Team New England
 37   26.3   UEHS Solar Tiger          C     SL     Solar Tiger Team

 20   33.7   Solar Black Bear          S     UL     UMaine Solar Vehicle Team
 83   33.1   Sol Survivor IV           S     SL     Monadnock Sol Survivor
 38   30.2   Artemis                   S     SL     BHS FAMS'00
 93   23.9   Helios the Heron VI       S     UL     Riverside School

 36   19.0   Futura EVs                O     OA     GFR Technologies
 58   18.6   NFA Sol Machine II        O     OL     Team Newburgh
 92   13.3   Sunpacer                  O     OL     C-M Sunpacer Tech Team
 39    6.3   Elextric scooter          O     OL     GFR Technologies

Geo 37.3 Joe Sherman Control Van 37.0 Danuta Drozdowicz Control Ford 36.5 Kathleen Strizki Control

      Category
      P - Production
      H - DOE Hybrid
      C - Commuter
      S - Solar Commuter
      O - One Person

      Type Codes
      S = Sedan
      U = Utility
      O = One Person

      A - Advanced Battery
      L - Lead Acid


Report #33: Report #26 Formated: Monday's Results

	The original Report 26 was not formated correctly. 

Monday 25 May was the first day of travel for the NESEA Tour.  In mostly fog with some wind and rain, the tour left Waterbury CT and headed to Hartford CT for a noon-time stop.  After displaying during the afternoon, inspite of some very heavy rain and wind, but not the hail that was forecast, the tour then moved on to Torrington CT for its overnight charging. 

These are the results for that first day of travel. 

See the Report on Scoring for a discussion of the point system used this year. 

American Tour de Sol 1999 Waterbury to Hartford to Torrington CT

Car# Car Name Avg Total Late Bonus

                             MPH  Miles   Points   Codes   Pts.   Points   Points

   PRODUCTION
 10  Sunergy                15.73 60.4      2.6                             2.8
 15  Nordic Challenger      23.28 60.4      0                               5.4
 26  Ford Ranger EV         26.51 60.4      0                               5.4
 27  RAV4 EV                22.23 60.4      0.9      1     0.5              4.0
 30  Caballito Electric     18.34 60.4      0                               5.4
 35  CATS                   22.56 60.4      0                               5.4
 41  Solectria CitiVan      19.83 60.4      0                               5.4
 51  Epic                   25.01 60.4      0                               5.4
 52  Epic                   25.03 60.4      0                               5.4
 67  Solectria NiCad Force  23.69 60.4      0                               5.4
 76  Ovonic Solectria Force 25.23 60.4      0        1     0.5              4.9

   COMMUTER
  6  Eride                   9.13 52.6      0.2                             4.5
 11  Super Force            21.64 60.4      0        1     0.5              4.9
 12  MooRocco                9.75 51.9      0                               4.6
 13  Electrifly             13.36 57.4      0        1     0.5              4.6
 16  The Olympian           17.04 60.4      0                               5.4
 17  Kilowatt Kamel         16.38 60.4      0.2                             5.2
 32  Electric Bull          21.44 60.4      0                               5.4
 37  UEHS Solar Tiger        3.94 43.6      2.3      1     0.5              1.1
 50  Sparky Spartan         16.61 60.4      0                               5.4
 61  Solar Bolt             18.19 60.4      0                               5.4
 66  Recharger              18.67 60.4      0                               5.4
 71  PV EV                  20.93 60.4      0                               5.4
 72  Sungo                  16.63 60.4      0.4                             5.0

   DOE HYBRID
  7  Paradyne               17.59 60.4      0                               5.4
  8  Electric Lion          18.45 60.4      0                               5.4
  9  NJ Venturer            20.19 60.4      0                               5.4
 14  Slipstream             18.10 60.4      0.7      1     0.5              4.2
 18  Kineticar III          21.68 60.4      0        1     0.5              4.9
 23  Viking 23              22.33 60.4      0        1     0.5              4.9
 24  HEV Blazer             17.98 60.4      0.2      1     0.5              4.7

   SOLAR COMMUTER
 20  Solar Black Bear       16.07 60.4      0.3                             5.1
 38  Artemis                13.05 60.4      2.4                             3.0
 83  Sol Survivor IV         2.01 35.6      1.2            0.5              1.5
 93  Helios the Heron VI     2.27 36.1      1.5                             1.7

   ONE PERSON
 36  Futura EVs              0.00 31.6      0.9      1     1                0.9
 39  Elextric scooter        0.00 31.6      5.5      1     1                0.0
 58  NFA Sol Machine II      0.00  0.0      0                               0.0
 92  Sunpacer #92           14.43 57.9      0.9      1     0.5              3.7

   CONTROL
Ford Kathleen Strizki 1.73 60.4 80.3 0.0 Geo Joe Sherman 24.57 60.4 0 5.4 Van Danuta Drozdowicz 25.04 60.4 0 5.4


Report #34: Pole Position for Thursday 27 May

The order of the cars for the start on Thursday 27 May is based on the accumulated points from Technical Testing and Monday through Wednesday.  Here they are listed by Overall Points. 

The entrants listed as Van , Geo , and Ford , are gasoline-powered Control vehicles being driven right behind the Epic, Ovonic Solectria Force and Ford EV Ranger.  In each case they are mechanically very similar cars, with the primary difference being that the later are all electric drive.  By measuring the gasoline and electricity consumed by each pair, NESEA can make an apple-to-apples comparison between vehicles that were driven over the same route, on the same day, in the same traffic, at the same speeds, and subjected to the same weather.  They will compare the energy consumed by each to demonstrate the relative efficiency of gasoline and electric propulsion. 

American Tour de Sol 1999 Pole Position: Day 4 Car Overall

 #   Points Vehicle Name          Cat.   Code   Team
 32   36.33 Electric Bull          C      SL    Shadow Mtn Electric Matadors
  9   31.20 NJ Venturer            H      SL    Team New Jersey
  8   35.47 Electric Lion          H      SL    Penn State SAE HEV Team
 16   34.37 The Olympian           C      SL    Pirates
 15   33.36 Nordic Challenger      P      SA    Evermont/Solectria
 52   32.59 Epic                   P      UA    DaimlerChrysler
 67   35.21 Solectria NiCad Force  P      SA    CT Partnership
 51   33.09 Epic                   P      UA    DaimlerChrysler
Van 33.09 Danuta Drozdowicz Control
 76   34.71 Ovonic Solectria Force P      SA    Ovonic Battery Co
Geo 34.71 Joe Sherman Control
 23   31.60 Viking 23              H      SA    Team Viking 23
 61   34.73 Solar Bolt             C      SL    Solar Bolt Team
  7   31.07 Paradyne               H      SL    Hurricane Motor Works
 71   35.17 PV EV                  C      SL    Palo Verde Electric Racing
 26   29.47 Ford Ranger EV         P      UA    EV Rangers
Ford 29.47 Kathleen Strizki Control
 17   35.15 Kilowatt Kamel         C      UL    Spartan EV Racing Team
 72   31.36 Sungo                  C      SA    SEV of NHTI
 14   31.26 Slipstream             H      SL    Cornell University HEV Team
 66   33.64 Recharger              C      UL    University of New Haven
 50   38.26 Sparky Spartan         C      SL    Spartan EV Racing Team
 18   32.32 Kineticar III          H      UL    CSERT-NVCTC
 24   29.79 HEV Blazer             H      UL    Cornell University HEV Team
 13   30.85 Electrifly             C      SA    Enviromotive
 11   33.45 Solectria SuperForce   C      SA    Team New England
 20   28.89 Solar Black Bear       S      UL    UMaine Solar Vehicle Team
 27   29.29 RAV4 EV                P      UA    Toyota, North Torrance HS
 35   29.03 CATS                   P      SL    NYSDEC
  6   32.18 Eride                  C      UL    Erad
 30   35.67 Caballito Electric     P      OL    Person Elec.  Trans
 12   28.29 MooRocco               C      SL    Vermont Technical College
 83   28.21 Sol Survivor IV        S      SL    Monadnock Sol Survivor
 10   27.37 Sunergy                P      SL    Ethel Walker
 41   30.45 Solectria CitiVan      P      UL    NYPA
 92   29.97 Sunpacer               O      OL    C-M Sunpacer Tech Team
 38   26.70 Artemis                S      SL    BHS FAMS'00
 93   21.18 Helios the Heron VI    S      UL    Riverside School
 37   24.64 UEHS Solar Tiger       C      SL    Solar Tiger Team
 58   18.89 NFA Sol Machine II     O      OL    Team Newburgh
 36   20.93 Futura EVs             O      OA    GFR Technologies
 39   12.70 Elextric scooter       O      OL    GFR Technologies

  Category
  P - Production
  H - DOE Hybrid
  C - Commuter
  S - Solar Commuter
  O - One Person

  Type Codes
  S = Sedan
  U = Utility
  O = One Person

  A - Advanced Battery
  L - Lead Acid


Report #35: The Week So Far ...

These reports so far have only been interviews with the teams (I'm still on Saturday and Sunday's tapes from before the rally started), the Technical Testing numbers, and the daily standings as represented by the Pole Positions for the next day's starting line up.  It takes a lot of time to gather and then reproduce here those conversations and daily results.  (And I also serve as one of the announcers at the daily events, so that eats into the available time.)

So what's it like to actually _be_ here?

Well, to my mind, this is the best run Tour de Sol I've been to.  There has been steady improvements in the way things work over the past few years, and 1999 just continues the trends.  Some of the improvements have to do with the logistics of herding 36 teams and 47 vehicles down the road from place to place.  A lot of it is collecting the mountains of data necessary to say that Team X did better at Activity A than Team Y.  Some things have still gone awry, but with an event like this careful planing and attention to detail will get you 90% success.  The Universe and Murphy's Law will still claim the other 10% and "success" is measured on how calmly you can adjust, adapt and accept.  So, for example, when severe thunder storms threatened, several times, we just dealt with it.  Hey.  You should have seen _last_ year! You would have thought Noah was into EVs. 

The pre-start gathering in Waterbury CT was the best ever.  All the vehicles arrived pretty much ready to go.  Technical testing was the smoothest in memory.  No vehicle was forbidden from racing or required major modifications to qualify, as has happened in years past.  A new rule demanding that all vehicles travel 200 miles before they arrive for the tour has helped alot. 

The spirit of cooperative competition is here in strength again.  When the Penn State discovered the generator in their series-hybrid, the Electric Lion, number 8, was fried, Cornell University's Hybrid Electric Vehicle Team arranged for someone to drive a compatible spare from their shop in Ithica NY down to Waterbury so Penn could stay in the race. 

Self reliance also is in evidence.  NFA Sol Machine fried their wheel-motor and controller on Monday while driving to the starting line in Waterbury.  They called the motor company, put two members in a car who drove through the storms and hail to Washington DC, picked up a replacement, and drove back.  It took an all-nighter, but by Tuesday morning, they were rolling under their own power again. 

Tools, welders, and shop equipment are shared among teams as evidence of a generous spirit within this community.  On Tuesday, NFA Sol Machine was again in trouble.  They threw a wheel while backing up due to bad steering geometry.  With borrowed welder they repaired and improved the front end and were back in the race on Wednesday. 

No team has had to drop out of competition (although not for lack of trying).  Everyone who showed up in Waterbury CT is still here and as of Thursday morning was still running.  When you have a middle school, high schools, and colleges learning as they go, and in many cases pushing the technological edge as well, I expect to see some trip-ups and out-and-out failures.  So far, we have not had any failures, and the trip-ups have all been correctable.  That is a record, I'm sure. 

With the most production EVs and HEVs ever to attend the NESEA Tour, we have a very representative example of what the major automobile makers are selling in this field.  Many rides-and-drives have been offered. 

We have most of the major EV technologies present.  We have the major battery chemistries; lead-acid, NiCad, NiMH, and Li-ion.  We have brushed DC motors, brushless permanent magnet motors, and AC induction motors.  On-board and off- board chargers.  Inductive and conductive charger connections.  We have parallel, series, and hybrid (i.e. the Prius) hybrid drives.  And we have gasoline, diesel, LPG, CNG, and H2 hybrid fuels.  If there is something you want to know about EVs, there is someone here who can speak authoritatively about it here. 

I have always come to the American Tour de Sol to see modern EV technology on the hoof (if you'll pardon the tortured metaphor).  Again, I've not been disappointed. 


Report #36: New York Power Authority CitiVan

If there ever was a place that could use quiet, clean, non-polluting electric vehicles, it's New York City.  And it seems I'm not alone in that opinion.  The New York Power Authority has long been involved with programs to put the advantages of EVs to work combating the some of the ills of modern urban life.  So they have entered a Solectria CitiVan delivery truck in the NESEA Tour. 

  Vehicle Number        41
  Vehicle Name          Solectria CitiVan
  Category              PRODUCTION CATEGORY
  Team Name             NY Power Authority
  Organization          New York Power Authority
  Town                  New York
  State                 NY
  Description           Solectria Citivan (East Penn, PbA)
  www                   http://www.nypa.gov

The CitiVan entered this year is owned by NYPA and operated by the United States Postal Service in Manhattan.  It is one of 5 used there for "vertical deliveries", where a van drives up to a skyscraper and the delivery person spends an hour or so going up and down the elevator with packages.  It then drives to the next building and the process repeats.  A total daily trip of 5 miles is not unusual. 

Samantha Warming of Solectria told me they have sold others to MassPort for use at Logan airport, Chile, Costa Rica, " and Alabama Power -- where they use it underground in Burmingham." Of course an emission-free truck would be ideal for use in a closed environment, such as the steam heating tunnels used by the large hospitals there. 

Samantha said they are looking for people service electric vehicles.  "Send any resumes to me at EV@Solectria.com". 

Based on NYPA web site ... 

The Power Authority has put into service more than 130 electric cars, light trucks and other vehicles for use by its government customers or in its own operations.  NYPA electric vehicle initiatives cover a wide range of transportation needs:

  Station Car Program - In cooperation with Metro-North Railroad and
IBM, NYPA is providing electric vehicles to car-pool commuters from a Westchester County train station to their work sites.  The result: an all-electric commute, since the trains run on NYPA electricity. 

  Hybrid-Electric Transit Bus - NYPA helped New York City Transit
purchase 40-foot hybrid-electric transit buses now being used in Manhattan.  The hybrid is a battery-powered vehicle with a small internal combustion engine for added power and range.  (One of these buses was on display at the NESEA Tour in Hartford CT and Albany NY.)

  Customers' Fleets - NYPA delivered light-duty electric cars and
trucks to some of our customers to assess performance and most appropriate use. 

  Electric-Powered Shuttle Buses - In partnership with transit
operators in New York City, NYPA is testing electric shuttle buses. 

  Electric School Buses - NYPA introduced the Northeast's first
electric school bus in the Bronx under a NYPA pilot program, and they are in discussion with the manufacturer to obtain at least one more school bus in 1999. 

  Small Urban Electric Vehicles - NYPA introduced a variety of these
battery-powered vehicles (including bicycles and three-wheeled utility vehicles) for use by public agencies, business improvement districts and industrial sites. 

  Electric Delivery Trucks - NYPA is working with the Northeast
Alternative Vehicle Consortium, Solectria Corp.  and the New York City Department of Transportation to introduce electric delivery vehicles, displacing diesel trucks that travel short distances and stand idling for extended periods of time. 

