23 July 2009 - 11:00
SLS goes electric
Mercedes has confirmed that it will build an all-electric version of its gullwing SLS supercar.
This is exciting news. We've already had a quick drive in a petrol-powered prototype SLS, and it's set to be one of the cars of the year.
So the SLS could be the first true all-electric hypercar: it'll be powered by four electric motors - one for each wheel - putting out a combined 526bhp and a whopping 649lb ft of torque. The V8 petrol SLS develops 563bhp and 479bhp.
Which means the electric SLS will be quick. Merc says it'll hit 60mph in four seconds flat, which slaps it straight into genuine hypercar territory. Because it's four-wheel drive, it should be grippy, too - Mercedes engineers say that, despite the added weight of the batteries, they have managed to keep the centre of gravity as low as the petrol SLS.
We don't know how far it'll go on a single charge, but it has a slightly lower battery capacity than the smaller, less powerful Tesla Roadster, so we reckon you'll struggle to top 200 miles.
Speaking of Tesla, Daimler recently invested $50 million for a 10 per cent stake in the Californian company, enabling it to utilise Tesla's battery technology. Mercedes hasn't confirmed when we'll see the electric SLS, though the Tesla deal should enable the German firm to roll out the technology within the next year.
So, Top Gearers, what do you think of an electric SLS? Can a battery-powered coupe be a genuine hypercar?
Now watch Jeremy drive the Tesla Roadster:
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Surely the eSLS will weigh a lot more than a Tesla? Combined with lower battery capacity, I reckon it'll just about get you to the local chippy and back. Still, it'll get you there sodding quickly. Despite the center of gravity being lower, will each corner of the car not have a higher mass and therefore be more likely to cross the line of death if you slide it? Has the stig got life insurance for when he takes it round the track? Or is he a robot and therefore is not alive and does not need life insurance? What about a parts warranty? If The Stig was made by Kia, he'll be good for 7 years and have a iPod connector in his ear!
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no i just dont think its gonna work
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Recommendation: Make the hood twice as long and put a lot more AA's in there so that you can race a mushroom through France - every gas station is bound to have lots of AAs.
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So when you flog the electric SLS you will go very quickly, for about five minutes. Then you will sit by the plug for the next seventeen days waiting for five more minutes of pants-crappingly quick accelleration.
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I think it is the right way but as always things need time... The Tesla wasn't brilliant but the more of these electric sports cars there are the better they will get. I'd like to see it on the show as soon as it is finished...
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I thought that hydrogen cars looked a lot more promising... as said it is less of a change from petrol, however if the electric car technology can improve far beyond what we're seeing at the moment then it could be viable for good cars... at the moment it's just not up to scratch to replace petrol.
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Cool, i believe electric is the future. Only problem is to make lighter and longer lasting batteries. But i'm sure if the science geeks get their heads down into it we should soon have electric cars than can do 1000 miles on a single charge. Don't rule out hydrogen either. I guess its gonna end up in a battle between hydrogen and electric to power the future.
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Answer: THAT IS A STUPID IDEA, because as james said last year, the electric car will soon be killed. THE REAL ANSWER WOULD BE A HIDROGEN POWERED CAR, because it's cooler, it's a new technology, so it should be advertised by mercedes-benz, doesn't make any harm to the environment. surely it would be much easier to make a hidrogen powered supercar that can do at least 250 miles between pumps than make a heavy, galactically uncool, bit-slower-in-the-corners-but-quicker-on-the-straights-100-miles-between-pumps battery powered hypercar. how can mercedes get it so wrong?
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I just like their first road-going electric car not being a Class A or a Class Sub-A thingy, but their new flagship. That's utterly relevant.
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I just like their first road-going electric car not being a Class A or a Class Sub-A thingy, but their new flagship. That's utterly relevant.
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I just like their first road-going electric car not being a Class A or a Class Sub-A thingy, but their new flagship. That's utterly relevant.
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Yes. Why not. Range of it is pathetic, but hypercars are supposed to break down after few miles, so no problems for me.
