The 1979 version of the UBC Electric Car, preparing for its appearance this month. in. an. American competion, :has left its secluded West Mall garage home on_the University of B.C. campus to begin outdoor testing. In ‘its’ three years of evolution, the Electric Car project. has_iny loline-powered vehicle, he said, designed to meet the requirements.. of. the 1972 contest for a safe, low- pollution vehicle.. But the Electric Car is powered by a series of lead- acid batteries, said Peabody, - similar to the batteries used to power electric forklifts. than 100 UBC engineering students, from both the Mechanical and Electrical Engineering departments. . Eight students have worked full time during this summer to prepare the vehicle for the SCORE . (Student ‘Competitions on Relevant Engineerin contest which begins on d-=-that—the—use—6 batteries as a power source has some advantages for an energy-efficient vehicle. For instance, the réchargeable batteries require only an overnight charging. process that is simply done by plugging the vehicle into a standard ¢ Wally Wagon was a capacity of the-batteries-also- forced the engineers to use a -Volkswagen gasoline heater | to heat the vehicle, Peabody said, so the Electric Car still has a gasoline cap and a small gasoline tank. The “brains” of the vehicle is. a computer system that monitors the-engine and the _ctions of the driver to e=nos= efficient -.- operation of the vehicle. One of the Electric Car’s most innovative features is _ the braking system, Peabody said, as it is used to regenerate some electrical. power to recharge the batteries. The regeneration Driver. ‘THERE check, but Frank: Page B7, August 19, 1979 - Sunday News supervissi of the University of B.C. Electric Car project, still has to spend time looking under the hood. The Electric Car is entered in a contest for energy-efficient vehicles. that-began August 12 in Detroit. The project has received funding from a number of individuals and organizations, and has favolved more than 100 engineering students in its three years ofevolution. (Peter Menyasz photo) The past performance of drivers is. becoming a key factor in ‘earning the Safe Driving Vehicle Discount. Robbie D. Sherrell, President of the Insurance Corporation. of British The batteries can be cha ed only takes place when the - rakes August 12 in Detroit, capital of America’s automobile industry. Project co-ordinator Frank Peabody said that he expects the Electric Car to perform well in the com- petition that will likely in- clude about 50 vehicles. He added that there will only be about six electric vehicles, the other}, éntries being gasoline ~— or hydrogen- powered, or powered» by some other means. “The contest has switched objectives to go for an energy-efficient vehicle,” said Peabody. He added that the current contest is dramatically different from the 1972 contest at which the Wally Wagon, the UBC engineering faculty's entry, won the overall competition. Air isn't Service stations in the United - States are now permitted to charge customers for services such as checking oil, inflating a aPC ET Gy ee, Under a directive issued by the U.S. Department of Energy effective August 1, 1979, gas retailers are limited to a 15.4 cent (per gallon mark-up over the Deal with experience « Deal with Quality © Déal with a winning team fo. and Gordon Import Autos Ltd. 10th & Alma, Vancouver 733-8105 Dealer No 6087 i to 85 to 90 per cent of maximum capacity* in _as little as four hours. But the batteries are not — without problems, said Peabody. One drawback is their massive weight of 1200 pounds, which brings the total weight of the vehicle to almost 4000 pounds, he said. He added that another drawback is the amount of energy that can be stored in the batteries. “The 1200 pounds of battery store about the same amount of energy as a cup of gasoline.” Because of this; he said, the Electric Car has a range of only about 50 miles if driven at 45 miles ‘per hour. And the limited storage but this is the first vehicle that has, been able to recharge i its own power cells to some extent. The 1979 Electric Car utilizes a DC (Direct Current) motor that drives - the front wheels of the - vehicle and is capable of producing speeds up to 60 miles per hour. Funding for the three-year project has been provided by various government agencies, private industry, and interested individuals: The cost of employing the eight engineering students for the work this summer was paid for by the B.C. ministry of labour through their Youth Employment Program. | free anymore wholesale price of gasoline and extra overhead costs must be recouped from the customer. "YOR. Se mabices espite Ztheir legal en- titlement. . The BCAA has _ had reports of onc gas station in Washington State charging customers 15 cents for paying with a credit card. ent swine ; tat 3 oy gat gad ee Sn Most.s cue HUMES Columbia in-elaborating on their previous résidence. area of People acquiring a second or third vehicle will not have discounts .affected by the claims. record of the first vehi “This “means each- claim is a i the change, originally—an- nounced last spring for implementation September 1, said an estimated 100,000 vehicle owners will benefit. Starting September 1, B.C. drivers “buying vehicle insurance will receive a discount on the basis of their own accident record. Gone will be the requirement that a motorist must pay an Autoplan premium for six months before being entitled to the discount. “It’s a positive step for- ward,” said Sherrell. “The emphasis is being shifted from the vehicle to the driver so that eligibility will hinge on the driver's claim record.” The change means that new residents will be eligible for discounts according to their claim-free record in SELL IT CLASSIFIED 986-6222 center oMECHANICAL BRAKES *@ALIGNMENTS *BOOY WORK *PAINTING RV REPAIRS - ; @CAMPERS, ETC *ARA APPROVED SHOP RENTAL CARS & TRUCKS AVAILABLE RITCHIE SERVICE CENTER. 1525 WELCH ST. 1) MARINE * ; ORTH VAN. CAPRANO PEMBERTON , 987-71 11 ran ne WELCHST a | fp RITCME | 1525 directly to the vehicle in- volved and the vehicle owner is penalized once for each claim. Columbians the Province British returning td after an absence will also be: discounts © depending on their claim- eligible for free records, while vehicle owners whose discounts were restricted by the six month criterion, will be eligible for greater discounts at their next renéwal. Once again, this is based on their claim records. Existing licenced drivers will be eligible for one, two or three year discounts when making new and renewal imsurance purchases, ac- cording to their claim records on the vehicles. _ LEASE ME__ 1979 CHRYSLER NEW YORKER Newly licenced drivers buying and i insuring a vehicle for the first time, must earn “the discount year by year. For example, one year of _claim-free driving will earn a one year discount. 4 ’ onus on the driver by recognizing past per- formance as a key factor in earning the Safe Driving Vehicle Discount.” _ He stressed one important factor continuing after September 1, and _ that centres on vehicle use by drivers other than the owner. 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