Cloud Accelerates Student-Built Solar Racer to World Record and Beyond
On a test circuit at the Australian Automotive Research Centre (AARD) in Wensleydale, Victoria, a group of students from the University of New South Wales (UNSW) claimed the Guinness World Record for the ‘Fastest EV over 1000km on a single charge’, with their student-built solar car, Sunswift 7.
The solar-powered electric vehicle claimed the Record in under 12 hours, with an average speed of 85km/h. Sunswift 7 is the latest in a long line of successful solar-powered cars from UNSW since the first vehicle was produced in 1996. The car weighs just 500kg, about one quarter that of a Tesla, and boasts efficiencies due to its aerodynamic design and build.
At the UNSW School of Engineering, the Sunswift Racing team of 89 student innovators from disciplines including software engineering, industrial design, and electrical engineering are redefining the future of sustainable transport through the research and development of solar electric vehicle technology.
The Sunswift Racing Team is part of a university research program called Vertically Integrated Projects, a program that allows students to engage in ambitious, long-term multidisciplinary project teams.