Land speed racing is a sport as old as the automobile, and Bill Dube and Eva Håkansson are vying for a land speed record of their own. Using an electric sidecar motorcycle with a battery comprised of power tool cells, the three-wheeled KillaJoule reached a top speed of 212 mph while using just half the available power of their zero-emissions motorcycle.
Electric land speed racing is all the rage these days, with corporate interests, state universities, and British royalty all vying to set speed records using nothing but electric power. There are literally dozens of land speed record categories, dictated by weight, number of wheels, age bracket, so on and so forth.
It’s fair to say that Bill and Eva’s field isn’t exactly crowded with competitors, but that doesn’t diminish their accomplishments in the least. Their 300-horsepower homebuilt sidecar motorcycle uses lithium-ion batteries made by A123 systems for cordless power tools, enabling the three-wheeler to top 213 mph at Bonneville this year, and averaging just over 212 mph in two runs at the salt flats. That’s to say nothing of the KillaCycle, Bill’s ride that does 0 to 60 mph in a single second. This husband and wife combo know speed.
If certified, this speed would give Killajoule a new record, beating their 191 mph debut run. Last year Eva reportedly made a 216.5 mph run, but it apparently was not made official. That obviously hasn’t deterred the Killajoule team, and they’re aiming for 224 mph or more at their next outing.
Two-wheeled motorcycles currently have a 215 mph record, and Lord Drayson’s electric race car only managed 204 mph, but the Buckeye Bullet has already eclipsed 300 mph. Can Eva and Bill take the lead in the electric land speed race?
Source: Car News Cafe
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