World’s longest-range electric car unveiled by TUM students

By Team IO

Students from the Technical University of Munich (TUM) have developed the longest range electric car in the world, says the university in a press release. The team drove more than 2,573 kilometers on a single battery charge. As part of the IAA Mobility fair, the team competed for the new world record at the Munich airport. The test lasted an entire six days, during which the team slept on cots in an airplane hangar.

The TUfast Eco team faced a marathon and not a sprint if they were to land a new world record for TUM. It ultimately took six days before the final the results were in: The longest range electric car in the world is from Munich. In pursuit of the Guinness world record, the student initiative modified the “muc022”, which the team had already used to take part in competitions for efficient electric cars. Concentrating primarily on aerodynamic design and lightweight construction, the young engineers installed a larger battery with an output rating of 15.5 kilowatt hours to bring the vehicle up to world-record class.

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Munich airport made the record run possible, providing an empty airplane hangar. The hangar meant that the team would still be able to set the world record even under poor weather conditions. The mark to beat was set by the previous recordholder at 1608.54 kilometers. The TUM team managed to cover that distance in only four days. But since the battery on board the muc022 still wasn’t empty, the team kept right on going. At the end of the trip, after 99 hours on the road the odometer showed 2.573,79 kilometers. In terms of energy, the result also means the TUfast Eco team consumed only 0,6 kilowatt hours to drive 100 kilometers. By way of comparison: Extremely economical series vehicles consume approximately 13 kWh for 100 kilometers.

International competitions

In addition to attempts at record-breaking, the TUfast Eco team participates in international competitions such as the Shell Eco Marathon on a regular basis. Here the group puts their expertise to the test with teams from other universities in a variety of disciplines. Here among other things the possibilities of autonomous driving play a certain role. “Countless hours of work in addition to our studies went into preparing for the record. This makes us all the more happy that we now hold the world record. The muc022 had already succeeded in several competitions, and now this is the crowning achievement. Our thanks go to everyone who supported us,” said TUfast Eco team.