Here’s What Happened With The Tesla Model S Race Car That Got Too Hot After Five Miles On An F1 Track
While the production Model S is a great track car for about a lap before it needs to cool off,
too, the series spokesperson told Jalopnik there was more to it than
routine overheating. The spokesperson said this was the first full day
of testing at race speeds, and the car had been out all day in the heat
before Needell got in.
The engineers also later found sensor
issues that let the battery get hotter than it should have, the
spokesperson told Jalopnik.
“The team spotted an accidental
disconnection of one of the outdoor temperature sensors from the air
conditioning system, which caused the air conditioning system to not
send cold air to the battery and other systems when needed,” the
spokesperson said. “There is always a limit if the power is used
indiscriminately, but the resistance threshold is much higher if the air
conditioning system had worked correctly. The team has now fixed that.”
The spokesperson also said the technical team confirmed that the
car will be able to run the race distances, but at a more manageable
pace—around 470 HP will be what the cars can maintain throughout the
race, with the full 778 HP available for things like overtaking. The
spokesperson said each driver will have “full control” over when they
decide to use the car’s full power, and that it’ll be “part of the
strategy and part of the show.”
We’ll get to see how that show plays out soon enough, since the first 10-race season for the international series is scheduled to start in November.
(Jalopnik.com)
