We had already seen an electric pickup truck with Tesla’s Cybertruck debut last year, but now, we are getting a glimpse into the possibilities of a Tesla-powered all-electric race car.
Damian Butcher of Driftech Electric Racing built an electric race car that is powered by a Tesla Large Drive Unit. The 992-pound vehicle is able to put out 603 horsepower (450kw), according to Electrek, which, for a go-kart-sized car, is pretty darn fast.
The vehicle made its debut at the Sydney EV Expo last month. YouTuber BrunoPoweeer (whose real name is Bruno Bari Buccianti) got to see the car up close during the expo and posted a video to his YouTube channel about it.
The team behind the electric go-kart mounted the Tesla Drive Unit upside down, which was able to improve the overall handling of the vehicle. The batteries of the car are on the left side, which balances out the weight of the driver on the right side.
Aside from a Tesla engine, the go-kart also contains a 400 V LiPo battery, an EV control unit, and a dashboard touchscreen. Butcher said that the vehicle took three weeks to make.
“We’ve probably over-engineered it a little more than we needed to in the event that we end up doing normal track runs. It will spend most of its life racing in hill climbs, hence remove as much weight as we actually can,” Butcher told Buccianti in the video.
Overall, it cost about $100,000 to build the Tesla-run race car, so you’re probably better off with the much cheaper $40,000 Tesla Cybertruck.
Tesla CEO Elon Musk unveiled the Tesla Cybertruck in November. While not everyone has responded positively to the truck’s futuristic-looking style, its specs are definitely impressive for an electric truck. It has seating for up to six, an onboard air compressor, a towing capacity of 14,000 pounds, a range between 250 to 500 miles depending on the model, and semi-autonomous technology.
Some diehard Tesla fans even want to see a Lego version of the Cybertruck. One Lego Ideas user has received 7,000 out of the 10,000 supporters needed for a proposed Lego Cybertruck model. The prototype is complete with a front trunk and tailgate opening and closing function.
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