  Hybrid-Electric Sanitation Truck - In 1999, the New York City
Department of Sanitation will operate the first hybrid-electric refuse truck, which will be capable of running on either the hybrid or all- electric mode.  NYPA was instrumental in developing this project with Lockheed Martin and Mack Truck. 


Report #38: Finish Line Press Release

This is the press release for the finish of the NESEA American Tour de Sol, taken from the meida web site,

	http://members.delphi.com/tourdesol/1999/NR6.html

 FOR RELEASE: May 29, 1999 
 CONTACT: Jack Groh: (401)732-1551 

	    ELECTRIC VEHICLES FINISH NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP 
		      ROAD RALLY, SET NEW RECORDS: 

		    GOOD PERFORMANCE COMBINES WITH 
			 ENVIRONMENTAL BENEFITS 

Lake George, N.Y. - Nearly fifty of the top electric vehicles in the country finished a grueling, weeklong test of their real-world performance as the national championship NESEA American Tour de Sol finished today in Lake George, New York. 

        The road rally competition began six days ago in Waterbury,
Connecticut under torrential downpours and finished under sunny, blue skies 250 miles later.  Along the way a new record was set, an old record broken and tens of thousands of spectators got to see the advanced technology cars of today and the future. 
        In the production category, limited to electric vehicles
already on the market in the United States, the winner was the Nordic Challenger, a Solectria Force vehicle entered by Solectria Corporation and EVermont.  Solectria has sponsored a winning entry in every NESEA American Tour de Sol since the annual championship event began 11 years ago.  The Solectria Force is based on a Geo Metro converted to an electric powertrain. 
        The top-scoring vehicle in the commuter category, limited to
vehicles that are either prototypes or one-of-a-kind, was named Sungo and was built and entered by a team from the New Hampshire Technical Institute.  Powered by advanced batteries, this car is a specially- built car designed to run on electricity. 
        In the fast-growing hybrid category, a student-engineered
vehicle from the University of Tulsa (Oklahoma) took first place.  Hybrid vehicles use more than one source of power.  In the case of the University of Tulsas Paradyne, the car is powered by a gasoline engine and an electric motor. 
        In addition to the category winners, two range records
(distance driven before needing to refuel or recharge) were set or broken this week.  A Solectria Force, entered by Team New England from Massachusetts, drove an incredible 156 miles powered only by common lead-acid batteries, the same type of standard batteries used in most cars and boats.  Team New England broke the record of 143 miles set by a Connecticut high school team four years ago. 
        Another NESEA American Tour de Sol record was set as the
hybrid-powered championship car Paradyne from the University of Tulsa traveled 493 miles without refueling. 
        One of the most significant things to emerge from this years
competition was the increased reliability of electric vehicles, said Nancy Hazard, director of the event.  With one exception, every vehicle that started the road rally in Waterbury, Connecticut also crossed the finish line in Lake George, New York. when you are talking about an event that includes a large number of experimental and prototype vehicles, this is quite a real-world accomplishment. 
        Other category winners included the University of Main Solar
Black Bear pickup truck that won the Solar Commuter category and the NFA Sol Machine built by high school students from Newburgh, New York that won in the One Person category. 
        NESEA American Tour de Sol also expect to have significant
energy efficiency and greenhouse gas reduction statistics available from this years events.  That data was collected all during the weeklong competition and will be released later. 

        Additional results are available to media at:
                http://members.delphi.com/tourdesol

        Major sponsorship for the NESEA American Tour de Sol is
provided by the U.S. Department of Energy, Toyota Motor Sales, the Waterbury (Conn.) Region Convention and Visitors Bureau, the Connecticut Department of Transportation, the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority, and the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation. 
        Other sponsors include Nissan, DaimlerChrysler, Ovonic Battery
Company, Northeast Utilities, The Goodyear Tire & Rubber Company, and the New York Power Authority.  Additional support is provided by the Massachusetts Executive Office of Transportation and Construction, Niagara Mohawk, the Society of Automotive Engineers, NEES Companies, and the Electric Vehicle Association of the Americas. 
        The eleventh annual NESEA American Tour de Sol is organized by
the Northeast Sustainable Energy Association, the nation's leading regional association involved in promoting awareness, understanding and development of non-polluting, renewable energy technologies.  Headquartered in Greenfield, Massachusetts, NESEA is celebrating 24 years of working successfully in the fields of transportation, building construction and renewable energy. 


Report #39: Final Standings

Finish Line Results

Based on the results posted on the Tour de Sol Media web site

	http://members.delphi.com/tourdesol/1999/final.htm

					Codes:
					S = Sedan 
					U = Utility
					O = One Perso

					A - Advanced tery
					L - Lead Acid

          Total
 RanCar#  Points Vehicle Name          Codes Team 
 
 PROCUCTION CATEGORY
 1   15   89.55  Nordic Challenger      SA   Evermont/Solectria
 2   76   86.98  Ovonic Solectria Force SA   Ovonic Battery Co
 3   67   86.16  Solectria NiCad Force  SA   CT Partnership
 4   10   82.81  Sunergy                SL   Ethel Walker
 5   30   81.96  Caballito Electric     OL   Person Elec. Trans
 6   35   80.3   CATS                   SL   NYSDEC
 7   26   77.8   Ford Ranger EV         UA   EV Rangers
 8   27   69.13  RAV4 EV                UA   Toyota, North Torrance HS
 9   52   67.79  Epic                   UA   DaimlerChrysler
 10  51   67.42  Epic                   UA   DaimlerChrysler
 11  41   50.78  Solectria CitiVan      UL   NYPA
 
 COMMUTER CATEGORY
 1   72   83.05  Sungo                  SA   SEV of NHTI
 2   32   80.5   Electric Bull          SL   Shadow Mtn Electric Matadors
 3   61   77.42  Solar Bolt             SL   Solar Bolt Team
 4   11   75.93  Solectria SuperForce   SA   Team New England
 5   16   73.98  The Olympian           SL   Pirates
 6   66   72.98  Recharger              UL   University of New Haven
 7   71   67.58  PV EV                  SL   Palo Verde Electric Racing
 8   50   65     Sparky Spartan         SL   Spartan EV Racing Team
 9   17   62.94  Kilowatt Kamel         UL   Spartan EV Racing Team
 10  12   59.61  MooRocco               SL   Vermont Technical College
 11  6    55.65  Eride                  UL   Erad
 12  13   52.65  Electrifly             SA   Enviromotive
 13  37   35.28  UEHS Solar Tiger       SL   Solar Tiger Team
 
 SOLAR COMMUTER CATEGORY
 1   20   78.64  Solar Black Bear       UL   UMaine Solar Vehicle Team
 2   83   75.08  Sol Survivor IV        SL   Monadnock Sol Survivor
 3   38   68.53  Artemis                SL   BHS FAMS'00
 4   93   61.03  Helios the Heron VI    UL   Riverside School
 
 HYBRID CATEGORY
 1   7    86.2   Paradyne               SL   Hurricane Motor Works
 2   9    76.67  NJ Venturer            SL   Team New Jersey
 3   8    71.85  Electric Lion          SL   Penn State SAE HEV Team
 4   18   69.66  Kineticar III          UL   CSERT-NVCTC
 5   23   66.9   Viking 23              SA   Team Viking 23
 6   24   63.29  HEV Blazer             UL   Cornell University HEV Team
 7   14   51.59  Slipstream             SL   Cornell University HEV Team
 
 ONE PERSON CATEGORY
 1   58   72.64  NFA Sol Machine II     OL   Team Newburgh
 2   36   66.49  Futura EVs             OA   GFR Technologies
 3   92   62.17  Sunpacer               OL   C-M Sunpacer Tech Team
 4   39   26.45  Elextric scooter       OL   GFR Technologies


Report #39: Report #37 was a Goof

I am very sorry, but in my hurry to get things out, Report #37 was a complete goof-up.  Please ignore it.  There is no Report #37. 

Mike Bianchi


Report #40: More Coming

The NESEA American Tour de Sol is over, but these Reports are not. 

I will continue to write more Reports, based on my interviews, over the next couple of weeks.  There are many more team reports, plus stories and events from the rally, the displays, and the attempts to set records.  I'll also have more detailed data from the acceleration testing performed at a race track, and the efficiency data for the vehicles. 

So stay tuned.  I'm certain you'll find it worth while. 


Report #41: Acceleration and Autocross Results

The morning of Wednesday, 26 May, the NESEA Tour was at the Lebanon Valley Auto Racing Track in New Lebanon NY to use their drag strip for acceleration testing.  The drag way was wet, as it had rained earlier in the day, so these times and speeds are probably not the best some of the vehicles could have done.  There was some spinning of tires on the wet surface. 

On Friday afternoon, the Mohawk Hudson Region SCCA (Sports Car Clubs of America) ran an autocross event, where the handling of the cars was put to the test. 

These each were the second time the vehicles were evaluated for acceleration and handling.  Saturday and Sunday, 22-23 May, they were put through their paces in Waterbury CT with a 50 foot acceleration run, on a slightly inclined road, and a handling course around traffic cones.  If it had not been possible to perform these tests due to weather, the Waterbury numbers would have been used for official scoring.  Since they were able to do these tests, these numbers were used to compute the final scores. 

In the Acceleration tests the values are the time for the 1/4 mile and the speed at the end of that 1/4 mile. 

In the Autocross, each vehicle was allowed two runs, and the value is the lowest time on the course. 

                                  1/4 MI    1/4 MI   Autocross
Car # Car trial trial Handling
                                    sec      mph        sec

        PRODUCTION CATEGORY
 10     Sunergy                    26.447    45.09    35.929
 15     Nordic Challenger          22.114    58.04    34.601
 26     Ford Ranger EV             20.193    63.34    35.301
 27     RAV4 EV                    23.4      57.6      0
 30     Caballito Electric         34.663    31.05    37.793
 35     CATS                       24.092    53.87    35.558
 41     Solectria CitiVan          30.35     41.77    42.505
 51     Epic                       22.469    64.61    34.073
 52     Epic                       21.341    65.15    36.174
 67     Solectria NiCad Force      24.787    54.36    34.965
 76     Ovonic Solectria Force     23.169    57.23    35.302

        COMMUTER CATEGORY
  6     Eride                      27.17     49.57    37.166
 11     Super Force                27.625    54.3     35.606
 12     MooRocco                   28.238    47.56    37.961
 13     Electrifly                 23.57     59.37     0
 16     The Olympian               24.813    60.67    37.014
 17     Kilowatt Kamel             26.513    52.86    33.569
 32     Electric Bull              24.16     55.53    32.832
 37     UEHS Solar Tiger           32.209    35.47     0
 50     Sparky Spartan             33.291    47.94    34.086
 61     Solar Bolt                 24.97     51.36    35.392
 66     Recharger                  24.605    52.08    33.696
 71     PV EV                      25.988    49.89    33.719
 72     Sungo                      21.782    59.19    33.263

        DOE HYBRID CATEGORY
  7     Paradyne                   20.887    64.82    33.712
  8     Electric Lion              24.932    55.95    53
  9     NJ Venturer                25.893    69.88    37.935
 14     Slipstream                 23.565    56.8      0
 18     Kineticar III              25.111    52.11    39.932
 23     Viking 23                  21.532    62.08    38.053
 24     HEV Blazer                 24.159    61.38    39.523

        SOLAR COMMUTER CATEGORY
 20     Solar Black Bear           26.36     48.5     39.815
 38     Artemis*                   29.589    44.69     0
 83     Sol Survivor IV            27.831    45.43    39.611
 93     Helios the Heron VI        27.381    49.13    41.17

        ONE PERSON CATEGORY
 36     Futura EVs                 35.196    31.32     0
 39     Elextric scooter           29.589    44.69    45.414
 58     NFA Sol Machine II         21.341             39.769
 92     Sunpacer #92               31.061    37.86    46.003

                             MAX   35.196    69.88
                             MIN   20.193    31.05

* Artemis was pushed by 3 crew members at the start of the acceleration test, so these numbers are better than they should have been.  One other team did the same thing, but I don't recall which one. 


Report #42: Score Components

Here are the components of the scoring for the NESEA Tour, followed by the vehicles in the Production, Commuter, and Solar Commuter categories in Overall Place order. 

 No Car Name                       Tech+  Green Perfor. Total Overall Cat. 
                           Penalty Bonus  Score  Score  Score  Place  Place
    Production
 10 Sunergy                 0.00   10.98  27.53  44.29  82.81    5      4
 15 Nordic Challenger       0.00   11.44  26.80  51.31  89.55    1      1
 26 Ford Ranger EV          0.00    8.91  18.74  50.15  77.80   10      6
 27 RAV4 EV                 1.00    7.93  21.05  41.15  69.13   15      7
 30 Caballito Electric      1.00    8.88   0.00  41.47  49.35   27     11
 35 CATS                    0.50    8.38  25.70  46.72  80.30    8      5
 41 Solectria CitiVan       0.00    7.08   5.00  38.70  50.78   26     10
 51 Epic                    1.00    8.13   9.75  50.54  67.42   19      9
 52 Epic                    1.00    8.13  10.99  49.67  67.79   17      8
 67 Solectria NiCad Force   0.00    9.33  27.80  49.03  86.16    3      3
 76 Ovonic Solectria Force  1.00   10.39  24.61  52.98  86.98    2      2
 
    Commuter
  6 ERIDE                   5.00    6.38  15.95  38.32  55.65   24     11
 11 Solectria SuperForce    0.50    7.00  27.14  47.29  80.93    6      2
 12 MooRocco                2.50   10.25  15.99  35.87  59.61   23     10
 13 Electrifly              6.00    7.53  18.24  32.89  52.65   25     12
 16 The Olympian            0.00   10.95  19.65  43.38  73.98   13      5
 17 Kilowatt Kamel          0.00    9.25  12.22  41.47  62.94   21      9
 32 Electric Bull           0.00   11.02  20.00  49.48  80.50    7      3
 37 UEHS Solar Tiger        1.50    9.12   0.00  27.66  35.28   28     13
 50 Sparky Spartan          1.00    8.88  16.71  40.41  65.00   20      8
 61 Solar Bolt              0.00   11.05  18.20  48.17  77.42   11      4
 66 Recharger               0.00   10.10  17.51  45.37  72.98   14      6
 71 PV EV                   5.00   10.43  15.99  46.16  67.58   18      7
 72 Sungo                   0.00    8.45  25.51  49.09  83.05    4      1
 
    DOE Hybrid
  7 Paradyne                0.00    8.94  18.55  58.70  86.20           1
  8 Electric Lion           0.50   11.28  13.63  47.44  71.85           3
  9 NJ Venturer             0.00    9.58  25.17  41.92  76.67           2
 14 Slipstream              2.50    8.16  16.25  29.68  51.59           7
 18 Kineticar III           2.00    8.82   9.40  53.45  69.66           4
 23 Viking 23               0.50    9.92   7.54  48.94  65.90           5
 24 HEV Blazer              3.50   10.37   5.00  51.42  63.29           6
 
    Solar Commuter
 20 Solar Black Bear        0.00    9.81  15.97  52.86  78.64    9      1
 38 Artemis                 0.50    9.13  23.00  36.91  68.53   16      3
 83 Sol Survivor IV         0.50    9.23  26.18  40.17  75.08   12      2
 93 Helios the Heron VI     0.00   10.41  18.32  32.31  61.03   22      4
 
    One Person
 36 Futura EVs              1.50    8.04  38.07  20.88  65.49           2
 39 Elextric scooter        1.50    8.45   8.47  11.03  26.45           4
 58 NFA Sol Machine II      0.50    8.00  34.06  31.09  72.64           1
 92 Sunpacer                5.50    4.65  29.42  33.59  62.17           3
 
 
 
 No Car Name                Overall 
                             Place  
 15 Nordic Challenger          1    
 76 Ovonic Solectria Force     2    
 67 Solectria NiCad Force      3    
 72 Sungo                      4    
 10 Sunergy                    5    
 11 Solectria SuperForce       6    
 32 Electric Bull              7    
 35 CATS                       8    
 20 Solar Black Bear           9    
 26 Ford Ranger EV            10    
 61 Solar Bolt                11    
 83 Sol Survivor IV           12    
 16 The Olympian              13    
 66 Recharger                 14    
 27 RAV4 EV                   15    
 38 Artemis                   16    
 52 Epic                      17    
 71 PV EV                     18    
 51 Epic                      19    
 50 Sparky Spartan            20    
 17 Kilowatt Kamel            21    
 93 Helios the Heron VI       22    
 12 MooRocco                  23    
  6 ERIDE                     24    
 13 Electrifly                25    
 41 Solectria CitiVan         26    
 30 Caballito Electric        27    
 37 UEHS Solar Tiger          28    


Report #43: Green Score Details

The "Green" scores for the NESEA Tour. 

