Last week, we received word that Voxan, a subsidiary of electric carmaker, Venturi, will attempt to break several electric motorcycle speed records in an airfield in France. This week, we’ve found that they set 11 new electric speed records, and still plan to break many more.
Voxan marked the Venturi Group’s 20th anniversary in style, setting a total of eleven new world speed records from October 30 to November 1. It even clocked a new top speed of 408 km/h.
Initially planning to set the records on the Bolivian salt flats, the team was forced to postpone until 2021 due to the current pandemic. However, it’s also the pandemic that provided an opportunity, in the form of an empty airfield to attempt records near their headquarters.
Voxan prepared three Wattman electric motorcycles to be ridden by former MotoGP rider and WSBK champ, Max Biaggi in an attempt to break twelve world speed records. These are various speed records ranging from ¼ mile to 1 mile runs from standing and running starts.
Voxan chose the Châteauroux airfield in France, with a 3.5-km runway to attempt the record. In line with FIM (Fédération Internationale de Motocyclisme) regulations, the runway meets the requirements needed to make the record official.
Speeds are measured either from a flying start or standing start over set distances in opposite directions within a period of two hours. Under Federation regulations, the final speed is the average of the two speeds recorded over these two runs.
Voxan was able to secure the record for various categories under non-streamlined and partially streamlined electric motorcycle over 300 kilos class. These speeds were set over distances of ¼ mile, 1 km, and 1 mile with standing and flying starts.
From a standing start, the bikes can hit a speed of 126.7 km/h at the end of a ¼ mile. They go on to hit 222.8 km/h at the end of a mile. What follows are their new records.
¼ mile, flying start, partially streamlined: 394.45 km/h (no previous record)
¼ mile, flying start, non-streamlined: 357.19 km/h (no previous record)
1 km, flying start, partially streamlined: 386.35 km/h (previous record: 329.31 km/h)
¼ mile, standing start, non-streamlined:126.20 km/h (no previous record)
¼ mile, standing start, partially streamlined: 127.30 km/h (87.16 km/h)
1 km, standing start, non-streamlined: 185.56 km/h (no previous record)
1 km, standing start, partially streamlined: 191.84 km/h (previous record: 122.48 km/h)
1 mile, standing start, non-streamlined: 222.82 km/h (no previous record)
1 mile, standing start, partially streamlined: 225.01 km/h (no previous record)
Finally, during the runs, the Wattman’s GPS speedometer peaked at an instantaneous speed of 408 km/h. While it’s an impressive number, the team has yet to achieve it twice and averaged for it to be counted.
Nonetheless, the team says reaching such an impressive top speed has encouraged Voxan to set its sights even higher. When they make their next attempts on a longer course, the team believes it can achieve an average speed in the region of 400 km/h (249 mph).
The Wattman is propelled by a powerful 270 kW (367 CH) engine with a unique dry ice cooling system. The team is set to take on more records until the end of 2022.
