Sunraycer
Encyclopedia
The Sunraycer was a solar powered race car designed to compete in the world's first race featuring solar-powered cars. This race is now called the World Solar Challenge
. The Sunraycer, a joint collaboration between General Motors
, AeroVironment
, and Hughes Aircraft
, won the first race in 1987 by a huge margin. Lead driver was Australian Touring Car racer, John Harvey. Harvey was involved with the testing and development of the Sunraycer at the General Motors Proving Ground, Arizona.
The Sunraycer project started with a request from GM's Australian division to GM Headquarters to participate in the upcoming Solar Challenge. This race, to be held in Australia
in late 1987 would feature purely solar powered cars. Roger Smith
, the CEO of GM, was immediately interested in the idea and he agreed to fund a study to see if a solar powered car could be built within 10 months. Smith hired AeroVironment
to do the study. A month later, AeroVironment engineers concluded that a highly competitive car could be built within the time available. AeroVironment, led by their famous owner/engineer Paul MacCready
was given the contract to build what would be called the Sunraycer.
During the conceptual process, the constant goal was to create a very low-weight and ultra-low wind resistance vehicle. With this in mind, AeroVironment produced a design (resembling a futuristic streamlined cockroach) that proved to be very lightweight (only 585 lb (265.4 kg)) and created a very low drag co-efficient (Cd: 0.125). Sunraycer was fast and capable of a top speed of 109 kilometre per hour.
A total of 8800 solar cells were manufactured and installed by a team, from Hughes Aircraft, which had a great deal of experience with photovoltaic cells used in the many communications satellite
s that they designed and built. At high noon, the car would generate about 1500 watt
s of power.
The engine was created for the Sunraycer by GM using a brand new magnetic motor based on Magnequench magnets recently invented by the GM physics department. This new motor was lightweight and efficient motor; GM stated its motor efficiency
was around 92%.
Aside from the driver, the single heaviest element in the car was the Hughes battery pack that utilized silver-oxide batteries
. These batteries were included to provide extra power when passing trucks, to smooth out the performance of the vehicle, and because the race rules mandated driving only between the hours of 8 AM to 5 PM, but the cars were allowed to charge their batteries from sunlight even when they were not on the road. (So, the battery allowed driving during allowed hours even when the weather was overcast.)
The frame of the car weighed just 14 pounds. AeroVironment engineers made use of Kevlar
for the shell of the car. The Sunraycer was tested through the spring and summer of 1987, and it had no problems. During the testing period, the team had the time to set a new world speed record with the Sunraycer, achieving a speed of 36 mph (58 km/h) from solar power alone (breaking the old record by 10 mph).
in the north of Australia, to Adelaide in the south. The race course followed the Stuart Highway
for nearly the entire trip, going past Alice Springs in the middle of the continent.
The Sunraycer, with John Harvey driving won the pole position
with the fastest speed of all the 24 contestants (109 km/h) and from the start of the race to the end, it was always in first place. It raced the 1867 miles (3,005 km) with an average speed of 41.6 mph (66.9 km/h), finishing the race in just 5.2 days. This was 50% percent faster than the second place vehicle (which arrived in Adelaide two days after the Sunraycer). Roger Smith, the GM CEO, went to Adelaide to congratulate his winning team.
In June, of the following year (1988), the Sunraycer smashed the solar powered speed record with a top speed of 75.276 mph (121.145 km/h) (set in Mesa, Arizona). For comparison, the winning car in the 2005 World Solar Challenge was the Nuna 3
which had a top speed of 140 km/h (87 mph) and cruised with speeds of 110 to 120 km/h (av. speed 103 km/h for entire 3000 km). This record held until it was broken by UNSW Sunswift in January 2011.
The Sunraycer was a very expensive car to build (slightly less than $2 million 1987 dollars all told) and at the time it was not considered feasible to create a car for the American car market based on solar power. Instead, the idea was to create an electric powered car.
The Sunraycer led directly to the creation of the GM Impact, an electric powered car (also designed by AeroVironment with help from both GM and Hughes). In turn, the GM Impact led to the EV-1
, which was leased to customers for a few years in the late 1990s before being retired and scrapped. GM now has a series hybrid electric car (with propulsion only by the electric motor) called the Chevy Volt which is was introduced to the US market in late 2010.
