The final leg of the World Solar Car Challenge is drawing close as the lead cars quickly approach the finish line.
Team Tokai from Japan is currently in the lead with around 160 kilometres left to Port Augusta, the final camp site stop before reaching journey’s end in Adelaide. Second placed is currently being held by the Dutch team Nuon, widely expected to make the event their fifth title win in six attempts. Nuon is currently around 200 kilometres from Port Augusta. Team Michigan is spending the night in Glendambo some hundred plus kilometres behind.
The first teams are expected to reach the finish line around midday tomorrow (Thursday 20 October, 2011) local time (around 3am for GMT time zones).
Their arrival in Adelaide will mark the end of the 11th World Solar Car Challenge; a gruelling 3000km race using solar-powered cars only across Australia from Darwin in the North to the South Coast.
Just two teams from the UK are taking part; one from Durham University and the other Cambridge University.
The race, which began last Sunday (16 October) will conclude with a ‘green car’ festival in Adelaide, with the solar cars on display until the following Sunday in Victoria Square. Along with the solar cars, members of the public will get a rare chance to test driver some of the latest low emissions models from the likes of Audi, BMW, Renault, Honda and Toyota.
All 37 teams from 21 countries are still in the competition, with only a Philippines team suffering a serious malfunction. The team’s battery exploded on day three of the four day challenge, as the team made repairs to the Sikat II car. No one was hurt and thankfully, the team were able to repair the vehicle and rejoin the challenge.
We’ll let you know tomorrow who wins and how our British teams got on.
