ThePenIsMightier
07-08-2020, 01:55 PM
Lambo enters "Hyper Car" market using super-capacitors rather than big voltage motors.
Driving.ca article link:
https://driving.ca/lamborghini/auto-news/news/the-2021-lamborghini-sian-roadster-ups-the-hybrid-game-with-supercapacitors
Article pasted:
The 2021 Lamborghini Sián Roadster ups the hybrid game with supercapacitors
BY DAVID BOOTH
ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED: JUL 8, 2020
The 2021 Lamborghini Sian Roadster
Lamborghini
Porsche had the 918; McLaren, the P1; and Ferrari the LaFerrari. Now Lamborghini finally has a hybrid hypercar in its lineup. But, befitting the distinctive route Santa’Agata Bolognese often takes to high performance, the Sián Roadster is an electrified supercar like no other.
No surprise, the Sián starts with Lambo’s tradermark V12, this one producing a healthy 785 horses at a screaming 8,500 rpm. Still somewhat traditional is that it incorporates a 34-horsepower electric motor in its gearbox. It’s a 48-volt system, more of a “mild” hybrid than the powerful high-voltage item seen in many hybrids.
Well, that doesn’t sound like Lamborghini at all now does it? There’s nothing “mild” about the Countach, Rambo Lambo or anything else the Italian company has designed since its origins in 1963. Well, as you might suspect, there is something radically different about the Sián’s take on electrification.
Rather than going for max power, our Italian friends went for minimum weight. Instead of a lithium-ion battery, the Sián uses a supercapacitor, storing its electrical energy in an electric field rather than chemically.
Why the big deal about supercapacitors? Well, for one, they can dump their energy even more quickly than a battery, promising even more immediate throttle response. Another advantage, say the Sián’s engineers is that, unlike a lithium-ion battery – which has a limit to how quickly it can be recharged – the supercapacitor can be charged and discharged at the same rate. That means the capacitor is recharged 100 per cent every time the Sián brakes.
More importantly, capacitors are extremely lightweight, Lamborghini claiming its supercapacitor – so small its located in the bulkhead between the engine and the cabin – and electric motor together weigh only 34 kilograms. That means – and Lamborghini’s press bumf makes a huge deal of this – the Sián’s e-motor puts out one hp per kg. I am not sure how remarkable that really is, but the point is not lost.
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For now, Lamborghini is not yet telling us how much torque the e-motor adds to the equation. Thirty-four horses hardly seems worth the trouble, but such systems usually add 100 or more foot-pounds of torque, which should pump up the bottom end. Indeed, the e-motor only works up to speeds of 130 kilometres an hour, so we suspect the low-end torque improvement far outweighs those paltry 34 horses.
Essentially, the e-motor is working like a small electric supercharger, adding grunt until the revvy V12 hits is stride. Whatever the case, the Sián is no slouch, the total of 819 hp good enough for 2.9-second zero-to-100-km/h acceleration and a top speed of more than 350 km/h. No word on any fuel economy improvement.
There’s no use complaining how much the new Sián costs – 2,510,000 Euros or about CDN$3.8 million – because, trust me, your plaints will fall on deaf ears. Lamborghini says it is only building 19 of the hyper hybrid Roadsters and, according to the company’s official missive, “all are already sold.” Incredible as it may be, it would seem Lamborghinis, no matter how much they cost, sell out as quickly as they accelerate.
Driving.ca article link:
https://driving.ca/lamborghini/auto-news/news/the-2021-lamborghini-sian-roadster-ups-the-hybrid-game-with-supercapacitors
Article pasted:
The 2021 Lamborghini Sián Roadster ups the hybrid game with supercapacitors
BY DAVID BOOTH
ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED: JUL 8, 2020
The 2021 Lamborghini Sian Roadster
Lamborghini
Porsche had the 918; McLaren, the P1; and Ferrari the LaFerrari. Now Lamborghini finally has a hybrid hypercar in its lineup. But, befitting the distinctive route Santa’Agata Bolognese often takes to high performance, the Sián Roadster is an electrified supercar like no other.
No surprise, the Sián starts with Lambo’s tradermark V12, this one producing a healthy 785 horses at a screaming 8,500 rpm. Still somewhat traditional is that it incorporates a 34-horsepower electric motor in its gearbox. It’s a 48-volt system, more of a “mild” hybrid than the powerful high-voltage item seen in many hybrids.
Well, that doesn’t sound like Lamborghini at all now does it? There’s nothing “mild” about the Countach, Rambo Lambo or anything else the Italian company has designed since its origins in 1963. Well, as you might suspect, there is something radically different about the Sián’s take on electrification.
Rather than going for max power, our Italian friends went for minimum weight. Instead of a lithium-ion battery, the Sián uses a supercapacitor, storing its electrical energy in an electric field rather than chemically.
Why the big deal about supercapacitors? Well, for one, they can dump their energy even more quickly than a battery, promising even more immediate throttle response. Another advantage, say the Sián’s engineers is that, unlike a lithium-ion battery – which has a limit to how quickly it can be recharged – the supercapacitor can be charged and discharged at the same rate. That means the capacitor is recharged 100 per cent every time the Sián brakes.
More importantly, capacitors are extremely lightweight, Lamborghini claiming its supercapacitor – so small its located in the bulkhead between the engine and the cabin – and electric motor together weigh only 34 kilograms. That means – and Lamborghini’s press bumf makes a huge deal of this – the Sián’s e-motor puts out one hp per kg. I am not sure how remarkable that really is, but the point is not lost.
RELATED
Lamborghini’s fourth model could be an all-electric 2+2
This Lego kit is the only way to get your hands on a 2020 Lamborghini Sian
For now, Lamborghini is not yet telling us how much torque the e-motor adds to the equation. Thirty-four horses hardly seems worth the trouble, but such systems usually add 100 or more foot-pounds of torque, which should pump up the bottom end. Indeed, the e-motor only works up to speeds of 130 kilometres an hour, so we suspect the low-end torque improvement far outweighs those paltry 34 horses.
Essentially, the e-motor is working like a small electric supercharger, adding grunt until the revvy V12 hits is stride. Whatever the case, the Sián is no slouch, the total of 819 hp good enough for 2.9-second zero-to-100-km/h acceleration and a top speed of more than 350 km/h. No word on any fuel economy improvement.
There’s no use complaining how much the new Sián costs – 2,510,000 Euros or about CDN$3.8 million – because, trust me, your plaints will fall on deaf ears. Lamborghini says it is only building 19 of the hyper hybrid Roadsters and, according to the company’s official missive, “all are already sold.” Incredible as it may be, it would seem Lamborghinis, no matter how much they cost, sell out as quickly as they accelerate.