Volkswagen To Run 2018 Pikes Peak Race with New Electric Car

Volkswagen is currently producing an all-electric race car to take on the famous Pikes Peak International Hill Climb.

The 2018 Pikes Peak mountain race will take place in Colorado Springs, Colorado on June 24th of next year. Starting in 1916, this racing event spans 12.5 miles with an elevation of 14,000 feet above sea level! The German car manufacturer has made it pretty clear that it is taking on a green initiative with its effort to have a large electric car fleet. This new project will certainly shed some light into Volkswagen’s agenda to become the leading producer of EVs. By the year 2025, the automaker will already offer 23 all-electric models to the public.

Volkswagen is scheduled to enter the Modified Electric division of the Hill Climb. The brand will also build a car specifically designed and engineered to take on that feat. Its goal is to set a new record at the finish line with its all-new, all-electric, and all-wheel drive prototype.

According to Volkwagen,

"“The vehicle is being developed by Volkswagen Motorsport in close cooperation with Technical Development in Wolfsburg.”"

In a press release, Dr. Frank Welsch, Member of the Board for Development, said:

"“The Pikes Peak hill climb is one of the world’s most renowned car races. It poses an enormous challenge and is therefore perfectlly suited to proving the capabilities of upcoming technologies.“Our electric race car will be equipped with innovative battery and drive technology. The extreme stress test posed by Pikes Peak will give us important feedback that will benefit future development, and it will showcase our products and their technologies.”"

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The Pikes Peak International Hill Climb through the Rocky Mountains is also secretly known as the “Race to the clouds.” The current record in the electric class was set by Rhys Millen with his e0 PP100  in 2016, coming out with a time of 8 minutes 57.118 seconds. That same year, a Tesla Model S set the record for a production car at 11 minutes and 48.264 seconds.

Apart from the teaser image you see below, we do know that the EV will feature an all-wheel drive system. This suggests that the car will use at least two electric motors, but could have up to four. The individual electric motors would power each wheel and consequently provide better torque vectoring. This is important because it sends power to specific wheels as a means of helping with control and handling.

We cannot wait to see if Volkswagen can achieve their goal and surpass it. Stay tuned to find out. It’s sure to be a rocky ride!

Source: Motorsport