Many of us have always considered go karts as the bantam cousins of those heavier, muscular yet sublimely aerodynamic F1 cars. But these petite mechanical contraptions can yet pack a powerful punch, in spite of their super-tiny frame, as proven by an electric go kart by the name of Linde E1. This e-kart has managed to accelerate from 0 to 60 mph in 3.4 seconds, creating a new category for the Guinness World Record in the process, as such an attempt had never been recorded before.
The fascinating endeavor was organized by the vehicle’s parent company – Linde Material Handling, a German warehouse truck producer. It was a part of an auto-racing competition of Allgemeiner Deutscher Automobil-Club Gran Turismo Masters Weekend, supported by the German ADAC automotive club.
The go kart itself was created specifically for this momentous occasion, while the manufacturers incorporated the same drive train used in their lift truck, inside this speedy vehicle. But the production process distinctively differed in the case of batteries, as this car was infused with an advanced lithium-ion battery pack in comparison to lead acid batteries used by the trucks.
For the examining process, a team from the Guinness World Record specially installed a ‘performance gauging’ mechanism inside the car for measurement of its run time. And complying with GWR guidelines, the pint-sized vehicle took two definitive spurts across the laps, and their average was calculated to be around 3.4 secs for reaching from 0-60 mph. And to think, all of this was done in a zero emission mode!
All images courtesy: Guinness World Records
Source: MSNBC
