Team Bio

The X-Tracer is a high-performance pure battery-electrically driven low drag vehicle for the comfortable transportation of up to two persons with weekend baggage in a fully enclosed cabin. To keep aerodynamic drag at a minimum the passenger is positioned in the slipstream of the driver, resulting in a drag reduction of 50% against side-by-side seating. In order to further lower drag the vehicle runs at highway speeds on a single track similar to a motorcycle. To stabilize the vehicle at low speed and to keep it safe and stable on a slippery surface two springed and damped lateral stabilizer wheels automatically lower to the ground in less than 0,5 seconds. these are retracted at higher speeds and if road surface conditions do allow. Even in the retracted mode the stabilizer wheels protrude the main body, so the vehicle in all its normal and non-normal operation modes has two, three or four wheels on the ground. It remains controllable at all times as long as there is enough traction between tire and road surface.

The resulting low energy consumption of this vehicle concept allows it to be driven purely on batteries even on highway speed journeys over 150 miles. it has been demonstrated that to cruise at highway speed, less than 10 kW are required. For a range in excess of 150 miles no more than 200 lbs of batteries are required. Top speed is well above 120 mph, acceleration from 0-100mph is below 20 seconds.

Goetz Spiegel did a great job breaking the 10 min mark on the famous Nuerburgring Nordschleife with the ACP powered X-Tracer No. 79, exactly the same vehicle that won the tandem class at the Progressive Insurance Automotive X PRIZE in the USA in 2010.

For more information on X-Tracer Team Switzerland, check out the team's coverage on ConsumerReports.org