World Solar Challenge
The World Solar Challenge is a solar-powered car race which covers through the Australian Outback, from Darwin to Adelaide.The race attracts teams from around the world, most of which are fielded by universities or corporations although some are fielded by high schools...
. The Sunraycer, a joint collaboration between General Motors
General Motors
General Motors Company , commonly known as GM, formerly incorporated as General Motors Corporation, is an American multinational automotive corporation headquartered in Detroit, Michigan and the world's second-largest automaker in 2010...
, AeroVironment
AeroVironment
AeroVironment Inc. is a technology company in Monrovia, California, and Simi Valley, California, that is primarily involved in energy systems, electric vehicle systems, and unmanned aerial vehicles . Paul B. MacCready, Jr., a famous designer of human powered aircraft, founded the company in 1971...
, and Hughes Aircraft
Hughes Aircraft
Hughes Aircraft Company was a major American aerospace and defense contractor founded in 1932 by Howard Hughes in Culver City, California as a division of Hughes Tool Company...
, won the first race in 1987 by a huge margin. Lead driver was Australian Touring Car racer, John Harvey. Harvey was involved with the testing and development of the Sunraycer at the General Motors Proving Ground, Arizona.
The Sunraycer project started with a request from GM's Australian division to GM Headquarters to participate in the upcoming Solar Challenge. This race, to be held in Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
in late 1987 would feature purely solar powered cars. Roger Smith
Roger Bonham Smith
Roger Bonham Smith was the Chairman and CEO of General Motors Corporation from 1981 to 1990, and is widely known as the main subject of Michael Moore's 1989 documentary film Roger & Me....
, the CEO of GM, was immediately interested in the idea and he agreed to fund a study to see if a solar powered car could be built within 10 months. Smith hired AeroVironment
AeroVironment
AeroVironment Inc. is a technology company in Monrovia, California, and Simi Valley, California, that is primarily involved in energy systems, electric vehicle systems, and unmanned aerial vehicles . Paul B. MacCready, Jr., a famous designer of human powered aircraft, founded the company in 1971...
to do the study. A month later, AeroVironment engineers concluded that a highly competitive car could be built within the time available. AeroVironment, led by their famous owner/engineer Paul MacCready
Paul MacCready
Paul B. MacCready, Jr. was an American aeronautical engineer. He was the founder of AeroVironment and the designer of the human-powered aircraft that won the Kremer prize...
was given the contract to build what would be called the Sunraycer.
During the conceptual process, the constant goal was to create a very low-weight and ultra-low wind resistance vehicle. With this in mind, AeroVironment produced a design (resembling a futuristic streamlined cockroach) that proved to be very lightweight (only 585 lb (265.4 kg)) and created a very low drag co-efficient (Cd: 0.125). Sunraycer was fast and capable of a top speed of 109 kilometre per hour.
A total of 8800 solar cells were manufactured and installed by a team, from Hughes Aircraft, which had a great deal of experience with photovoltaic cells used in the many communications satellite
Communications satellite
A communications satellite is an artificial satellite stationed in space for the purpose of telecommunications...
s that they designed and built. At high noon, the car would generate about 1500 watt
Watt
The watt is a derived unit of power in the International System of Units , named after the Scottish engineer James Watt . The unit, defined as one joule per second, measures the rate of energy conversion.-Definition:...
s of power.
The engine was created for the Sunraycer by GM using a brand new magnetic motor based on Magnequench magnets recently invented by the GM physics department. This new motor was lightweight and efficient motor; GM stated its motor efficiency
Engine efficiency
Engine efficiency of thermal engines is the relationship between the total energy contained in the fuel, and the amount of energy used to perform useful work...
was around 92%.
Aside from the driver, the single heaviest element in the car was the Hughes battery pack that utilized silver-oxide batteries
Silver-oxide battery
A silver oxide battery , not to be confused with a similar but different silver–zinc battery, which is a secondary cell, is a primary cell with relatively very high energy/weight ratio. They are costly due to the high price of silver...