Fuel Economy scores are based on Mile-Per-Gallon equivalents greater than 30 MPG(eq) for the electric categories. 

Emissions are based on a GHG value of 393 grams-per-mile for the electric categories. 

The Green scoring is explained over 3 pages in the NATdS rules.  For the details, please contact NESEA. 

  # Car Name              -----Fuel Economy----  -----Emissions----- Green
                          MPG(eq)    score rank    GHG    score rank Score
    Production
 10 Sunergy                 78.01    10.84   6   103.06   16.69   7  27.53
 15 Nordic Challenger       73.38    10.28   8   107.37   16.52   8  26.80
 26 Ford Ranger EV          33.26     5.40  25   185.98   13.35  18  18.74
 27 RAV4 EV                 46.75     7.04  16   169.56   14.01  16  21.05
 30 Caballito Electric     106.39                 63.00               0.00
 35 CATS                    67.59     9.58  10   117.02   16.13  13  25.70
 41 Solectria CitiVan       19.96     2.50  37   404.51    2.50  36   5.00
 51 Epic                    23.37     2.50  35   337.16    7.25  33   9.75
 52 Epic                    25.96     2.50  34   306.38    8.49  31  10.99
 67 Solectria NiCad Force   86.01    11.82   5   120.69   15.98  14  27.80
 76 Ovonic Solectria Force  57.69     8.37  13   114.25   16.24  11  24.61
 
    Commuter
  6 ERIDE                   31.22     5.15  30   249.00   10.81  25  15.95
 11 Solectria SuperForce    74.38    10.40   7   102.00   16.73   6  27.14
 12 MooRocco                32.42     5.29  26   251.83   10.69  28  15.99
 13 Electrifly              44.43     6.76  17   232.29   11.48  22  18.24
 16 The Olympian            42.03     6.46  20   190.05   13.18  19  19.65
 17 Kilowatt Kamel          29.24     2.50  31   276.00    9.72  30  12.22
 32 Electric Bull           42.70     6.55  19   183.40   13.45  17  20.00
 37 UEHS Solar Tiger                                                  0.00
 50 Sparky Spartan          33.36     5.41  24   236.82   11.30  24  16.71
 61 Solar Bolt              36.69     5.81  22   209.96   12.38  20  18.20
 66 Recharger               44.16     6.72  18   249.48   10.79  27  17.51
 71 PV EV                   34.43     5.54  23   257.85   10.45  29  15.99
 72 Sungo                   65.52     9.32  11   115.68   16.18  12  25.51
 
    DOE Hybrid
  7 Paradyne                47.61     7.14  15   234.00   11.41  23  18.55
  8 Electric Lion           31.63     5.20  27   308.00    8.43  32  13.63
  9 NJ Venturer             31.37     5.17  29    21.00   20.00   1  25.17
 14 Slipstream                                   114.00   16.25  10  16.25
 18 Kineticar III           26.73     2.50  33   346.00    6.90  34   9.40
 23 Viking 23               27.26     2.50  32   392.00    5.04  35   7.54
 24 HEV Blazer              22.54     2.50  36   504.00    2.50  37   5.00
 
    Solar Commuter
 20 Solar Black Bear        31.45     5.18  28   249.36   10.79  26  15.97
 38 Artemis                 56.07     8.17  14   149.38   14.82  15  23.00
 83 Sol Survivor IV         68.42     9.68   9   107.69   16.50   9  26.18
 93 Helios the Heron VI     37.76     5.95  21   210.15   12.37  21  18.32
 
    One Person
 36 Futura EVs             153.24    20.00   1    68.94   18.07   3  38.07
 39 Elextric scooter        58.49     8.47  12                        8.47
 58 NFA Sol Machine II     120.88    16.06   2    70.74   17.99   4  34.06
 92 Sunpacer                88.86    12.16   4    88.96   17.26   5  29.42


Report #44: Helios the Heron IV

In these Reports, I try to be an unbiased reporter.  But when it comes to this team, my tendency to smile more is hard to hide.  You see, the kids who have built the Helios the Heron vehicles are 4 through 8th graders, not one of whom is legal to drive the vehicle they built.  Under the guidance of Topher Waring, there science and shop teacher, they bring a combination of youthful enthusiasm and innovative thinking that is infectious. 

 Vehicle Number        93
 Vehicle Name          Helios the Heron VI
 Category              SOLAR COMMUTER CATEGORY
 Organization          Riverside School
 Team Name             Riverside School
 Town                  Lyndonville
 State                 VT
 Description           '71 VW Van, (Deka Dominator, PbA)
 new this year?        returning car and team
 No People in Project  90
 Months to Build       8
 Motor                 General Electric; Series wound; 15kW
                       cont./43kW peak
 Batteries             Deka Denominator; PbA, Jell Cells; 144 V
                       combination
 Controller            Curtis; 1231 Solid State
 Charger               Bycam
 PV Array type amount  650 W; Arco; Monocrystalline
 Construction          '70 VW Bus; Steel Frame; Steel Body
 Dimensions LxWxH      14' 6"; 5' 9"; 6' 4"
 No of Passengers      2
 Maximum Speed mph     57
 Range miles           50
 Weight pounds         2722
 Capacity pounds       350
 Brakes                Front Disc; Rear Drum; Regen
 Wheels Tires          4 Goodyear; Invicta
 Program blurb
                       Helios the Heron VI is a converted VW
                       microbus built by students in the fourth
                       to eighth grades.  This project is part of
                       their school tech ed program.  All
                       students in the school work on the
                       project.  This conversion is used during
                       the school year as a school van.  It runs
                       on a 144Vdc system, a curtis 1231
                       controller and a GE series wound 19 hp
                       forklift motor.  We are using second hand
                       solar cells in our solar array.  Helios
                       uses 24 12v Deka sealed jell cell
                       batteries in two strings of 12 each. 

Sara Burrington told me how the have improved their entry this year.  "We have have 14 new solar panels that were donated to us by the University of Vermont at Montpellier, and they are a lot lighter.  We have changed the battery box, so it distributes the weight more evenly front and back.  And we have a new, better charger.  We decorated it more.  We did a lot more painting on it, like logo designing.  We completely rewired the control panel, although we still have the same 21 horsepower motor. 

"In the back we have 12 switches that monitor the voltage the (individual) battery voltages.  Each switch has two (on) positions.  This one shows battery 1 if you push it up, 2 if you push it down."

They have 4 PulsePower battery maintenance modules.  "They see if the batteries are getting over charged.  If they are then they shut them off."

They have built a clever device that opens the battery string whenever the battery boxes are opened.  A pair of circuit breakers are mounted near the lids that cover the battery boxes.  When a lid is lifted, a metal tab flips the associated circuit breaker to OFF, isolating that string.  The result is that the maximum voltage difference exposed in any battery box is the sum of the six exposed blocks, 72 Volts. 

There are two teams of 11 kids each.  The Saturday-Tuesday crew will go home and the Wednesday-Saturday team will take over. 


Report #45: MooRocco

Painted green-and-white, in a pattern reminiscent of a Gateway Computer box, that is, something that would remind you of a cow, and sporting a license plate ELECTRK, this entry and team is new at the NESEA Tour. 

 Vehicle Number        12
 Vehicle Name          MooRocco
 Category              COMMUTER CATEGORY
 Organization          Vermont Technical College
 Team Name             Vermont Technical College
 Town                  Randolph Center
 State                 VT
 Description           1984 VW Scirocco  (Trojan, PbA)
 www                   http://www.vtc.vsc.edu/clubs/solarcar/
 new this year?        New car and team
 No People in Project  42
 Months to Build       3
 Motor                 Advanced DC; 203-06-40001A; 14kW
                       cont./48.5kW peak
 Batteries             Trojan 105 /992 lbs.; PbA; 21,600 Wh/96 V
 Controller            Curtis PMC; 1221C-7401
 Charger               K & W; Transformerless
 PV Array type amount  150 W; Solarex; NA
 Construction          VW Scirocco 84; Steel Frame; Steel Body
 Dimensions LxWxH      13' 6"; 5' 3"; 4' 0"
 No of Passengers      4
 Maximum Speed mph     85
 Range miles           60
 Weight pounds         3100
 Mfg GVW               3000
 Capacity pounds       750
 Brakes                Front Disc; Rear Drum; Regen
 Wheels Tires          4 Goodyear; Invicta
 Program blurb
                       1999 marks the first successful effort
                       by VTC to enter an EV in the NESEA Tour. 
                       Construction only began in January, but
                       the Solar Car Club was even able to load
                       the MooRocco with tiny computers linked
                       by fiber optics which send data over a
                       radio link.  This allows every aspect of
                       the vehicle's performance to be remotely
                       monitored and recorded. 

Jared Harvey told me about the battery monitoring system they have built.  "Our batteries, 10 in the back, 6 in the front, are monitored by what we call our Bottle Cap PIC Project.  We have these (plastic) bottle caps with an little circuit board inside.  We have a PIC (a _very_ small and limited microprocessor) in each bottle cap with two connectors connected across the terminals of each battery.  It checks the voltage across the battery and the temperatures of the two leads.  That way if your battery terminal is a little bit loose and it starts to heat up, we can see that.  They communicate with a "Boss PIC" through fiber-optic cable, so we don't have to worry about the battery voltages leaking -- it keeps everything separate and isolated." They have heard of terminals getting very hot and causing problems, so they figure their system can warn them long before a loose terminal overheats and starts a fire.  The Boss PIC communicates with an onboard PC and over ham radio to the chase vehicle. 

They intend to do the same thing, monitoring the brush temperatures in the DC motor. 

Inside the cabin there are the usual Volts, Amps, and E-Meter displays.  There is a stereo, but this one is also tied into the computer.  "So we can play MP3 audio" down loaded from the world wide web. 

A solar panel on the roof can be manually tilted to face directly to the sun.  Eventually they want to track the sun automatically to improve the amount of energy collected.  That also will be a PIC project. 

One unusual thing under the hood was a meter that measured the number of hours the motor has been run.  Another is they painted the teeth normally used by the starter motor on the flywheel in the transmission.  Then, by pointing an infrared LED and sensor at the teeth, they could generate a signal that would drive the original tachometer, replacing the signal that normally came from the distributor cap. 

The original alternator is still in place, used to generate electricity during braking.  That energy goes into the 12 Volt accessory battery, and then they use an inverter to boost it from 12 V to 96 V to recharge the traction battery. 


Report #46: ERIDE

Number 6 has the initials E.R.A.D. on the side, which stands for "Electric Racing and Automotive Design". 

 Vehicle Number        6
 Vehicle Name          ERIDE
 Category              COMMUTER CATEGORY
 Organization          Deer Valley School District
 Team Name             ERAD (Electric Racing and Auto Design)
 Town                  Phoenix
 State                 AZ
 Description           conversion 1994 Chevy S-10,Trojan, PBA
 new this year?        new car and team
 No People in Project  32
 Motor                 G.E. 21 hp; D.C. series wound; 15.66kW
                       cont./ 225 peak
 Batteries             Trojan/1584; T-125; 28,368 Wh/144 V; series
 Controller            PMC Curtiss Controller
 Charger               K&W BC-20
 Charger Offboard      under design
 PV Array type amount  estimated 50 watts
 Construction          Chevy s-10; steel; sheet metal
 Dimensions LxWxH      185; 67; 62
 No of Passengers      2
 Maximum Speed mph     80
 Range miles           70
 Weight pounds         3865
 Mfg GVW               4300
 Capacity pounds       250
 Brakes                Disc; Drum; no regen
 Wheels Tires          Uniroyal; P205 75/R15
 Program blurb
                       E.R.A.D. is Deer Valley High School's
                       "Electric Racing and Automotive Design"
                       club, made up of 32 students involved in
                       electric car technology and racing.  Their
                       focus is on education, environmental
                       awareness and teamwork.  Their race
                       vehicle, a 1995 Chevy S-10, has
                       successfully competed in three races. 

Manny Miller and Eric Robbins from Deer Valley High School in Pheonix AZ told me about their Chevy S-10 pickup truck conversion.  "It can be run as either a hybrid or electric.  There are 24 lead acid batteries.  There is also a solar panel for the radio slash windshield wipers slash headlights.  That way we can charge up the single battery instead of running off the other batteries.  And what's so special about our truck is we drove the truck cross country from Pheonix Arizona.  We had to tow it up the mountains because it didn't do to well, but other than that we drove it all the way as a hybrid." They took out one of the battery boxes in the truck bed and then bolted in two bio-diesel fueled Coleman electric generators.  "We hooked it up so the batteries were always constantly charged, meaning we never had to stop.  It just ran flat out; never died.  It was constantly charging." So how many miles per gallon of bio-diesel fuel did they get? They had to work it out.  "We only filled it up three times." There were two generators, hold 7 gallons each, so that's 42 gallons total.  From Phoenix to Connecticut took about 2 weeks because they went through 2 controllers and a charger.  (I've found information that suggests it was trip of about 2600 miles.  That would make the mileage something like 62 miles per gallon.  That sounds a bit high, but it would be almost all highway, constant speed driving, so I guess it's possible.  At any rate, ERIDE wins the Tom Hopper Drive-Your- Hybrid-EV-To-The-ATdS Award for 1999.  This award is my own invention, and confers upon the winners 12 months of Bragging Rights.  It was created by me in 1996 when Tom drove his Hopper EV hybrid from Concord NH to New York City, through the ATdS, and home again.) He also won in 1997.  It was not awarded in 1998.)

About 12 students worked on ERIDE entering it first in the Tour de AZ and now the NESEA American Tour de Sol.  "This was our first vehicle ever at Deer Valley High." They now have temperature gauges in the cabin for the motor, controller and the batteries.  As I left them on Saturday afternoon, they were working on getting their E-Meter back on-line. 


