GreenTeam, a research team composed primarily from Stuttgart University students, has presented a prototype electric vehicle that made it into the Guinness Book of Records by accelerating 0-100 km/h (0-62 mph) in 1.416 seconds.
The powertrain itself is nothing special: electric motors drive all four wheels with a combined effort of 245 PS (242 hp; 180 kW). However, the whole car is made completely from carbon fiber and is practically featherweight at 145 kilograms (320 lbs). The unprecedented power-to-weight ratio is precisely what enabled it to set a Guinness Book record.
It is noteworthy that the overload during the acceleration can reach 2.5G. The Drive points out that most Formula racecars never even exceed 2G.
The creators of the prototype claim that both the motors and the high-voltage battery used in the project were manufactured in Stuttgart, Germany.
The previous EV acceleration record of 1.513 seconds was set by a Swiss team called AMZ Racing. Speaking of production cars, the Tesla Model S Plaid counts among the world’s fastest-accelerating vehicles with a claimed 0-60 mph (0-96.6 km/h) time of 1.99 seconds. The Rimac Nevera hypercar manages the same in 1.85 seconds, but it packs nearly twice as much power at 1,914 PS (1,888 hp; 1,408 kW).