. These batteries were included to provide extra power when passing trucks, to smooth out the performance of the vehicle, and because the race rules mandated driving only between the hours of 8 AM to 5 PM, but the cars were allowed to charge their batteries from sunlight even when they were not on the road. (So, the battery allowed driving during allowed hours even when the weather was overcast.)
The frame of the car weighed just 14 pounds. AeroVironment engineers made use of Kevlar
Kevlar
Kevlar is the registered trademark for a para-aramid synthetic fiber, related to other aramids such as Nomex and Technora. Developed at DuPont in 1965, this high strength material was first commercially used in the early 1970s as a replacement for steel in racing tires...
for the shell of the car. The Sunraycer was tested through the spring and summer of 1987, and it had no problems. During the testing period, the team had the time to set a new world speed record with the Sunraycer, achieving a speed of 36 mph (58 km/h) from solar power alone (breaking the old record by 10 mph).
The Race
The race, in November 1987, was from DarwinDarwin, Northern Territory
Darwin is the capital city of the Northern Territory, Australia. Situated on the Timor Sea, Darwin has a population of 127,500, making it by far the largest and most populated city in the sparsely populated Northern Territory, but the least populous of all Australia's capital cities...
in the north of Australia, to Adelaide in the south. The race course followed the Stuart Highway
Stuart Highway
The Stuart Highway is one of Australia's major highways. It is a segment of Australia's Highway 1 extending from Darwin, Northern Territory, in the north, via Tennant Creek and Alice Springs, to Port Augusta, South Australia, in the south—a distance of...
for nearly the entire trip, going past Alice Springs in the middle of the continent.
The Sunraycer, with John Harvey driving won the pole position
Pole position
The term "pole position", as used in motorsports, comes from the horse racing term where the number one starter starts on the inside next to the inside pole. The term made its way, along with several other customs, to auto racing. In circuit motorsports, a driver has pole position when he or she...
with the fastest speed of all the 24 contestants (109 km/h) and from the start of the race to the end, it was always in first place. It raced the 1867 miles (3,005 km) with an average speed of 41.6 mph (66.9 km/h), finishing the race in just 5.2 days. This was 50% percent faster than the second place vehicle (which arrived in Adelaide two days after the Sunraycer). Roger Smith, the GM CEO, went to Adelaide to congratulate his winning team.
In June, of the following year (1988), the Sunraycer smashed the solar powered speed record with a top speed of 75.276 mph (121.145 km/h) (set in Mesa, Arizona). For comparison, the winning car in the 2005 World Solar Challenge was the Nuna 3
Nuna
Nuna is the name of a series of manned solar powered vehicles that won the World solar challenge in Australia four times in a row, in 2001 , 2003 , 2005 and 2007...
which had a top speed of 140 km/h (87 mph) and cruised with speeds of 110 to 120 km/h (av. speed 103 km/h for entire 3000 km). This record held until it was broken by UNSW Sunswift in January 2011.
On Tour
GM put the Sunraycer on tour and it was transported to many events across the U.S. GM also made a promotional film about the Sunraycer aimed at middle-school and high-school students. The film (about 30 minutes long) was narrated by one of the drivers of the Sunraycer. The Sunraycer was then donated to the Smithsonian museum by GM.The Sunraycer was a very expensive car to build (slightly less than $2 million 1987 dollars all told) and at the time it was not considered feasible to create a car for the American car market based on solar power. Instead, the idea was to create an electric powered car.
The Sunraycer led directly to the creation of the GM Impact, an electric powered car (also designed by AeroVironment with help from both GM and Hughes). In turn, the GM Impact led to the EV-1
General Motors EV1
The General Motors EV1 was an electric car produced and leased by the General Motors Corporation from 1996 to 1999. It was the first mass-produced and purpose-designed electric vehicle of the modern era from a major automaker, and the first GM car designed to be an electric vehicle from the...
, which was leased to customers for a few years in the late 1990s before being retired and scrapped. GM now has a series hybrid electric car (with propulsion only by the electric motor) called the Chevy Volt which is was introduced to the US market in late 2010.