Report #47: Web Sites for Pictures and Teams

There are some web sites with pictures from the 1999 American Tour de Sol on them. 

                http://www.solarquest.com
 has a link ... 
        "Follow our INet News Team at the NESEA American Tour de Sol"

It leads to short reports and several pictures of each entrant.  In particular, there are a number of short reports by the Helios the Heron VI team. 

There is a web page aimed at the communications media

                members.delphi.com/tourdesol

The Sungo team from New Hampshire Technical Institute has a page of pictures and short reports. 

        http://www.geocities.com/CollegePark/Field/9376/solar1.html

Other vehicles which listed web pages on their NESEA registrations:

 Vehicle Name          C.A.T.S. (Clean Air to Spare)
 www                   www.dec.state.ny.us

 Vehicle Name          Caballito Electric
 www                   www.evpet.com

 Vehicle Name          Solectria CitiVan
 www                   http://www.nypa.gov

 Vehicle Name          Nordic Challenger
 www                   www.evermont.org

 Vehicle Name          MooRocco
 www                   http://www.vtc.vsc.edu/clubs/solarcar/

 Vehicle Name          Electrifly
 www                   http://www.ee.cornell.edu/~hev

 Vehicle Name          Nordic Challenger
 www                   evermont.org

 Vehicle Name          Kineticar III
 www                   www.nvctc5.commnet.edu

 Vehicle Name          Solar Black Bear
 www                   www.ume.maine.edu/solar

 Vehicle Name          Slipstream
 www                   http://www.ee.cornell.edu/~hev

 Vehicle Name          Ovonic Electric Scooter
 www                   www.ovonic.com

 Vehicle Name          Caballito Electric
 www                   www.evpet.com

 Vehicle Name          C.A.T.S (Clean Air to Spare)
 www                   www.dec.state.ny.us

 Vehicle Name          Solectria CitiVan
 www                   http://www.nypa.gov

 Vehicle Name          N.F.A Sol Machine II
 www                   http://www.solmachine.org

 Vehicle Name          Solectria NiCad Force
 www                   www.rideshare.com/ev

 Vehicle Name          Ovonic Solectria Force
 www                   www.ovonic.com

 Vehicle Name          Electric Lion
 www                   www.lf.psu.edu


Report #48: Chevy S10

Tom Hopper, one of my perennial favorite people at the Tour de Sol, has not entered his own vehicle this year.  Instead he as brought a Chevy S-10 Electric truck that is leased to the Sustainable Energy Ventures Club (SEVC), which used to be the Solar Electic Vehicle Club. 

 Vehicle Name          Chevy S-10
 Category              DEMONSTRATION CATEGORY
 Organization          New Hampshire Technical Institute
 Team Name             New Hampshire Technical Inst. 
 Town                  Concord
 State                 NH
 Description           Chevy S-10 (Ovonic, NMH)
 new this year?        New car, returning team
 Program blurb
                       New Hampshire Technical Institute
                       will be displaying thier
                       Chevrolet S-10 Electric pickup
                       truck.  It has a nickel metal
                       hydride battery pack for extended
                       driving range.  The S-10 Electric
                       accelerates from 0 to 50 mph in
                       10 seconds.  This is the first
                       time General Motors EV to been
                       showcased at the NESEA Tour. 

"I'm taking a break.  Actually I'm having fun this year because I'm bringing this S-10.  This General Motors S-10 has nickel metal hydride batteries and it's great fun to drive.  It's peppy, it moves right along; you can boogie with this on the highway at 65.  It's governed to 75 mph.  We drove this down from Concord NH.  We went 121 miles yesterday." They stopped to charge although Tom says they didn't need to.  Another 73 miles got them to Waterbury CT, "with quite a bit of juice left." He thinks there is about 30 kiloWatt-hours of energy on board. 

The SEVC club changed its name as it expanded.  "We did a 2 kiloWatt photovoltaic installation on the roof of our Little Hall building at NHTI.  The students did a lot of work on that, some of it for credit in the Architectural, Mechanical Engineering, and Electrical Engineering programs." Next fall they will complete another project, a 2 kW PV system, 19 by 12 feet square, on a 15 foot sun-tracking tower.  It will be power the charging station for their electric vehicles.  Actually the energy from that panel will go directly to the electric company's grid, and the contributed energy will be monitored.  The 4 SEVC vehicles, 2 used every day by the faculty and staff of NHTI, charging from the grid will also be monitored.  "All we are interested in is if we make enough energy to power the cars on a yearly basis.  If we do, then we have solar-powered cars." The NH Governor's Office of Energy and Community Services that they gave SEVC $25,000 to fund the project.  "Another $8,000 will make it happen." The eventual goal is to have the rules for solar energy generation and grid interconnection to be uniform and well understood throughout the state of New Hampshire.  "One of the reasons we got the S-10 Electric from GM is because we are doing the charging station projects."

Where is the Hopper EV? "I'm still commuting with the car every day." When we saw it last in the 1998 NATdS, Tom had just converted it to run on methanol, but was having trouble sustaining speeds above 35 miles per hour because the engine was only putting out 3.5 horsepower, which was not enough.  He now has 5.5 horsepower from the same engine and fuel.  Dr. Mike Seal of Western Washington University, the Viking 23 team, said, "what you need to do is water cool right around that exhaust valve and suck away some of that heat.  Then you can increase your compression and get more horsepower." Tom did exactly that, "and it works wonderfully! We've water-cooled this air-cooled engine with a small donut cooler right around the exhaust outlet, tight to the head, the hottest part of the engine." A tiny 6-by-6 radiator and circulating pump with a gallon-per-minute flow rate does the trick.  "That little 90 cc engine is probably developing over 9 horsepower and we're making 5.5 horsepower of electricity.  It gives me a sustainable speed of 45 or 50, and that I like."

It's likely that Tom will return with his own homebrew Hopper EV next year, possibly with a few more surprises. 


Report #49: Caballito Electric Scooter

So you live on an tropical island.  There is lots of sun shine.  Very little local petroleum.  What would you use to power a small scooter?

In 1994, Jonathan Tennyson, a long-time advocate of electric cars and solar energy applications, and one of the world's leading experts in these fields, designed and built a prototype of a fully-enclosed two- passenger car which he christened the Sunray.  In 1995 he formed the Suntera Corporation in Hawaii to develop and produce a production version.  Over two years, four engineering prototypes were built, under a matching grant from the federal Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA). 

Jonathan Tennyson died in April of 1997.  But several individuals who had been associated with Suntera decided to try to regain the momentum that had been established and to continue in the spirit of Jonathan Tennyson's 'electric power mission'.  Personal Electric Transports, Inc. was been formed, as a New York State corporation, to pursue these goals. 

So Anthony Locricchio (rhymes with Pinnochio) spends his time between Hawaii and upstate New York.  He is here with the Caballito (Spanish for "little horse"). 

  Vehicle Number        30
  Vehicle Name          Caballito Electric
  Category              PRODUCTION CATEGORY
  Team Name             Team Caballito Electric
  Organization          Personal Electric Transports, Inc. 
  Town                  Kailua
  State                 HI
  Description           Purpose-built Scooter (Long, PbA)
  www                   www.evpet.com
  new this year?        new car, new team
  No People in Project  8
  Months to Build       1 year
  Motor                 SL/MTI; 3 HP Brushless DC; 2.3 kW peak
  Batteries             Long; Lead acid, sealed; 12 volts, 3 units
  Controller            SL/MTI; With internal on-board charger
  Charger               SL/MTI
  Construction          Aluminum; Composite
  Dimensions LxWxH      60.5; 12; 40
  No of Passengers      2
  Maximum Speed mph     38
  Range miles           20-40
  Capacity pounds       370
  Weight pounds         270
  Brakes                Drum; Disc; Regenerative braking
  Wheels Tires          TBD

Anthony says they decided to go to scooters "because there are more scooters in the world than there are cars.  But they pollute at 8 to 10 times the rate at which cars do.  The ecological damage done by scooters makes them the most dangerous motorized vehicle in the world."

Electric motor scooters have been proposed before, but the Caballito is deliberately designed to standout from the crowd because of the appealing, Anthony's term is "sexy", design and style.  "Your up against some of the world's finest designers of gasoline burning scooters.  And your market is one that is very much attracted to good design." But that market is also very cost sensitive, so PET decided to stick with the inexpensive lead-acid batteries that are universal. 

And people also want a quick way to refuel.  So PET has designed a "quick-change" system that makes the battery something that simply holds the energy the customer buys.  The battery packs will serve as prepackaged "fuel tanks" that could remain the property of the service station or the electric utility company.  It essentially offers a "pay-as-you-use" plan!

The QC (Quick Change) system consists of an aluminum box with handles that contains a 12 Volt battery, wired to an Anderson connector.  When the scooter is parked on its stand, a low base with Teflon runners is placed next it.  A simple lever unlocks a door that swings up on the left hand side.  A person reaches in, unplugs the Anderson connector, and then slides the box out onto the runners and then to one side.  A replacement battery box on a cart is rolled up next to the base, slide onto the runners, and into the empty battery box comparment in the scooter.  Reconnect, lower and lock the door, slide the old pack onto the cart, and the customer can drive away. 

The scooter frame is currently made of aluminum, but they are about to move to a composite construction will be less expensive to manufacture. 

PET sees the scooter as suitable for many different markets, such as Taiwan and Costa Rica, sometimes with unusual marketing stategies.  For example, in Costa Rica the national electric company will own the batteries, and quick changes will be charged to the customer's electric bill.  In fact, the scooter itself can be bought and financed on the electric bill. 

In the United States the Caballito will not be sold at retail.  For now it will only be sold to the Los Angeles and New York state utilities. 

At some mid-point in most of the legs of the NESEA Tour, a fresh pack will be swapped into the scooter.  Energy scores will be based on the total used, as you would expect. 


Report #50: Kilowatt Kamel

Not only is Camelback High from Phoenix Arizona, a long, long way from the NESEA Tour's home turf, but they brought two vehicles from their stable; the other is number 71, the Sparky Spartan. 

 Vehicle Number        17
 Vehicle Name          Kilowatt Kamel
 Category              COMMUTER CATEGORY
 Organization          Camelback High School EV Partnership
 Team Name             Spartan EV Racing Team
 Town                  Phoenix
 State                 AZ
 Description           Chevy S-10 (Trojan 125, PbA)
 new this year?        new car and team
 No People in Project  10
 Months to Build       6
 Motor                 Advanced DC; Modified Series 9"; 19kW cont./
                       63kW peak
 Batteries             Trojan/ 1260 lbs.; PbA; 14,000 Wh/120 V series
 Controller            Raptor; 1200, DC Power Systems
 Charger               Home-made; Transformer; Rectifier
 PV Array type amount  10 w; Star Power; Crystalline silicon
 Construction          1985 Chevy S-10; Steel Frame; Steel Body
 Dimensions LxWxH      15' 0"; 5' 6"; 5' 0"
 No of Passengers      2
 Maximum Speed mph     70
 Range miles           60
 Weight pounds         3200
 Mfg GVW               3570
 Capacity pounds       370
 Brakes                Front Disc; Rear Drum; No regen
 Wheels Tires          4 Yokohama
 Program blurb
                       In 1991 Camelback High School converted a 1985
                       Chevy S-10 to electric.  4 years later the
                       truck, now known as the Kilowatt Kamel, earned
                       10 trophies in the 98-99 school year.  One of
                       the trophies is 3rd overall in all EVTC
                       competitions.  Kilowatt Kamel's crew includes
                       Charlie McElhinny, Brad Guyette, Alex Arias,
                       Kari McBride, and Michael Allison. 

Charles McElhinny explained the vehicle.  Converted in 1991, ran in the APS 500s for a couple of years and then retired for a while.  "Last year I got a real interest in it, brought it out of storage, and as a team brought it back up to race condition." There are separate teams for building the vehicles, but they all pull together for competition events. 

I had noticed that these cars and trucks from Arizona all had off- board chargers, mostly because they compete in race track events, where they go round and round in circles and the charger is always near by.  Also because they want to take out all the weight they can, and the electric track rules don't require on-board charging.  The American Tour de Sol doesn't require on-board chargers either, but they appear to me to be much more common here. 

There is a large faring that runs from the rear of the cabin roof to the truck bed, to keep the air flow over the top of the truck smooth.  It appears to me to be made of a foamed or corregated center plastic coated board.  The truck normally runs on 96 Volts of battery, 16 blocks, mounted between the chassis frame rails below the truck bed.  For the NESEA Tour, they added two more boxes, 10 blocks, in the truck bed, bringing it to 156 Volts. 

The cab has a roll cage and the dashboard is highly customized.  While the transmission is still original, the rear differential has been replaced.  The original had a 4.56 to 1 ratio, which gave great acceleration off the line, but would couldn't give them the top speed that they needed.  The changed to one with a 3.42 to 1 ratio that has helped out alot. 

They use Yokohama tires, which are slightly harder compound than the Goodyears they had been using.  The Goodyears would wear out too quickly for them, but the Yokohama's have lasted over a year so far. 

For the past 2 years the students get class credit for work on the EVs.  And the competition schedule is "at least once a month" according to Charlie.  "So between races they are pretty much torn down and being improved.  In fact, in March we had the Tour de AZ followed the next week by the APS Electric.  We had to take it from rally-ready to race-ready in 3 days.  We put the roll cage back in and go over everything bumper to bumper."


Report #51: Sparky Spartan

Camelback High School, in Phoenix, has brought two cars to the NESEA Tour.  Number 17, the KiloWatt Kamel and this just completed Porsche 914 conversion, the Sparky Spartan. 

 Vehicle Number        50
 Vehicle Name          Sparky Spartan
 Category              COMMUTER CATEGORY
 Organization          Camelback High School EV Partnership
 Team Name             Spartan EV Racing Team
 Town                  Phoenix
 State                 AZ
 Description           Porsche 914 (Trojan 125, PbA)
 new this year?        new car and team
 No People in Project  10
 Motor                 GE; Series; 14.9kW cont/60kW pk
 Batteries             Trojan/ 1260 lbs; PbA; 14,000 Wh/120 V series
 Controller            Curtis 550
 Charger Offboard      Lester; Transformer
 PV Array type amount  10 W; Star Power; Crystalline silicon
 Construction          1972 Porsche 914; Steel Frame; Steel Body
 Dimensions LxWxH      10' 0"; 4' 6"; 4' 3"
 No of Passengers      2
 Maximum Speed mph     75
 Range miles           80
 Weight pounds         2900
 Mfg GVW               1280 kg
 Capacity pounds       350
 Brakes                Front Disc; Rear Disc; No regen
 Wheels Tires          4 Michelin
 Program blurb
                       Camelback High School converted a 1972 Porsch
                       914.  The Porsche is totally reconstructed
                       from its original state.  The Porsche team
                       includes Jonathan Listar-Guest (Crew Chief),
                       Justin Davision ( Battery Specialist), Adam
                       Sporrer (Interior Design), Kevin Hirschi
                       (Electrical Specialist), Jeremy (JR) Rymond
                       (Crew), and Sean Brumley (Crew). 

