AT LEAST two Nissan LEAFs will be taking part in this year’s Future Car Challenge on Saturday.
The challenge is one of three flagship events owned by the Royal Automobile Club taking place over the coming weekend.
The other two are the London-to-Brighton Veteran Car Run and the Regent Street Motor Show. Together they comprise the largest free-to-watch annual motoring spectacular in the Britain, if not the world.
The Future Car Challenge itself, which is 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 possible.
The event is a real-world test of current and future vehicle technology and provides a unique platform for manufacturers such as Nissan to display and demonstrate their vehicles to the public.
This year the number of awards has increased for production vehicles and prototype vehicles. Organisers will be looking for winners in the following categories: the most energy efficient vehicles by size and type (saloon, sports car, light commercial vehicle etc.), best electric, extended range, hybrid, hydrogen and internal combustion engine vehicles.
A wide variety of vehicles will be competing in this year’s event. For example, event sponsor Bosch has entered a Mercedes-Benz E300 Bluetec Hybrid. It has a 27bhp electric motor, powered by a lithium ion battery, installed in the automatic transmission and a 2.2-litre turbodiesel engine. It delivers in excess of 60mpg and has a top speed of 144mph
Well-known people
Renault UK has entered four cars including its new flagship electric car, the ZOE, which was shown ‘in the metal’ for the first time earlier this year at the Geneva Motor Show.
Aside from the machinery, a host of well-known people are gearing up to take part in the challenge. Ben Collins, the former Stig from Top Gear, and Coronation Street actor Tony Hirst will both be driving Nissan LEAFs in the event.