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Batteries and hydrogen: ok so it's old and takes ages to read, but for the last time (possibly) and for all of you who only like to read about supercars... ... ?Nazi Sharks (or why Top Gear haven't done their arithmetic)?; go to http://www.claverton-energy.com, in ?Most Downloaded? on the right hand side of the front page of the site. The direct link is http://www.claverton-energy.com/download/289/ but it only seems to work when it wants to. Or just Google Nazi Sharks, actually... ... Given last week's show, with six mile long greenhouses, the quality of the arithmetic is back to where it should be :-)
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to kubika. You do realize that you still need electric/battery technology to make a hydrogen car? The difference between a hydrogen and an electric car is that the electric car stores all of its energy in the batteries. While a hydrogen car produces its own electricity. Only instead of a gas engine you have a cleaner hydrogen engine.
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NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!! The Hell! An SLS electric. Com'mon that's a crime. A proper sports car is not electric. Is a loud mouth terrifying gasoline drinker. Not an eletric cat.
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Here's an idea, stick a wireless power emitter in it which is powered by movements of an accelerometer. Then stick in a wireless power receiver which recharges the batteries. Then you should be able to extend the range of the SLS loads as it will partially recharge itself as it moves. http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/technology/8165928.stm
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What about Mercedes' other bit of engine technology where they showed a big limo powered by a 1.6 litre engine what happened to that?
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I read you have to drive differently with full-electric cars as they behave differently even with the same chassis/suspension set-up as any petrol driven cars... so with this much grunt maybe Mercedes should first advice buyers of this car to get some sort of training.
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@StigsIrishCousn - DiesOtto? I wondered about that. The diagrams I've seen of the car show three sets of batteries - behind the rear cabin, where the transmission tunnel is on the V8, and immediately in front of the firewall. I'd think that if you put a diesotto under the bonnet (ahead of those batteries) as well the heat would be too much for them, but if you replace that third set with a DiesOtto and you'd have a very good basis for a plug-in. For something like the SLS I'd like to see a slighly larger six rather than just a four though - all the efficiency savings come from plug-in electric use so you can pretty much have whatever internal combustion engine you want. Cheers
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We're obviously in transition away from simple internal combustion engines. I've enjoyed them as much as most, but since no-one is psychic we need lots of alternatives to test in the field. It has always been this way with technological shifts. Without Betamax we probably have lacked the consumer pressure to improve VHS and other alternatives.
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Now Mercedes decides to make electric cars I think they've already been beaten to that! But I guess we'll have to see.
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Please tell me that picture isn't indicative of the new car being held together by gaffa tape? I know Mercedes' reputation for build quality has nose-dived over the years but surely it's not THAT bad!?
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Now, At the front of the car did they run out of material so they just used gaffa tap to stick it together. Also in this picture it looks like someones attacked it with a hammer. But apart from all this I think it will be a very good car.
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Unless Mercedes hires a lot of people away from companies specializing in battery technology (Sony, Nokia, Motorola, etc.) I wouldn't be too sanguine about the practical reality of a totally electric hypercar.
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Oh dear, bad move mercedes. From looking at this picture i can tell one thing - This car will not look nice - look at the headlamps, the shape of the car and the roof.....yuck. the only good looking thing here is the grille. And they make it worse by making it electric? Oh dear, there goes the agility round corners, the big assed V8/V10/V12 engine and noise, and we all know that noise is just as important as looks in a Mercedes Performance car. Ill pass thanks, or ill gladly take for free then sell it.
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electric only cars are a waste of time because they take too long to charge hydrogen makes more sense. the tesla was quick but not great looking so mercedes can probably make a good looking electric car. but more effort needs to be put into hydrogen. and the thing is that a lot of cars have an electric powered vairiant so people dont have to buy a horrible gee wiz. i dont see the point in a gee wiz when the smart car can be made electric. or even with an lpg conversion the smart is very economical
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now im sorry merc but if you make this car eletric i will get a thousand polar bears and seat them loose in your factory so you cant make it any more that have been made i will set fire to it make it with a v1000 rocket engine or dont make it
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Geesh talk about poor quality in Mercedes LOOK AT IT!!!!!!!!!!!!
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The fronts got TAPE on it
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Believe it or not I actually saw one of these camouflaged versions on the road outside Port Elizabeth in South Africa........... first prototype I have spied before launch day...... friend of mine tells me this is quite common as the area has the right roads and weather conditions for final testing???. Beats me
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Lunchi commented on this article
23 July 2009
This is great news. If a car maker like Mercedes decides to jump on the electric bandwagon in a bold way like this it will surely speed up develoment of the technology. If the results are satisfying, the competition will want to put out an electric supercar of their own as well. Now we need a hydrogen-powered supercar, and we're off for a nice new betamax - vhs battle.
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