I asked Kevin Hirschi how long has the car been on the road? "About a week.  The Rampage (another racing car) was scheduled to go, but this car is so much more efficient and it was almost finished, so we worked on it every night until midnight and then some." The Rampage is more of a racing car than a rally car, so they swiped its batteries and put them in the Porsche.  This is actually the second incarnation of the Porsche as an electric.  "We built it about 3 years ago, but it didn't run very well.  So we tore it apart and rebuilt it this year." They also have a Citation, built about 8 years ago. 

Adam Sporrer is very proud of the work he did on the inside of the car.  "A regular Porsche 914 doesn't have a (center) console.  We used aluminum, for weight reduction, to make the console and reconstruct the dash board." The stereo is mounted in what looks like an upside- down position.  "But when you get into the car you notice that the position is very helpful."


Report #52: 2 Scooters from Singapore

C. S. Chua of GFR (Green Fuel Resources) Technologies, based in Singapore, has brought three scooters to the NESEA Tour.  Two are competing, numbers 36 and 39, and one is for display and demonstration. 

 Vehicle Number        36
 Vehicle Name          Futura EVs
 Category              ONE PERSON CATEGORY
 Organization          Green Fuel Resources PTE Ltd. 
 Team Name             GFR Technologies
 Town                  Singapore
 Description           Motor scooter (Gold Peak, NiMH)
 new this year?        new vehicle, new team
 No People in Project  6
 Months to Build       24
 Motor                 GFR Technologies; DC Brushless; 580 W
 Batteries             Gold Peak/88 lbs.; NiMH; 12 V series
 Controller            Curtis; PWM
 Charger               Curtis 1600
 Construction          Mild Steel Frame; Reinforced Plastic Body
 Dimensions LxWxH      4' 4"; 1' 5"; 2' 4"
 No of Passengers      1
 Maximum Speed mph     35
 Range miles           50
 Weight pounds         242
 Capacity pounds       418
 Brakes                Front Disc; Rear Drum; No regen
 Wheels Tires          2 Goodyear; 3.00-10 2PR

 Vehicle Number        39
 Vehicle Name          Electric Scooter
 Category              ONE PERSON CATEGORY
 Organization          Green Fuel Resources PTE Ltd. 
 Team Name             GFR Technologies
 Town                  Singapore
 Description           Motor scooter (Gold Peak, NiMH)
 new this year?        new vehicle, new team
 No People in Project  6
 Months to Build       24
 Motor                 GFR Technologies; DC Brushless; 300 W
 Batteries             Hawker lead-acid
 Controller            Curtis; PWM
 Charger               Curtis 1600
 Construction          Mild Steel Frame; Reinforced Plastic Body
 Dimensions LxWxH      4' 4"; 1' 5"; 2' 4"
 No of Passengers      1
 Maximum Speed mph     35
 Range miles           20
 Weight pounds         242
 Capacity pounds       418
 Brakes                Front Disc; Rear Drum; No regen
 Wheels Tires          2 Goodyear; 3.00-10 2PR

Both Number 36 and Number 39 is look something like a small Vespa, with a wide faring behind the from wheel and low step-through area in front of the driver's seat. 

Number 36 is the larger of the two.  It uses a direct drive shaft which connects the 580 Watt motor, below the seat, to the rear wheel.  This particular unit is running on GP nickel metal hydride batteries, although normally they are sold with lead-acid batteries.  The battery box is below the step-through area and creates just a small bump in floor between the driver's feet.  This scooter is conventional in appearance, but the soundless operation, smooth acceleration, and snappy performance makes it pleasantly unconventional. 

Number 39 is the smaller sibling of the other.  It runs on a 300 Watt hub motor that employes rare-earth permanent magnets, built into the rear wheel.  The motor controller is also part of the hub motor, so the wiring is very simple.  One pair of wires is motor power, the other is motor control.  It was designed in answer a request for a for a small scooter that was better than a electric bicycle, but not as big or expensive as a full-sized scooter.  It has a range of about 30 kilometers.  It is running on Hawker lead acid batteries contained in a moderately sized box that sits in the step-through area. 

Both vehicles come with a quick charging capability that will bring the lead acid batteries up to 80% within an hour.  GFR has been using some Hawker batteries made with pure lead, designed for deep cycling and high current during the initial charging.  Other lead battery chemistries, such as lead calcium or lead antimony, cannot take the deep cycles and high charge currents. 

GFR thinks they could eventually sell as many as 100,000 scooters a year, especially in European and other densely populated cities. 

The first 5000 scooters should be finished by September.  Unlike the two scooters here, they will include regenerative braking. 

GFR Technologies also makes light industrial Eletric Vehicle trucks, such as used by airports, and some on-the-road EVs with ranges of 50 to 70 kilometers.  The limited commercial viability of those vehicles, because of their short range has lead GFR to look into 2-wheelers as a better business for them right now.  They also have a program looking into series-hybrid EVs. 


Report #53: HEV Blazer and Slipstream

Number 24 is the HEV Blazer and number 14 is the Slipstream, both hybrid vehicles entered by Cornell University. 

Andrew Stein explained that the HEV Blazer is a series hybrid, with a 4-cylinder unleaded gasoline engine driving a 25 kiloWatt Fisher alternator to charge the batteries.  A pair of 50 kW Solectria motors provide full-time 4-wheel drive, with one motor on each axle.  A fixed-ratio belt drive is used to each differential, so there is no transmission.  Because they are induction motors, regenerative braking is present. 

 Vehicle Number        24
 Vehicle Name          HEV Blazer
 Category              USDOE HYBRID CATEGORY
 Organization          Cornell University
 Team Name             Cornell University HEV Team
 Town                  Ithaca
 State                 NY
 Description           Chevrolet Blazer (Hawker PbA + gasoline)
 www                   http://www.ee.cornell.edu/~hev
 new this year?        New car, returning team
 No People in Project  27
 Months to Build       16
 Motor                 Brusa Gux20-T (2); 3-phase AC Induction;
                       15(30)kW/50(100)peak
 Batteries             Hawker/790 lbs.; Genesis PbA; 6,972 Wh/
                       288 V series
 Controller            Solectria; UMOC440
 Charger Offboard      Solectria; BC3300;
                       High frequency/solid state
 PV Array type amount  30 W; Solarex; thin film
 Construction          1998 Chevy Blazer; Steel Frame; Steel Body
 Dimensions LxWxH      15' 2"; 5' 6"; 5' 3"
 Hybrid                Chevy Blazer; series 1.3L; gasoline/40 mpg
 No of Passengers      5
 Maximum Speed mph     70
 Range miles           350
 Weight pounds         4500
 Mfg GVW               5350
 Capacity pounds       850
 Brakes                Front Disc; Rear Disc; Regen
 Wheels Tires          4 Goodyear; Invictas; 235/ 70R15
 Program blurb
                       The Cornell University Hybrid Electric
                       Vehicle Team has for the first time
                       entered a vehicle conversion.  The team
                       has created a four wheel drive series
                       hybrid, based on a 1998 Chevy Blazer.  Two
                       50 kW electric drive systems, powered by a
                       288 V lead-acid battery pack,
                       independently power the front and rear
                       axles.  When drained below a specified
                       level, the batteries are recharged by a 25
                       kW alternator coupled to a Chevy Metro
                       engine.  Control systems monitor vehicle
                       performance and coordinate motor usage and
                       the battery recharging process. 

They started working on the design in September, and received the vehicle in late December.  The past 5 months have gone into putting it together. 

The battery pack of 24 sealed lead acid batteries is mounted between the frame rails under the rear seat, forward of the rear axle.  The battery box is chromolly steel, electrically insulated and water proofed. 

------

The other vehicle Cornell is entering was designed from the ground up. 

 Vehicle Number        14
 Vehicle Name          HEV Blazer
 Category              USDOE HYBRID CATEGORY
 Organization          Cornell University HEV
 Team Name             Cornell University HEV Team
 Town                  Ithaca
 State                 NY
 Description           Purpose-built (Champion GNB, PbA + CNG)
 www                   http://www.ee.cornell.edu/~hev
 new this year?        returning car and team
 No People in Project  27
 Months to Build       9
 Motor                 Solectria GTX20; 3-phase AC Induction;
                       12kW cont./37kW peak
 Batteries             Champion GNB; PbA; 168v series
 Controller            Solectria 325; AC Induction
 Charger Offboard      American Monarch 520637; Transformer/Rectifier
 PV Array type amount  30 W; Solarex; thin film
 Construction          Aluminum Extrusion Frame Fiberglass Epoxy
                       Honeycomb Body
 Dimensions LxWxH      14' 2"; 5' 6"; 4' 6"
 Hybrid                Chevy Metro 1.0L Series; CNG/36.7mpg
 No of Passengers      2
 Maximum Speed mph     70
 Range miles           250
 Weight pounds         2600
 Capacity pounds       600
 Brakes                Front Disc; Rear Disc; Regen
 Wheels Tires          4 Michelin; Proxima 165/70R13
 Program blurb
                       One of Cornell University's two hybrid
                       electric vehicles, the Slipstream, is a
                       modified version of last year's purpose-built
                       entry.  The vehicle is powered by a 37 kW
                       Solectria motor, which receives energy from a
                       168 V lead-acid battery pack and is coupled to
                       the rear differential via a belt drive system. 
                       When needed, a compressed natural gas Geo
                       Metro engine replenishes the battery pack. 
                       Use of an aluminum frame and fiberglass body
                       have also contributed to a significant weight
                       savings. 

Slipstream was at the NESEA Tour last year, but had some difficulties staying in running condition.  "One of our small problems was we had a belt break on us.  Our plan had been that you could change the belt in 10 minutes.  But something got measured wrong, so that wasn't possible.  This year we have taken care of that. 

"One big problem last year was the differential broke away from its mounts midway through the competition.  We traced that back to a nut that slipped loose.  We've reinforced the mounts for that and are making sure nothing is coming loose this year. 

"Control-wise, our engine throttle controller had some flakey wiring that went in-and-out.  We've taken care of that with a more robust design."

In the past, Slipstream had both an AC motor and a DC motor capable of driving the rear wheels in parallel, through an overrunning clutch. 

"We dropped the DC motor.  We decided it wasn't necessary." They were only running the DC motor about 5 percent of the time and removing it got rid of a lot of weight and complexity. 


Report #54: Pictures on the Go on the Net

While this year is the first when we have seen a fuel cell powered _car_ at the American Tour de Sol, it is not the first fuel cell hybrid to be entered.  Last year the "Project e-" recumbant tricycle entered by the Mt Everett High School from Sheffield Massachusetts was a 3-way hybrid; hydrogen fuel cell, battery, and human (aka "pasta- burner").  The fuel cell is no longer part of the trike, but it is back, not as an entrant, but as a part of the media coverage of the Tour. 

Darrell Turner pointed out the little video camera, like the ones you see on personal computers these days, mounted on a small platform above and behind his right shoulder.  "There's a wireless video transmitter, that transmits pictures to our chase van and then they will be put on the Internet.  We're going to be taking pictures of the beginning, middle and end of the race, and anything in between." The JPEG snap shots, along with other information, can be found at

        http://www.tek2000.net/project_e-/


Report #55: Solar Tiger II

The history of electric cars is a long one, with a number of small production run vehicles in the past.  The team from Union-Endicott High School returns with their resurrected a 3-wheeled Sebring Zippper. 

 Vehicle Number        37
 Vehicle Name          UEHS Solar Tiger
 Category              COMMUTER CATEGORY
 Organization          Union-Endicott High School
 Team Name             Union-Endicott Solar Tiger
 Program Name          Union-Endicott Solar Tiger
 Town                  Endicott
 State                 NY
 Description           Purpose-built (Trojan, PbA)
 new this year?        returning car and team
 No People in Project  30
 Months to Build       24
 Motor                 Advanced DC; Series wound; 8.95kW cont. 
 Batteries             Trojan /904 lbs.; PbA; 12,800 Wh/72 V series
 Controller            Curtis; 1209B-6402
 Charger               Zivan NG3; Hi freq/ss
 PV Array type amount  138 W; Solarex; Polycrystalline silicon
 Construction          Box Aluminum ABS Frame; Polycarbonate-Plywood
                       Body
 Dimensions LxWxH      12' 0"; 4' 2"; 4' 7"
 No of Passengers      2
 Maximum Speed mph     60
 Range miles           70-80
 Weight pounds         2100
 Capacity pounds       700
 Brakes                Front Drum; Rear Drum; Non-regen
 Wheels Tires          3 Goodyear; 4.80-12 Hilander Tubeless
 Program blurb
                       Union-Endicott High School's entry is a
                       rebuilt and upgraded three wheeled electric
                       truck based on a 1992 Sebring Zippper.  The
                       Solar Tiger has been registered as a
                       motorcycle even though it has all the look
                       and features of a regular two-seater
                       automobile. 

I asked Jim Petrolawicz what was new this year.  "We worked on the solar panels, integrating them into the 12 Volt system.  We worked on the braking system, making work better without heating up the brakes.  We worked on the cooling for the motor and controller.  And we also did some body work.  Driving with the ABS plastic body cracks it slowly over time.  We installed a data collection system, based on an older police car computer.  It gives us data off the E-Meter to give us a chart of the power surges and stuff as we drive down the road." (The E-Meter is a device that collect voltage, current and state-of- charge information from the battery pack.)

NESEA requires that the cars have at least 200 miles of test driving on them before they come to the Tour de Sol.  Jim said that the unusual appearance of the Solar Tiger II got a lot of attention as the drove big loops through the county testing the brakes and acceleration. 

Between NESEA Tours, the car is shown to the public.  For example, this summer it will be shown at a Strawberry Festival. 


Report #56: HEV Blazer and Slipstream

Number 24 is the HEV Blazer and number 14 is the Slipstream, both hybrid vehicles entered by Cornell University. 

Andrew Stein explained that the HEV Blazer is a series hybrid, with a 4-cylinder unleaded gasoline engine driving a 25 kiloWatt Fisher alternator to charge the batteries.  A pair of 50 kW Solectria motors provide full-time 4-wheel drive, with one motor on each axel.  A fixed-ratio belt drive is used to each differential, so there is no transmission.  Because they are induction motors, regenerative braking is present. 

 Vehicle Number        24
 Vehicle Name          HEV Blazer
 Category              USDOE HYBRID CATEGORY
 Organization          Cornell University
 Team Name             Cornell University HEV Team
 Town                  Ithaca
 State                 NY
 Description           Chevrolet Blazer (Hawker PbA + gasoline)
 www                   http://www.ee.cornell.edu/~hev
 new this year?        New car, returning team
 No People in Project  27
 Months to Build       16
 Motor                 Brusa Gux20-T (2); 3-phase AC Induction;
                       15(30)kW/50(100)peak
 Batteries             Hawker/790 lbs.; Genesis PbA; 6,972 Wh/
                       288 V series
 Controller            Solectria; UMOC440
 Charger Offboard      Solectria; BC3300;
                       High frequency/solid state
 PV Array type amount  30 W; Solarex; thin film
 Construction          1998 Chevy Blazer; Steel Frame; Steel Body
 Dimensions LxWxH      15' 2"; 5' 6"; 5' 3"
 Hybrid                Chevy Blazer; series 1.3L; gasoline/40 mpg
 No of Passengers      5
 Maximum Speed mph     70
 Range miles           350
 Weight pounds         4500
 Mfg GVW               5350
 Capacity pounds       850
 Brakes                Front Disc; Rear Disc; Regen
 Wheels Tires          4 Goodyear; Invictas; 235/ 70R15
 Program blurb
                       The Cornell University Hybrid Electric
                       Vehicle Team has for the first time
                       entered a vehicle conversion.  The team
                       has created a four wheel drive series
                       hybrid, based on a 1998 Chevy Blazer.  Two
                       50 kW electric drive systems, powered by a
                       288 V lead-acid battery pack,
                       independently power the front and rear
                       axles.  When drained below a specified
                       level, the batteries are recharged by a 25
                       kW alternator coupled to a Chevy Metro
                       engine.  Control systems monitor vehicle
                       performance and coordinate motor usage and
                       the battery recharging process. 

