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Renault’s single seater EV demonstrator – video

Renault’s single seater EV demonstrator – video

Technology News |
By Nick Flaherty

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Renault has developed a single seater electric vehicle as a test system for a range of technologies.

The Filante Record 2025 electric demo car is built with metal 3D printing with an aerodynamic design and uses new steer-by-wire, brake-by-wire and LED lighting technologies. It has an 85kWh battery pack from Ampere with a cell-to-pack architecture that weighs 600kg in a vehicle that is under 1000kg.

The cells are integrated directly into the battery pack without intermediate modules. This reduces the weight of the battery pack while also optimising its form factor and the available space.

The demo car, developed with Ligier Automotive, will be on show at the Rétromobile motor show in Paris from 5 to 9 February 2025, before aiming to establish records for efficiency in the first half of the year.

The driver’s seat, for example, is made from stretched canvas, similar in style to a hammock, for a lightweight design with optimum support from thin carbon blades clad in a technical textile. The handwheel is 3D printed from a lightweight aluminium alloy called Scalomolloy with a flexible screen in the centre to display data such as speed, range and driving parameters.

Using electronic steer-by-wire and brake-by-wire technologies reduces the number of mechanical components and frees up space to rethink vehicle architecture and optimise weight. This provides greater flexibility in that the steering components – including the steering wheel – can be positioned wherever required. This makes it possible to overcome a whole range of architectural and standardisation constraints in order to optimise the cockpit layout.

Brake-by-wire technology operates on a similar principle. Braking effort is managed by an electronic control system. When the driver activates the brakes, an electrical signal is sent to the braking system, which distributes the force applied to the wheels for optimum effect. This also opens new possibilities in platform and cockpit architecture.

“We designed this vehicle as a sculpture in motion. Inspired by fighter planes and the speed records of the nineteenth century, it reflects both performance and timeless elegance. Every inch of the surface was crafted to capture the light and showcase the body lines, which appear to melt into the air. The blue windows and colour palette further underline this light and airy impression. The design as a whole seeks to convey an impression of flow and lightness,” said Sandeep Bhambra, Director of Advanced Design, Renault and Ampere

An air circulation system makes it possible to ventilate the cockpit without the need for more technical parts, again with a view to weight and energy savings.

While the aerodynamic development process has been guided to date by cutting-edge numerical simulations, engineers plan to carry out wind tunnel tests later this spring to confirm simulation results and to make any adjustments necessary to perfect vehicle design for optimal aerodynamic performance before the tests.

Aluminium, carbon and steel alloys were combined in order to reduce component cross-sections to the minimum necessary to withstand mechanical stress while maintaining maximum strength. These materials made the vehicle lighter without compromising the strength of the chassis, which is essential to ensure stability on the track.

Scalmalloy is specially designed for 3D printing to allow complex parts to be produced for key lightweight elements with topology optimisation. This method optimises the material layout in that material is used only where it is needed, i.e. in areas subject to specific mechanical stress.

Using advanced computer calculations, engineers were able to establish the areas where material was required to ensure the strength of the demo car and the areas where it could be removed to make the structure lighter without impacting performance.

www.renault.com

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