A WIDE range of low-emission vehicles – some of which had not been seen on UK roads before – completed the third annual Brighton to London RAC Future Car Challenge on Saturday November 3.
The event, sponsored by RAC Motoring Services, was first introduced in 2010 to showcase low-energy-use vehicles. It features competitors driving electric, hybrid, hydrogen and low-emission conventional petrol and diesel cars on a 63-mile route from Brighton to London, using the least amount of energy as possible. The event is a real-world test of current and future vehicle technology.
Those taking part ranged from enthusiasts and independents driving their own vehicles to major car manufacturers. Many of the vehicles will not be on sale for two or more years or have rarely been seen on UK roads. Others, such as Nissan’s all-electric LEAF, have been for sale for over a year and have thousands of owners around the world.
The entrants started from Madeira Drive, Brighton at 7.30am and were flagged off by the Mayor of Brighton & Hove, Councillor Bill Randall. Many well-known personalities took part including Coronation Street actor Tony Hirst and Ben Collins, formerly the Stig on Top Gear, both of whom were in Nissan LEAFs.
Collins, now a Hollywood stunt driver, said: ‘Over the years I’ve driven practically every car on the planet. The pace of change in technology has been phenomenal, especially for electric and hybrid cars where fuel efficiency is finally being matched by performance.
‘It’s great to be involved in the RAC Future Car Challenge with British Gas, because it’s British Gas which is rolling out the charging infrastructure to make electric cars and vans a practical reality. This superb event showcases just how far electric vehicles have come, how easy they are to use and how affordable they are to run.’
Smooth DJ Mark Goodier, also part of the British Gas Team, said: ‘I’m a huge supporter of the RAC Future Car Challenge. Even though I’ve been driving electric vehicles for a decade, they’re still very new to most people.
‘As the current owner of two EVs, it’s great to see so many car manufacturers and British Gas coming together to show people how accessible this technology has become. I’ve experienced first-hand how EVs can have a significant impact on people’s carbon profile in both the home and their motoring.’
An excellent event
As part of the event, there was a halfway stop at Central Sussex College, Crawley before entrants began arriving at the finish at Imperial College, Pall Mall from just after 10.30am. They were then paraded under RAC escort to The Regent Street Motor Show.
Speaking at the presentation ceremony in Regent Street, Tom Purves, Chairman of the RAC, said: ‘This has been an excellent event and I want to thank all the drivers, entrants and sponsors who put so much effort into making it a success. It attracted a huge crowd along at Regent Street and has once again brought the future of motoring to the attention of the public.’
Overall Production Car winner was Renault, with their new flagship electric car, the ZOE. The five-door ‘supermini’ has an official range of up 130 miles and can be charged to 80 per cent of its battery capacity in half an hour.