They started working on the design in September, and received the vehicle in late December.  The past 5 months has gone into putting it together. 

The battery pack of 24 sealed lead acid batteries is mounted between the frame rails under the rear seat, forward of the rear axel.  The battery box is cromolly steel, electrically insulated and water proofed. 

------

The other vehicle Cornell is entering was designed from the ground up. 

 Vehicle Number        14
 Vehicle Name          Slipstream
 Category              USDOE HYBRID CATEGORY
 Organization          Cornell University HEV
 Team Name             Cornell University HEV Team
 Town                  Ithaca
 State                 NY
 Description           Purpose-built (Champion GNB, PbA + CNG)
 www                   http://www.ee.cornell.edu/~hev
 new this year?        returning car and team
 No People in Project  27
 Months to Build       9
 Motor                 Solectria GTX20; 3-phase AC Induction;
                       12kW cont./37kW peak
 Batteries             Champion GNB; PbA; 168v series
 Controller            Solectria 325; AC Induction
 Charger Offboard      American Monarch 520637; Transformer/Rectifier
 PV Array type amount  30 W; Solarex; thin film
 Construction          Aluminum Extrusion Frame Fiberglas Epoxy
                       Honeycomb Body
 Dimensions LxWxH      14' 2"; 5' 6"; 4' 6"
 Hybrid                Chevy Metro 1.0L Series; CNG/36.7mpg
 No of Passengers      2
 Maximum Speed mph     70
 Range miles           250
 Weight pounds         2600
 Capacity pounds       600
 Brakes                Front Disc; Rear Disc; Regen
 Wheels Tires          4 Michelin; Proxima 165/70R13
 Program blurb
                       One of Cornell University's two hybrid
                       electric vehicles, the Slipstream, is a
                       modified version of last year's purpose-built
                       entry.  The vehicle is powered by a 37 kW
                       Solectria motor, which receives energy from a
                       168 V lead-acid battery pack and is coupled to
                       the rear differential via a belt drive system. 
                       When needed, a compressed natural gas Geo
                       Metro engine replenishes the battery pack. 
                       Use of an aluminum frame and fiberglass body
                       have also contributed to a significant weight
                       savings. 

Slipstream was at the NESEA Tour last year, but had some difficulties staying in running condition.  "One of our small problems was we had a belt break on us.  Our plan had been that you could change the belt in 10 minutes.  But something got measured wrong, so that wasn't possible.  This year we have taken care of that. 

"One big problem last year was the differential broke away from its mounts midway through the competition.  We traced that back to a nut that slipped loose.  We've reinforced the mounts for that and are making sure nothing is coming loose this year. 

"Control-wise, our engine throttle controller had some flakey wiring that went in-and-out.  We've taken care of that with a more robust design."

In the past, Slipstream had both an AC motor and a DC motor capable of driving the rear wheels in parallel, through an overrunning clutch. 

"We dropped the DC motor.  We decided it wasn't necessary." They were only running the DC motor about 5 percent of the time and removing it got rid of a lot of weight and complexity. 


Report #57: The Forces Are With Us

(Truth in Reporting requires that I inform my readers that I own and drive a 1995 Solectria Force.)

There are six Solectria Forces entered in the NESEA Tour this year. 

 Vehicle Number        9
 Vehicle Name          New Jersey Venturer
 Team Name             Team New Jersey
 Description           1996 Solectria Force (SAFT, NiCad;
                       H-Power, H2 Fuel Cell)

 Vehicle Number        10
 Vehicle Name          Sunergy
 Team Name             The Ethel Walker School
 Description           1992 Solectria Force (Interstate,PbA)

 Vehicle Number        15
 Vehicle Name          Nordic Challenger
 Team Name             EVermont/Solectria
 Description           Solectria Force (GP Batteries, NMH)

 Vehicle Number        35
 Vehicle Name          C.A.T.S (Clean Air to Spare)
 Team Name             DEC "Team Air C.A.T.S."
 Description           Solectria Force (sedan, PbA)

 Vehicle Number        67
 Vehicle Name          Solectria NiCad Force
 Team Name             Connecticut Partnership
 Program Name          Connecticut EV/NAVC
 Description           1995 Solectria Force, modified (SAFT, NiCad)

 Vehicle Number        76
 Vehicle Name          Ovonic Solectria Force
 Team Name             Ovonic Battery Co. 
 Description           1997 Ovonic Force  (Ovonic, NiMH)

While externally they all look very much alike, internally they represent several different generations of the Solectria design and several different battery chemistries.  The New Jersey Venturer is the most heavily modified, with a back seat full of hydrogen bottles, a fuel cell where the front battery box would normally be, plus compressors and plumbing for the air and hydrogen. 

Solectria vehicles have long been common sight at the NESEA Tour, but with these six cars plus the CitiVan, they were a more of a presence. 

Missing, however, was James Worden.  In past NESEA Tours, the CEO and founder of Solectria drove their entry, but not this year.  Thus I didn't get my usual interview with him.  He usually had something interesting to say.  He and and Anita Rajin Worden, the President of Solectria, are expecting their first child, so ... 


Report #58: Ovonic Solectria Force

Ovonic Battery Company and Solectria have been a team at the NESEA Tour since 1994, demonstrating the value of high specific energy batteries in pure electric vehicles.  That year they did 214 miles on a charge, and they've been achieving better results ever since. 

Nick Karditsas is back again this year with the same car and battery pack that they first ran at the NESEA Tour in 1997.  "The battery is still running, still good, still doing 200 miles per charge.  We are here to demonstrate the durability and practicality of our product." The Generation One products were quoted at 600 cycles at 80% Depth of Discharge (DoD).  In the lab, their next generation battery products are expected to do better and also deliver higher specific power and higher charging efficiency at elevated temperatures, although Nick didn't have numbers he could quote me. 

 Vehicle Number        76
 Vehicle Name          Ovonic Solectria Force
 Category              PRODUCTION CATEGORY
 Organization          Ovonic Battery Company
 Team Name             Ovonic Battery Co. 
 Town                  Troy
 State                 MI
 Description           Ovonic Force  (Ovonic, NiMH)
 www                   www.ovonic.com
 new this year?        returning car and team
 No People in Project  6
 Motor                 Solectria; AC Induction; 15kW cont./42kW peak
 Batteries             Ovonic/800 lbs.; NiMH; 27,000 Wh/180 V series
 Controller            Solectria; AC325
 Charger               Solectria; BC3300; Transformer / Rectifier
 Construction          Geo Metro; Steel Frame; Steel Body
 Dimensions LxWxH      13' 6"; 5' 8"; 4' 6"
 No of Passengers      2
 Maximum Speed mph     75
 Range miles           150
 Weight pounds         2500
 Mfg GVW               3000
 Capacity pounds       500
 Brakes                Front Disc; Rear Drum; Regen
 Wheels Tires          4 Goodyear; P155/80 RIB
 Program blurb
                       A testament to the reliability of Ovonic NiMH
                       batteries, Ovonic Battery Company's 1997 NiMH
                       powered Solectria Force has won the Production
                       Category of the Tour de Sol for the last two
                       years.  Along the way, Ovonic set the record
                       by traveling 249 miles on a single charge
                       through the mountains of New Hampshire and
                       Vermont.  The vehicle is powered by 27kWh of
                       commercially available Ovonic NiMH batteries
                       with a specific energy of 80 Wh/kg. 

Nick told me that Ovonic owns a Toyota Prius hybrid electric car, currently being sold in Japan, which they use as a rolling laboratory.  (At one point it was slated to be in this NESEA Tour, but that did not happen.) They want to demonstrate the value of Ovonic batteries optimized for hybrid applications.  What would make a battery particularly suitable for a hybrid? "Very high specific power," Nick said.  "On the order of 500 to 600 Watts per kilogram.  And very high energy density, of course.  Other battery technologies, such as high power lead acid, have very high specific power also, but their specific energy (Watt-hours/kilogram) are very low, so to achieve the same performance they need a much heavier battery." Ovonic is also working on programs from scooters to buses.  "We have bus battery programs with California Energy Commission and bus manufacturers in Europe."

GM Ovonic recently open a full scale production facility outside Dayton Ohio, and is the company is growing quickly.  Nick says "we are looking for talented individuals with enthusiasm for events like this." Young, talented engineers can send their resumes to:

                Nick Karditsas
                Ovonic Battery
                1707 Northwood Drive
                Troy MI  48084


Report #59: Electric Lion

One of the nice things about this job of being the American Tour de Sol reporter, is I get to catch up with people year after year.  I first met Joel Anstrom from Pennsylvania State University in 1996 when the Electric Lion first showed up.  It was good to see him again although the circumstances could have been better. 

 Vehicle Number        8
 Vehicle Name          Electric Lion
 Category              USDOE HYBRID CATEGORY
 Organization          Penn State Society of Automotive Engineers
 Team Name             Penn State SAE HEV Team
 Town                  University Park
 State                 PA
 Description           1992 Ford EscortWgn (New Castle PbA + LPG)
 www                   www.lf.psu.edu
 new this year?        returning car and team
 No People in Project  25
 Months to Build       5 years
 Motor                 Solectria (2 motors); GTX-20/AC induction;
                       52 kW cont./84 kW pk
 Batteries             New Castle/504 lbs; PbA (GRP-27);
                       9,000 Wh/144 V
 Controller            Solectria; PSU Purpose-built  AC 325/Z80
 Charger Offboard      Goodall Elec; Transformer; Rectifier
 PV Array type amount  34 w; ASE Americas; Monocrystalline
 Construction          '92 Ford Escort SW; Steel Frame; Steel Body
 Dimensions LxWxH      14' 7"; 5' 3"; 4' 7"
 Hybrid                Kawasaki; 620cc series; LPG/52 mpg
 No of Passengers      4
 Maximum Speed mph     85
 Range miles           420
 Weight pounds         3450
 Mfg GVW               3766
 Capacity pounds       650
 Brakes                Front Disc; Rear Disc; Regen
 Wheels Tires          4 Goodyear; Invicta GL 185/60R14
 Program blurb
                       The Electric Lion is a five-seat Ford
                       Escort SW converted to a series-hybrid
                       electric vehicle.  The vehicle is driven by
                       an AC induction motor coupled through a
                       double-reduction transmission (one on each
                       front wheel.)  The hybrid portion of the
                       vehicle utilizes a Unique Mobility
                       generator driven by a Kawasaki V-Twin
                       engine fueled by propane.  Batteries are
                       lead-acid, provided by New Castle Battery
                       Mfg.  Co.  This vehicle has been in
                       continuous development over the past five
                       years, with a recent focus on reducing
                       emissions and boosting efficiency. 

They have a problem.  The generator off their fuel engine is fried.  "We got three years of good service out of that generator, but years of wear and tear and using it took its toll." It was designed as a 11.5 kiloWatt Unique Mobility brushless DC motor with regenerative braking capability.  Since regen is using a motor as a generator, they just made it run in full-time regen mode by taking the 3-phases and putting them through bridge rectifiers to get the DC current.  "It went south at the worse possible time.  And its not manufactured any more.  We can get a replacement from Fisher, but that's a 6 month order."

But things are not as bleak as they might appear.  "Last year we helped Cornell team weld and fix a few things on their car." When they broke a frame member during the autocross last year, Penn State had some team members stay behind and help them weld things back together.  It turns out that Cornell has what could be a replacement generator, back in the shop in Ithica NY.  "It's probably not the same voltage rating, but they are willing to loan it to us, so it's on the way down (to Waterbury CT) with one of their team members.  We'll see what happens."

I asked, if they are unable to fix the generator, could they charge by plugging in and run as a pure electric? "Since it's a series hybrid, it does have significant electric range, about 40 miles, so we could do the shorter legs.  Maybe we'll find some piece of hardware that could meet our needs."

Originally, there were supposed to be two Penn State cars in the NESEA Tour.  The Power Lion, a converted Pontiac Fiero using super capacitors didn't make it, though.  "Super capacitors have their advantages and disadvantages in a hybrid.  Batteries are only 80% efficient in returning the energy they take in.  The capacitors we are going to use return 90 to 95 percent, and they can deliver it with a lot of power.  Their weakness is that they don't store a lot of energy.  So the Power Lion, with 250 pounds of super capacitors would only have about one-tenth the energy stored in a single lead acid battery, maybe 100 Watt-hours.  That's enough energy to run a motor for 8 to 10 seconds." So the fuel engine would be running all the time, and the capacitors would collect energy during idle and braking and such.  The goals would be to gain experience with the control algorithm so it would provide the extra electric push during heavy acceleration, and to keep the engine from running in the dirty regions where the emissions are high and the fuel efficiency is low.  "We are just trying to get our feet wet with the super capacitor car and learn as much as we can." The Power Lion will be one more step along the way to understanding how to build a really great fuel/electric vehicle. 

Penn State is also entering the Department of Engery and Society of Automotive Engineering's FutureTruck Challenge with an independently controlled 4-wheel drive vehicle.  There each wheel can independently be under power, braking or coasting according to what's needed.  The promise is superior handling in even the most demanding situations.  Will the FutureTruck vehicle show up for the NESEA Tour next year? Stay tuned. 


Report #60: Pictures on the Go on the Net

While this year is the first when we have seen a fuel cell powered _car_ at the American Tour de Sol, it is not the first fuel cell hybrid to be entered.  Last year the "Project e-" recumbent tricycle entered by the Mt Everett High School from Sheffield Massachusetts was a 3-way hybrid; hydrogen fuel cell, battery, and human (aka "pasta- burner").  The fuel cell is no longer part of the trike, but it is back, not as an entrant, but as a part of the media coverage of the Tour. 

Darrell Turner pointed out the little video camera, like the ones you see on personal computers these days, mounted on a small platform above and behind his right shoulder.  "There's a wireless video transmitter, that transmits pictures to our chase van and then they will be put on the Internet.  We're going to be taking pictures of the beginning, middle and end of the race, and anything in between." The JPEG snap shots, along with other information, can be found at

        http://www.tek2000.net/project_e-/


Report #61: NFA Sol Machine II

Newburgh Free Academy first showed up at the America Tour de Sol in 1996 with a vehicle similar to the one we see here.  Their vehicle has always had a transparent cover over the frame so everyone, both the team and the public, can see the innards.  The vehicle has two large "wings" for solar cells, as yet unmounted, a smaller one in front of the driver and a much larger one behind.  Because there is only a seat for the driver, they are in the One Person Category.  Last year they had added a second seat so they could run in the Solar Commuter. 

