Tiger Tales

Solar Express

More than ‘just’ a sun-powered 3,000km odyssey from Darwin to Adelaide, the World Solar Challenge represents the future of overland travel, says ERIK CHMIELEWSKI

PHOTO: HANS PETER

You can see some extraordinary things in the Australian outback. Brilliant sunsets over the rugged landscape, kangaroos bounding through the dust and, every now and then, the gleaming flash of what looks like an oversized metallic cockroach whizzing down the highway.

It’s not a mirage. It’s actually a preview of the world’s automotive future. And chances are that the technology being tested on that unbending stretch of the Stuart Highway will soon find its way into the family hatchback.

That’s why, for over two decades the World Solar Challenge has attracted some of the world’s finest young engineers and the interest of its leading vehicle manufacturers. Since 1987, universities, schools, private consortia and a few eccentric individuals have descended on the outback in the Northern Territory and South Australia to test their research, innovation and self-belief in the planet’s foremost solar car rally.

One such team is Melbourne’s Aurora Vehicles Association, which has been involved from the start and boasts a win and four second-place finishes. “When we started, the vehicles were pretty boxy and fragile-looking, with massive but horribly inefficient solar panels bolted to the roof,” recalls David Fewchuk, chairman of the private organisation. “They’re a far cry from the sleek, aerodynamic machines that will zoom along the road this year.”

Gone are the days when only a handful of entrants were expected to finish the 3,000km journey from Darwin to Adelaide – the rest falling victim to cloud-cover, headwinds or a simple lack of speed. This year, almost all of the cars should finish the ultra long-distance drive in less than six days, with many achieving speeds to rival most four-cylinder sedans while using about the same amount of power as a hairdryer.

Unfortunately for the drivers, that’s generally where the similarities end. For their vehicles to maintain reasonably high speeds over such a long distance, driver comfort must take a backseat to lightweight efficiency. There’s no air-conditioning for starters, which is a bit of a problem when you’re driving a vehicle that has been specifically designed to absorb sunlight. Of course, when the air-con in our trusty sedans goes bust we simply wind down a window. In a solar car this isn’t an option – aerodynamic demands mean that there are no side windows. Nor are there comfortable plush seats, a CD stacker or even a passenger to talk to. For the solar car driver, there’s just the hum of the tyres, the crackle of the two-way radio and the sight of a ribbon of bitumen cutting through what may be the world’s most awe-inspiring landscape.

The World Solar Challenge was the brainchild of Danish-born adventurer Hans Tholstrup, who steered a solar-powered vehicle from Sydney to Perth in 1982. A keen advocate of sustainable energy, Hans came up with a challenge for researchers that was as simple as it was groundbreaking – build a car capable of crossing Australia as quickly as possible, fuelled only by sunlight. In 1987, that challenge was taken up when 24 teams from Australia, Europe, the US, Pakistan and Japan assembled in Darwin for the inaugural World Solar Challenge.

Since then, it has become commonplace at this time of year to see these surprisingly fast vehicles of the future slicing through the desert while sharing the highway with, among others, massive “road-train” cattle trucks that utterly dwarf them. At night, competitors simply bed down close to their vehicles under a brilliant canopy of stars.

For many of the participants, this is their first visit to Australia, where they’re fortunate enough to experience first-hand the continent’s remarkably diverse landscape – from the tropical rainforests at the “Top End”, to grasslands and then the desolate and fascinating gibber stone desert. In the course of the journey, they’re treated to the beauty of the MacDonnell Ranges and the Simpson Desert near Alice Springs while also experiencing “The Breakaways” around Coober Pedy. Eventually, they come to the majestic, rugged peaks of the Flinders Ranges, a few hours north of Adelaide, then travel onwards through lush farmland as they near the finish line. Then it’s party time as these modern adventurers kick up their heels and reflect on their achievement – two states, one continent and a staggering 3,000km. All thanks to the power of the sun.

And few party more enthusiastically than the Netherlands’ Delft University of Technology team, whose Nuna cars have won the last four World Solar Challenge events. Naturally, they’re returning to defend their title yet again.

“We have a strong group of young engineering minds every year designing the best car they can think of, with just one goal – crossing the finish line in Adelaide in first place,” says team advisor Diederik Kinds.

But it’s not just about speed. The teams do take in the scenery. “One word: awesome,” he adds. “The Stuart Highway is a pleasure to drive on. It’s pretty varied, with mountains, winding roads and forest up north and nothing but impressive expanses down south. We have tourists and locals next to the road cheering and road-train drivers helping out when we need to pass them.”

This year marks the tenth World Solar Challenge and also signals the pioneering event’s coming-of-age – from poor cousin to motor-racing to full-fledged member of the high-speed fraternity. Last year, administration of the event was handed over to the South Australian Motorsport Board, which also stages the Clipsal 500 Adelaide round of the V8 Supercar Championship Series.

Under the watchful eye of Solar Challenge race director Chris Selwood, the solar cars will be joined by a new legion of environmentally friendly vehicles. Carrying familiar names such as Holden, Honda and Toyota, these production vehicles will take part in the inaugural Eco Challenge – a seven-stage race which also crosses the continent from north to south. Together, the World Solar Challenge and the Eco Challenge make up the Global Green Challenge. “The new event aims to test the latest advances in sustainable energy and ‘green-vehicle’ technology,” says Chris, “And show how purely solar-powered cars have helped the electric, hybrid, alternative fuel and low-emission vehicle industry, now being developed by the big automotive names.” David of Aurora agrees: “The technologies mix very well because once you engineer a vehicle to run efficiently on electricity, it’s not a huge step to integrate solar power.”

And apparently it won’t be long before that step is taken. Joining the Eco Challenge this year is a Tesla, the world’s first fully electric production car, capable of accelerating from 0 to 100km/h in just four seconds and of achieving a top speed of 200km/h.

The 2009 Global Green Challenge begins in Darwin, with the Eco Challenge flagging off on 24 October and the World Solar Challenge getting under way the next day. With solar cars travelling as far as they can between 8am and 5pm each day, and the Eco Challenge vehicles covering fixed distances, the leaders are expected to reach Alice Springs on Tuesday 27 October and to cross the finish line in Adelaide two days later.

The Eco Challenge cars then do an urban circuit culminating in a free public exhibition on Saturday 31 October in Adelaide’s Victoria Square. So whether you’re a rev-head or an eco-enthusiast, get on the road to Alice Springs or Adelaide for the opportunity to see the cars of the future.