Electric vehicle wins student motorsport race
An electric vehicle has, for the first time, won the Institution of Mechanical Engineers' Formula Student event.
ETH Zurich, from Switzerland, stormed to victory with a total of 921.3 points last weekend, as 2,000 students from around the world battled for the prestigious title at the Silverstone racing track.
Run by the IMechE, Formula Student challenges student engineers to design, build and race a single seat racing car in one year.
The cars are then judged on their speed, acceleration, handling and endurance in a series of time-trial races, while the teams are tested on their design, costing and business presentation skills.
Jon Hilton, chairman of Formula Student, said: "Many congratulations to ETH Zurich on their very well deserved win.
"The electrically powered cars have made huge progress going from being unable to complete the 22Km endurance event to winning overall in just five years. We are delighted by this progress but we will have to see what needs to be done in the future to ensure petrol cars remain competitive."