 Vehicle Number        58
 Vehicle Name          N.F.A. Sol Machine II
 Category              ONE PERSON CATEGORY
 Organization          N.F.A. Sol Machine
 Team Name             Team Newburgh, NY USA
 Town                  Newburgh
 State                 NY
 Description           Purpose-built (PM Batteries, PbA)
 www                   http://www.solmachine.org
 new this year?        returning vehicle and team
 No People in Project  120
 Months to Build       24
 Motor                 New Generation; AC Control/DC hub;
                       3kW cont./7.5kW peak
 Batteries             PM Batteries; PbA; 2,688 Wh/84V combo
 Controller            New Generation Motors; AC
 Charger               Zivan; NG3; Hi-Freq/ss
 PV Array type amount  960 W; ASE; Monocrystalline silicon
 Construction          Purpose-built; Alum.tube Frame;
                       Lexan/Kevlar Body
 Dimensions LxWxH      16' 0"; 6' 0"; 3' 4"
 No of Passengers      1
 Maximum Speed mph     45
 Range miles           150
 Weight pounds         600
 Capacity pounds       230
 Brakes                Front Disc; Rear Disc; Regen
 Wheels Tires          2 Goodyear; 2 Bridgestone
 Program blurb
                       Sol Machine II is the most advanced
                       solar powered car in NY state high
                       schools.  It was finished in April
                       1999 after two years of intense labor
                       and teamwork on our public high
                       school campus at NFA.  The junior
                       class takes over the car each year
                       and it is then constructed by the
                       physics and welding students.  Sol
                       Machine II is a four-wheeled vehicle
                       with a see-through Lexan exterior for
                       educational purposes.  It has a
                       lightweight welded aluminum
                       chassis, an A-frame front suspension,
                       and a double swing arm rear wheel. 
                       It utilizes telemetry, photovoltaics,
                       advanced battery technology, and an
                       electric hub motor. 

During technical testing in Waterbury CT I asked Joshua Reinoehl where the solar cells were.  They had one panel on a corner of the wing, but the rest were going to be put on later.  They expect to have a kiloWatt's worth when they are done. 

They have two strings of seven sealed, valve regulated Power Mate batteries, in series, to give them 84 Volts. 

Previous Sol Machines have had three wheels, two in front and one in back, but this one has four, although the two in back are very close together, without a differential between them, and mounted in the center of the long, thin body.  The body is mostly new this year.  Before it was made of box tubing and angle aluminum.  This year it's mostly circular tubing, TIG (Tungsten Inert Gas) welded into a frame by the students.  The clear plastic panels on the side lets them point with pride to their beautiful welds. 

The front has new aluminum wheels that are just disks with rims that make them very aerodynamic and very light.  "The disk brakes are off a Honda CR80 and the bicycle disk brakes on the back are the best you can buy." When I questioned whether that would be enough to stop the car, given all the batteries, Joshua was certain that their hydraulic balancing would do the job.  A new steering rack from a drag car is lighter, and a new Kevlar seat also saved a few pounds.  The result is that this car is half the weight of its predecessor. 

They have put over 500 test miles on the car since the last Tour, so Joshua felt like he was ready. 


Report #62: Solar Tiger II

The history of electric cars is a long one, with a number of small production run vehicles in the past.  The team from Union-Endicott High School returns with their resurrected a 3-wheeled Sebring Zippper. 

 Vehicle Number        37
 Vehicle Name          UEHS Solar Tiger
 Category              COMMUTER CATEGORY
 Organization          Union-Endicott High School
 Team Name             Union-Endicott Solar Tiger
 Program Name          Union-Endicott Solar Tiger
 Town                  Endicott
 State                 NY
 Description           Purpose-built (Trojan, PbA)
 new this year?        returning car and team
 No People in Project  30
 Months to Build       24
 Motor                 Advanced DC; Series wound; 8.95kW cont. 
 Batteries             Trojan /904 lbs.; PbA; 12,800 Wh/72 V series
 Controller            Curtis; 1209B-6402
 Charger               Zivan NG3; Hi freq/ss
 PV Array type amount  138 W; Solarex; Polycrystalline silicon
 Construction          Box Aluminum + ABS Frame;
		       Polycarbonate-Plywood Body
 Dimensions LxWxH      12' 0"; 4' 2"; 4' 7"
 No of Passengers      2
 Maximum Speed mph     60
 Range miles           70-80
 Weight pounds         2100
 Capacity pounds       700
 Brakes                Front Drum; Rear Drum; Non-regen
 Wheels Tires          3 Goodyear; 4.80-12 Hilander Tubeless
 Program blurb
                       Union-Endicott High School's entry is a
                       rebuilt and upgraded three wheeled electric
                       truck based on a 1992 Sebring Zippper.  The
                       Solar Tiger has been registered as a
                       motorcycle even though it has all the look
                       and features of a regular two-seater
                       automobile. 

I asked Jim Petrolawicz what was new this year.  "We worked on the solar panels, integrating them into the 12 Volt system.  We worked on the braking system, making work better without heating up the brakes.  We worked on the cooling for the motor and controller.  And we also did some body work.  Driving with the ABS plastic body cracks it slowly over time.  We installed a data collection system, based on an older police car computer.  It gives us data off the E-Meter to give us a chart of the power surges and stuff as we drive down the road." (The E-Meter is a device that collects voltage, current and state-of- charge information from the battery pack.)

NESEA requires that the cars have at least 200 miles of test driving on them before they come to the Tour de Sol.  Jim said that the unusual appearance of the Solar Tiger II got a lot of attention as the drove big loops through the county testing the brakes and acceleration. 

Between NESEA Tours, the car is shown to the public.  For example, this summer it will be shown at a Strawberry Festival. 


Report #63: Artemis

Greg Hargrade, Alex DeCamp, Jacob Castiglione, and Matt Schmiermund are here with a new purpose-built car, a 2 year project of Brighton High School in Michigan, about 20 miles north of Ann Arbor. 

 Vehicle Number        38
 Vehicle Name          Artemis
 Category              SOLAR COMMUTER CATEGORY
 Organization          Brighton Area Schools FAMS Program
 Team Name             BHS FAMS (Ford Academy of Manufacturing) '00
 Town                  Brighton
 State                 MI
 Description           Purpose-built (Johnson Controls VRLA, PbA)
 new this year?        new car, new team
 No People in Project  10
 Months to Build       24
 Motor                 Advanced DC; Brushed; 18kW cont./36kW peak
 Batteries             Johnson Controls; 750 lbs.- PbA; 7340 Wh/72 V
 Controller            Curtis; 1209B
 Charger Offboard      K&W; BC-20; Transformer/Rectifier
 PV Array type amount  240 W; Solarex; Crystalline-silicon
 Construction          Purpose-built; Tubular chrome-moly,;
                       Steel frame, Plastic Body
 Dimensions LxWxH      13' 3"; 5' 4"; 4' 1"
 No of Passengers      2
 Maximum Speed mph     50
 Range miles           75
 Weight pounds         1500
 Capacity pounds       450
 Brakes                Front Drum; Rear Disc; Non-regen
 Wheels Tires          Goodyear; 165R15
 Program blurb
                       The Artemis is a solar-assisted electric car
                       using a 72-volt, 11 horsepower motor.  It is
                       built on a modified off-road racing vehicle
                       chassis.  It uses one-wheel drive and is
                       equipped with front drum and rear disk
                       brakes.  The car was built by last year's
                       Ford Academy of Manufacturing Scineces class
                       and has been improved by this year's class. 
                       Approximately 35 students and several staff
                       members have worked on the car.  The car
                       would not exist without the help of
                       dedicated parent volunteers. 

The car chassis is a welded tubing frame covered with a skin made from black plastic garbage dump lining.  The appearance of the heavy plastic "skin" stretched across a boxy frame gave this car the title "most likely to show up in a Mad Max movie".  Yeah, I can see that. 

"We had a chop shop make the frame.  The gentleman who made it races off-road vehicles.  He took a sand rail (the Michigan name for a dune buggy) and modified it to suit our purposes.  It has a single rear- wheel drive.  The left-rear wheel is driven by a chain off a double reduction gear." It contains a pair of racing bucket seats with 4- point harnesses. 

One unusual element was the windshield wiper -- it is manually operated, presumably by the passenger. 

They "shattered" their emergency brake yesterday, but were able to weld it back on for Sunday's testing. 

Why the name Artemis? "Loosely translated, Artemis is the Greek goddess of the environment." Very loosely.  My dictionary says she was the virgin goddess of the hunt and the moon, and twin sister of Apollo. 

"This has been a nice project.  We hope to continue and race year after year here."


Report #64: Who IS Gary Bettenhauser?

Monte Gisborne from Canada, the owner and driver of #13, the Electrifly, refers to himself in his publicity blurb as "Gary Bettenhauser of the NESEA American Tour de Sol".  I didn't know the reference, but Chris Meier (ChrisM@pptvision.com) did. 

"Gary Bettenhauser: I think that's Bettenhausen, and of Indy 500 fame.  I believe the Bettenhausen family has been trying for decades to win an Indy 500, and several family members lost their lives trying ..."

Monte is still hale and hearty, so I don't think we have anything to worry about yet.  In fact, Monte, the Durham Electric Vehicle Association and the Electric Vehicle Association of Canada are holding "The Canadian Clean Air Cruise" from Oshawa, to Scarborough, to Oakville (with stops in Pickering and Mississauga) September 11th & 12th, 1999 What is it? "It's a 100-kilometre, two-day electric vehicle rally with the sole purpose of increasing public awareness of the benefits of zero- a nd low-emission vehicles.  Patterned largely after the American Tour de Sol annual electric vehicle rally organized by the Northeast Sustainable Energy Association in the United States, the Clean Air Cruise is a scaled-down version of that event which will take the entrants on a two-day (weekend) rally from Oshawa to Oakville along popular, heavily populated commuter routes.  The public will also be afforded the opportunity to see the vehicles during six planned display periods en route.  Those unable to attend the rally can be kept informed of developments by visiting our website before, during and after the event.  This is the first such rally to be held in Canada." For more information, contact:

        Monte Gisborne, President
        Durham Electric Vehicle Association
        156 Cameron Street West
        Cannington, Ontario L0E 1E0
        CANADA

        (705) 432-1027  (home)
        (416) 291-2012  (work)
        (416) 432-7067  (cell phone)
        enviromotive@sympatico.ca
        www.CleanAirCruise.on.ca


Report #65: The Goodyear Tire Van

Goodyear Tire and Rubber Company has been a sponsor of the American Tour de Sol for many years, providing a trailer equipped with everything needed to repair, mount and balance tires for the teams.  Goodyear also generously makes new tires available to all the teams.  Bill Egan was in the trailer on Sunday afternoon in Waterbury CT.  Most of the teams had their tires shipped directly to their garages, but Bill has mounted and balanced a few over the past couple of days. 

Does Goodyear see alternative fuel vehicles becoming a significant market for low rolling resistance tires? "When the market gets here for alternative fuel vehicles, Goodyear will be ready.  That's the reason we're doing this here, now.  How soon the market will be here, we cannot predict.  But it is growing, obviously.  We've been supplying lower rolling resistance tires to our OE (Original Equipment) customers for 18 years.  It started in the energy crisis years." In particular, the coming hybrid vehicles will present new marketing challenges and opportunities. 


Report #66: Helios Has Battery Trouble

On Sunday in Waterbury, I ran into Theaura Ziegler, who is on the Helios the Heron VI team.  Part of the daily ritual is to record each of the battery block voltages after charging and before starting the day's travels. 

"We are having trouble with battery number 21.  This morning it was only at 7.5 Volts and the rest were up to 13, so that wasn't too great.  So, we are taking out battery 21, but to get at it we have to take out battery 17 also." Mia Casey and Sara Burrington were carefully labeling each of the wires before disconnecting them so they would know where to put them back when done. 


Report #67: ... And Then They Change The Rules

Ted Bohn of Team New England and the SuperForce was complaining that they changed the rules on them.  "In past years we raced the 1959 Berkeley, with is the king of efficient, but efficiency was not rewarded.  It was the most Tour Miles wins.  So we doubled our energy which means double the miles.  But _this_ year Tour Miles is only 20% of the score, and efficiency is king.  So the Berkeley is in the garage and we have this lead sled.  As soon as we go to play everyone else's game, they change the game." Ted expects to set the lead acid range record, but won't be able to win overall. 

Ted is from Wisconsin, and he's taking the SuperForce to the Midwestern Renewable Energy Fair next. 


Report #68: The Olympian

Tony Clauser and Ed Kreibick were next to this vehicle, here to "defend our 2nd place finish in 1998, but going for first." Once again they are running a mixed battery pack; 144 Volts of Optima Yellow Tops in the front, and 144 Volts of Electrosource Horizons in the back (a fact not reflected in the official database record for the team). 

 Vehicle Number        16
 Vehicle Name          The Olympian
 Category              COMMUTER CATEGORY
 Organization          Cinnaminson High School
 Team Name             Pirates
 Town                  Cinnaminson
 State                 NJ
 Description           Ford Escort (Electrosource, PbA)
 new this year?        returning car and team
 No People in Project  20
 Months to Build       36
 Motor                 Advanced DC Motors; FB1-4001 (9"); 21kW
                       cont./36kW peak
 Batteries             Electrosource; 600 lbs.-PbA;
                       1000 Wh/144 V series
 Controller            Curtiss PMC Controller; 1231C-8601
 Charger               K&W BC 250; Transformerless/solid state
 PV Array type amount  8-10 W; EPV; Amorphous silicon
 Construction          Ford Escort; Steel Frame; Steel Body
 Dimensions LxWxH      13' 10"; 5' 7"; 5' 4"
 No of Passengers      2
 Maximum Speed mph     83
 Range miles           100
 Weight pounds         3050
 Mfg GVW               3140
 Capacity pounds       360
 Brakes                Front Disc; Rear Drum; Non-regen
 Wheels Tires          4 Goodyear; P155/80 R13; Invicta GL
 Program blurb
                       Under the supervision of Mr. Oliver H. 
                       Perry, physics teacher, and Mr. Robert
                       Deats, auto shop teacher, and with
                       advice from Eastern Electric Vehicle
                       Club members, physics students at
                       Cinnaminson High School have been
                       constructing electric cars since 1978. 
                       The Olympian, a 1986 Ford Escort, was
                       first converted in 1995.  In 1997 the
                       vehicle was upgraded for the high
                       school's first Tour de Sol entry, in
                       which it placed second  in the Commuter
                       Category.  This year we have an
                       improved rear suspension, compliments
                       of Triangle Springs, Pennsauken, NJ,
                       and we will run solely on Horizon
                       batteries. 

Last year they had a _big_ plug that allowed them to pull over to the side of the road, switch packs, and continue on.  This year the two packs are connected in parallel. 

Getting The Olympian into last year's NESEA Tour was a bit of a panic, with many, many obstacles to be conquered.  Was it easier this year? "It was better.  We had a few problems with the E-Meters but they are resolved."

The car is one that follows the Bob Batson school of electric vehicle design.  (Bob Batson is the owner of Electric Vehicles of America and long time advisor to American Tour de Sol teams.) A hallmark of that design is a large insulated board under the hood with the electric motor controller, current shunt, contactors, and other elements of the electric drive system neatly laid out.  The circuit diagram _is_ the wiring, making it harder to get confused about which wire is doing what or going where.  All the high voltage and high current wires are run through clear plastic tubing, to make wire damage and short circuits that much less likely.  Bob has long advocated that a neat, clean implementation of a neat, clean design is the first step to electrical safety in an EV. 


