Charging through the Alps
Article from TÜV SÜD Journal 3/2010
 | Demonstrating the durability and reliability of electric vehicles and getting people excited about the new technology: This is the aim of e-miglia 2010. The world's first rally for electric cars will hit the road this summer on a journey from Munich to northern Italy – and will definitely create a few trials by fire in Alpine passes. |
Drivers of classic sports cars or U.S. road cruisers made in the 1960s already know the feeling: the admiring looks of other motorists and the quiet murmur that arises among people sitting at street-side cafés when the drivers roll slowly by – usually accompanied by the purr of power situated directly under the hood. People who drive small cars rarely have the pleasure of experiencing such attention – but when it comes to this particular vehicle, the story is quite different. Wherever the colorfully decaled car constructed on the basis of a Fiat 500 turns up, people turn and take notice: in Telfs in Tyrol, in Steinach am Brenner or in the elegant spa town of Meran. Electric cars are still rare sights on roads today– particularly such an eye-catching one as the Karabag 500 E, whose hood and fenders are covered with TÜV SÜD logos and the words »e-miglia 2010.«
At the moment, the Karabag 500 E is only a harbinger: That will change at the beginning of August, when an entire caravan of such vehicles will roll through the mountains, magnetizing people they encounter along the way. The fleet will generally consist of small cars made by little-known companies like Think of Norway or remodeled vehicles that were originally designed to use internal combustion engines. Cars that sport power sockets in place of exhaust systems and fuel tanks. The cows grazing in the pastures and the hikers ambling along sidewalks in the valley will hear sounds that are no louder than those produced by the legion of racing and mountain bikers who test their physical limits by climbing Alpine passes at this time of year: only a slight whir produced by the friction of tires meeting asphalt.
The world's first rally for electric cars is scheduled for this summer: the e-miglia 2010. About 30 teams from all parts of Europe will pull out of Munich at the beginning of August 2010 bound for Rovereto in northern Italy – electric vehicles with two, three or four wheels. The route of more than 500 kilometers will lead the drivers through beautiful natural and mountain settings in Germany, Austria and Italy. On the way, they will negotiate the main chain of the Alps and several passes.
Legendary road races as role models
The name of the rally is designed to stir emotion, calling to mind the Mille Miglia, a rally held in Italy from 1927 to 1957. From Brescia, a city located not far Lake Garda, the most advanced sports and touring cars of their day once set off for Rome. They had to cover roughly 1,000 miles – about 1,600 kilometers – usually on unpaved roads. The legendary road race was resurrected in the 1970s as a tourist attraction.
But the idea of demonstrating the performance ability of new technology in a publicity-generating way during a multiday rally is much older. At the beginning of the 20th century, Europe's roads were populated by only a few vehicles. Compared with horse-drawn carriages, these vehicles were considered unreliable. The German-Englishman Hubert von Herkomer, who made a fortune in London as a portrait painter, wanted to promote the development of more sporty and tougher touring cars. In 1905, he started the Herkomer-Konkurrenz, the world's oldest touring-car race. The starters included representatives of the ruling royal families of Prussia and Bavaria as well as industrial pioneers like August Horch, Heinrich Opel or Vincenzo Lancia. Over a route of nearly 1,000 kilometers, the cars demonstrated during the attention-getting event that they were something more than sporty toys: They showed that, deep down, they were really dependable means of transportation. The racing director of e-miglia, Richard Schalber, intends to make this point for e-mobility as well: »Electric mobility is frequently considered to be somewhat boring. We want to use a competitive event to show that the technology is not just suited for urban settings. We want to demonstrate that e-cars can be sporty and sexy, and have no reason to hide in the shadows of the internal combustion engine.«
The route of the rally is definitely challenging: From Munich, it will pass through Hohen Peißenberg to Füssen, the end of the first stage. The route will then run through the Fern Pass and Innsbruck on the trip to southern Tyrol. Once on the southern side of the Alps, the vehicles will have to negotiate several major passes: After leaving Sterzing, they will climb the Jaufen Pass, tackling an altitude difference of 1,100 meters in the process. The vehicles will face a similar altitude challenge during the trip from Bolzano to the Mendel Pass, and a difference of about 900 meters in altitude will be involved in the stage from Trento to Folgaria Pass. The ultimate destination of the rally is Rovereto, a city of about 40,000 residents roughly 20 kilometers east of Lake Garda. Such journeys are nothing to gasoline- and diesel-powered vehicles – but for e-cars? »They can handle it,« says Schalber, who has already traveled the route in e-cars made by various companies.
The lure of a leisurely pace
Daily stages of 120 and 140 kilometers may test the limits of some batteries. After all, most manufacturers list the range of their vehicles between 100 and 150 kilometers. For this reason, Schalber will set up a battery-charging station along each daily route. The e-cars may be charged up to four hours at these stations. »In the end, though, it really comes down to the driver. Those who drive defensively and economically will be able to make the climb up to the passes. And those who use up energy on the trip down from the passes, instead of recharging the battery by applying the brakes, will have little hope of making it.«
Schalber expects the average speed will be around 45 km/h – nothing compared with the speeds he used to travel in his younger years: As an enduro and moto-cross driver, Schalber captured several national and international titles in the 1970s and 1980s. While putting together the e-miglia, he fell in love with the lure of the leisurely pace. »You still move forward even at slow speeds, and you are also much more relaxed than you are when you drive aggressively.«
It will take the e-miglia autos roughly 11 hours to complete one of the scenic routes. Summer vacationers who race down the Inntal and Brenner autobahns from Munich to Rovereto need about one-third of the time to cover the same distance. The e-miglia brings together competitive challenges and marketing objectives. The rally will stop in the state capitals of Bavaria, Tyrol, Southern Tyrol and Trentino. Some of the cities are planning to hold receptions for the teams. And some new business opportunities may even arise for people along the route: A hotel operator at the foot of the Fern Pass is considering setting up a charging station for e-cars and bicycles. After all, it takes several hours to charge the batteries – more than enough time for lunch or an overnight stay.