Report #69: A Sparrow, an MG, and 2 Henney Kilowatts Visit the NESEA Tour

An almost-mint-green Corbin Sparrow was on display at the NESEA Tour in Waterbury CT on the first day of testing.  Charles MacArthur brought along his pre-production, serial number 3, Sparrow all the way from Maine, "about 40 miles above Bangor and 4 miles from nowhere." He uses it as his "town car", driving about 19 miles a day.  It costs him about a penny a mile, at the 13 cents per kiloWatt-hour he pays for electricity. 

A Sparrow is a single-person EV, that runs on 3 wheels (2 front, 1 back), that is just now becoming available as a production item. 

How did Charles get an early Sparrow? "I bought a Corbin electric motor cycle 25 years ago and rode it up Mount Washington.  I got to know him pretty well." And they have been friends ever since. 

Also in Waterbury, Jack Gretta displayed his 2 Henney Killowatt cars and a MG Midget Electric.  "I've been driving a Henney for 27 years and the Midget for 2 years.  I'm 73 and competion is too much for me any more, but I still like to talk EVs." The cars are for sale, and Jack has lots of stories about how the Henney Killowatt was produced and how he got his.  The cars themselves are quite interesting, both because of their excellent condition and because they use the technologies of early electric cars, such as relay controllers that provide different motor voltages by putting the batteries into various combinations of series and parallel wiring.  Jack can be reached at:

        Jack.Gretta@snet.net
        860 526 9085


Report #70: Sungo

Jennifer Mihalcik and Jay Patten is with Sungo from, it says on the side of the car, the SEV of NHTI.  That stands for Sustainable Energy Ventures of New Hampshire Technical Institute.  This is one of those vehicles that keeps coming back to the NESEA Tour and improves at least a little bit each year. 

 Vehicle Number        72
 Vehicle Name          Sungo
 Category              COMMUTER CATEGORY
 Organization          SEV Club of NHTI
 Team Name             SEV of NHTI
 Town                  Concord
 State                 NH
 Description           Purpose-built (Ovonic, NMH)
 new this year?        returning car and team
 No People in Project  10
 Months to Build       3
 Motors                2 Solectria; AC Induction;
                       21kW cont./28kW peak
 Batteries             Ovonic; NiMH; 15,400 Wh/144 V series
 Controller            Solectria; DC
 Charger Offboard      Ladegerat Charger; Series 300
 PV Array type amount  100 W; Arco; Monocrystalline silicon
 Construction          purpose-built; Aluminum Frame; Fiberglas Body
 Dimensions LxWxH      8' 0"; 5' 0"; 5' 0"
 No of Passengers      2
 Maximum Speed mph     100
 Range miles           175
 Weight pounds         1600
 Capacity pounds       450
 Brakes                Front Disc; Rear Disc; Regen
 Wheels Tires          4 Continental; P135/70R-13

So my annual question is, "What's new this year?"

The most obvious one is the new paint job with one of those metallic paints that changes color depending on the angle of the light.  "I love it.  Everybody loves it."

"We waterproofed the battery box." In all the rain last year they had trouble with water getting in through the ventilation.  They also did major maintenance on the brakes, with new fluid, pads, etc.  There is also a new E-Meter and cleaned up wiring. 

The car has two motors, one driving each rear wheel.  Until last year the connection was with toothed belts.  In 1998 they went to a gear box for each motor, but they ran hot.  "We ripped them all apart because the seals were way too tight.  We rebuilt them with more play in them which is what we were looking for." They also put a racing oil in the gear boxes which has helped reduce the friction a lot. 

They plan to have Sungo climb Mt Washington again this year.  Sungo currently holds the (unofficial) electric car record on that event, although the Sol Survivor folks, number 83, have built a special car to take the record away from them. 


Report #71: SuperForce

Team New England is here once again, but this year it is not the cute little red sports car they have entered in years past.  This time its a Solectria Force with a range-extension trailer.  They are a replacement entry for one of the teams that had to drop out at the last minute, so I don't have a database entry of vehicle data.  Olaf Bleck told me about the SuperForce, number 11. 

The car is one of the first 20 Solectria Forces, based on the Geo Hatchback, that was sold to Boston Edison in the early 1990s.  It has an AC induction motor tied to the front wheel drive by a toothed belt.  (The direct drive gear box was introduced about 1995.) The batteries are 28 of the Delphi advanced lead acid batteries developed for the GM EV1.  "This car does about 100 to 120 Watt-hours per mile at cruise, and has 27 or 28 kiloWatt hours on board.  The trailer weighs 130 pounds, and has about 800 pounds of batteries on it.  There are two packs of 19 8-Volt blocks, 152 Volts each, in parallel.  We're hoping it will do 150 to 180 miles.  We started working on this about a week ago and got a call from Nancy Hazard on Friday saying we had a slot in the lineup. 

"Next year we're going to have the MegaForce, with a nice trailer and aerodynamic faring that matchs the car.  It will be really sharp."


Report #72: Technical Testing Stories

George Bradford is the Co-Technical Director of the NESEA Tour, and he told me a couple of stories from the technical testing of the entrants on Saturday and Sunday. 

"Some of the people, over anxious to pass the stability test, a set of cones that they have to drive around, attacked the course with an extra amount of enthusiasm.  We dubbed the Olympian driver the `NESEA Cone Killer'.  He wiped out cones in succession four times before he made it through. 

"Just about when we started electrical testing very late in the day, the Chrysler Epic van pulls up.  We thought we're going to be with this car forever because he has to go through all the stationary tests and then all the moving tests.  It turned out that he had done everything in reverse, so he's now called `Wrong Way Corrigan'."


Report #73: Viking 23

Viking 23 is so named because there were 22 Viking cars before it, all built at the Vehicle Research Institute at the University of Western Washington.  It first showed up at the NESEA Tour in 1996, and again in 1998.  The body has been the same each time, but the drive system keeps changing. 

 Vehicle Number        23
 Vehicle Name          Viking 23
 Category              USDOE HYBRID CATEGORY
 Organization          Vehicle Research Institute, Team Viking 23
 Team Name             Team Viking 23
 Town                  Bellingham
 State                 WA
 Description           Purpose-built (Saft NiCad + RFG)
 new this year?        returning car and team
 No People in Project  10
 Months to Build       24
 Motor                 Unique Mobility; DC Brushless;
                       15 kW cont./30kW peak
 Batteries             SAFT; NiCad; 11,000Wh/100-110V combo
 Controller            Unique Mobility; Solid state 3-phase
 Charger Offboard      Xantrax; Hi-freq./solid state
 PV Array type amount  720 W; BP Solar; Silicon
 Construction          Purpose-built Frame; carbon fiber Body
 Dimensions LxWxH      14' 6"; 5' 3"; 3' 5"
 Hybrid                Daihatsu; 993cc; RFG/60 mpg
 No of Passengers      2
 Maximum Speed mph     100
 Range miles           1000
 Weight pounds         2000
 Capacity pounds       600
 Brakes                Front Disc; Rear Disc; Regen
 Wheels Tires          4 Goodyear; 135/15
 Program blurb
                       Viking 23 is a solar electric hybrid car
                       designed and constructed by students in
                       the Vehicle Research Institute at Western
                       Washington University.  The car has a
                       carbon fiver monocoque chassis and a foam
                       core carbon fiber body.  The Viking has a
                       range of approximately 500 miles at
                       highway speeds with the internal
                       combustion engine running on reformulated
                       gasoline. 

So I asked Scott Smith and Brian Jinks, during the rain shower on Sunday morning in Waterbury CT, what's different.  "It works great!" The earlier versions did also, except when it went though deep, deep puddles.  (We had a LOT of rain last year.) "We've got that all ironed out.  We've got the all the electrical system set so we are not as concerned with the water.  We've insulated all the batteries and controllers, isolated everything for ground faults, relocated electronics to be away from wet spots and place them in waterproof boxes." Will that cause thermal problems, I asked? "We've been very careful to allow a lot extra air volume.  The inlets are quite high, so the air comes up and over the body through a tortuous path."

The front wheel drive is different from last year.  A pair of brushless DC motors ganged together drive the front wheels through a Suburu 4-speed transaxle.  There is also a transmission on the rear- wheels, driven by the inline 3-cylinder engine burning reformulated gasoline. 

Now this always presented a problem.  The driver had to manage two transmissions.  (There was always the promise of computer controlled shifting, but that hasn't happened as yet.) In the previous Viking 23s, there was a double gate shift pattern.  One gate, closer to the driver would shift the front wheels' transmission, and the other, farther from the driver, would shift the rear transmission.  (I may have the nearer/farther backwards there.) Now there are _two_ shift sticks, one for each.  ((Presumably that makes the mechanisms simpler, although I still wonder about growing that extra right arm.  There is only one clutch pedal, so you don't need an extra left leg.)) In practice it isn't that difficult.  "We drove it all around town this morning just on the electric.  Run through the gears, stop and go, it works great.  The gas engine works just like a normal 4-speed gas engine driving down the freeway."

How fast will it go? "We've had it up over 100 miles per hour, and it's comfortable at 90.  The car is very aerodynamic and has a very, very low center of gravity, which makes it more stable at speed." The _top_ of the car is maybe 18 inches or 2 feet off the ground.  And the chassis and body are carbon fiber composites.  With passengers, all the batteries, full up and soaking wet, the car is less than 2000 pounds. 

The rear fuel-engine has been modified with "resonant ram and harmonic tuning.  By modifying the length of the intake runners you get resonant ram pulses which can give a boost to the intake flow at certain RPMs.  The natural vibrations of the intake pulse can provide pressure waves that push more mixture through the intake valves.  We tuned it for the cruise RPM where we want peak torque." The technique can hurt performance at other speeds, so they were careful to look at the whole range of engine important speeds.  They also can change the length of the pipe should it prove to be incorrect, by just substituting longer or shorter tubes in the air intake line.  Similar techniques can be used on the exhaust, although they have not done that there. 

Their fuel is the 10% ethanol mixture sold in California.  A 12 gallon tank should be good for 700 miles; more than enough for the entire NESEA Tour.  They will be plugging in, to recharge the batteries each night. 

They use the electric for low speed and stop-and-go driving while using the fuel engine for the higher speed steady cruising where it is more efficient.  They are using a "charge depletion" strategy.  "It's more efficient to charge the batteries from the grid than to burn gasoline to create the electric energy."

Although the car is covered in solar cells, they are only used to power the instruments.  In past years they have been used to replenish the traction batteries; now they just run the so-called hotel loads on the car. 

This is likely to be the last appearance of Viking 23 at the NESEA Tour.  They may bring the Thermo-Photovoltaic car that was displayed here in 1998.  We'll see. 


Report #74: Helping Your Competitor Compete

It's Monday morning in Waterbury CT. 

In a quick conversation with Joel Anstrom of the Electric Lion team from Penn State, I learned that Cornell _did_ provide them with a generator that they are be able to use to get their car back in the NESEA Tour.  It only required some little programing changes to adjust to the different voltage. 

This is the example of the sort of community spirit that we see year after year in the American Tour de Sol.  Here is a case where Cornell has gone way out of their way to help one of the teams that will be competing directly against them in the Hybrid Category get back in the event. 


Report #75: Helios' Team Bus

Parked along the side of Bushnell Park I saw an old school bus with the legend "Helios the Heron" on the side.  The bus belonged to June Cota's dad, Don, used the bus for hunting.  He allowed the Helios team to use it on the condition that he got to drive.  Normally, some of the kids sleep outside the bus, but when it rains, like last night, they get creative in putting eleven kids in seven bunks.  Last night the girls had to share some of the bunks, and tonight it will be the boys' turn.  Donna Primmer, mother of one of the students, says they "pack the kids in like sardines". 

Before they got the bus, it had not been used or cleaned in 10 years.  It was really nasty smelling and dirty.  But the team tackled the job of cleaning it up.  It took several bottles of 409 to clean everything.  They vacuumed and shampooed and bleached everything.  Extra bunks were put in the back. 

Donna Primmer also told me that it's possible Helios the Heron may go to Scotland on a tour for world peace.  "We're soliciting grant money and finding ways to fund sending Helios, some students, and teacher Topher Waring over."


Report #76: Orion Hybrid Bus

The first stop in the 1999 NESEA Tour was in Hartford Connecticut at about noon.  There there was an Orion Hybrid Electric Bus on display and giving occasional rides.  This Orion 6 Low Floor Bus is 40 feet long, with 32 seats, in a mixture of pair-wise forward seating and perimeter seating.  (It will also be on display in Albany New York on Wednesday.)

I asked David Mikoryak from Lockheed-Martin, maker of the drive system, what was the main driver for hybrid electric buses.  Was it the fuel efficiency? Was it the ability to make buses more accessible, with the floor just slightly above curb height? Was it the quieter operation? Or was it the lack of a diesel exhaust plume as the bus pulled away? "It as all of the above.  Most significant were the issues of fuel efficiency and emissions reduction.  Also, the hybrid drive system is modular, so it can be put in a number of bus designs with the low floor, front to rear, as in this bus.  It is also simpler, because the wheelchair lift is replaced by a simple ramp.  And we've had very positive customer feedback."

Do people notice the difference? "This bus operates in New York City, and customers do comment on the quietness, both internally and externally, and the lack of vibration in the vehicle.  They can tell its different and that it runs differently."

The bus has an 250 horsepower continuous, 300 horsepower peak, AC induction motor that drives the rear wheels through a single set of reduction gears.  There is no transmission, and hence no transmission gear shifting.  It uses a 160 horsepower, 8 cylinder, diesel engine, based on the Navistar G44E engine, to turn a generator.  It can also come with a 250 horsepower engine.  A 550 Volt battery pack, made of two strings of 23 Electrosource Horizon blocks each, is on the roof of the bus under a faring.  A Lockheed Martin controller connects the batteries to the motor, and controls the diesel engine.  The controller manages all the power requirements in response to usage demands.  The engine runs at all times, at nearly constant RPM.  The battery state of charge causes the engine to smoothly change speed from one low-emission "sweet spot" to another.  This avoids the sudden accelerations that cause diesel engines to smoke so badly.  This bus will not run in pure electric mode, because the diesel engine runs hydraulics and the brakes air compressor.  To have a pure electric mode, all the accessory loads have to be run electrically. 

"We have five running in New York City in revenue service every day, since the first of September 1998.  Other cities in New England and southern California will be taking deliveries for revenue service soon."


Report #77: The Piper on the Green

After the cars all got Bushnell park in downtown Hartford, a big, heavy, and very strong thunder storm came through, followed by a steady rain.  The teams huddled in their vehicles, or under various building overhangs. 

But there was music.  Bob Scent, a piper from Ledyard Connecticut, was playing Scottish Highland Great Pipes from the shelter of the portable stage NESEA had on the green for the arrival ceremonies.  You could hear him, through the sound of the rain, most places in the display area.  I asked him if he knew any tunes that were _not_ rain dances.  "I tried playing everything I know, but I haven't been able to make it go away."

Eventually, it did clear up.