Challenge

This trip lasted more than ten days. Although there were a lot of things on my body, it was quite enjoyable to take a break from the busy schedule, and the wallet was also shrunk according to their expectations. After I came back, it was December, the cold season of winter, but the feeling of California was still flat. Maybe cooler.

   Two days after An Feng arrived home, he took a trip to the racing track.

  According to Rob, the director, informed him that Maserati needed to challenge their track—as early as more than a month ago, Maserati's high-tech department had moved to California as a whole, located five kilometers away from the racing track. After a simple renovation, the staff will start to operate.

  Maserati hopes to launch several pure electric models at the Geneva Motor Show in March next year. Not developing new models means changing the original president and GT to pure electric versions to save the cost of developing new models... In fact, this is an industry rule.

  The first few generations of models that you have seen, 2013 and 2014, are all like this. Now they are only converted into pure electric vehicles, which is not difficult. An Feng came to the racetrack by helicopter and met with Robert and Maserati's Vice President of North America, Bruno.

  An Feng and Bruno discussed the matter of electric vehicles. Although Bruno didn't know the specific origin of An Feng, he knew that he should be a senior executive of the GP company and that he also owned the racing track, so his attitude was very strict. He and An Feng carefully discussed the details of converting them into electric vehicles.

  Looking at the drawings, you can see that electric vehicles have fewer parts than cars. First of all, they do not have a gearbox, do not need a huge radiator, and do not have an exhaust pipe. Moreover, the volume of the electric motor is at least half smaller than that of the engine. Referring to the Tesla car, it has two storage compartments front and rear.

   Electric vehicles only have the motor and wheels moving! There is a lot of space, but the test is the weight of the battery, which is a bit of a trade-off. The weight of the machine is greatly reduced, but the battery has become a burden. In the era of lithium-ion batteries, Tesla's battery panels are said to weigh half a ton!

Therefore, light weight is not easy to achieve. Until the emergence of graphene batteries, the miniaturization of high-end batteries has changed the status quo. High-end batteries can reduce the load to about 150 kg, which is about three times heavier than the entire transmission system. The overall weight and reduced cars Parts are flat.

  Now they bring the "spy car" covered in camouflage, and the professional test drivers are going to use a small track—the amoeba circuit is very powerful. There are three tracks, two of which are three-kilometer tracks, and they will not interfere with each other. Usually, it is very convenient to test and play the car, and it does not affect the F1 track.

Bruno introduced: "It is the model we are currently modifying, the president of the V8 version. Considering the weight distribution of the whole car, we installed the engine and battery in the front engine compartment. The total weight of the body is 75 kg less than that of the gasoline version. It is a Very nice breakthrough."

   "How is the battery installed? Is it the same as Tesla?" An Feng was curious.

"It's not the same, we can open it to have a look." Bruno stepped forward and opened the hood himself, revealing a completely different layout from the traditional gasoline car inside. The electric motor is very small, squeezed in the rear, and the two sides are connected in parallel The battery pack, is well packaged.

  An Feng asked: "How about the actual test results?"

"The power of the motor it uses reaches 480 horsepower, and the theoretical top speed is about 300 kilometers per hour. The battery life is unknown. This is the first time we have pushed it on the track. The testers are ready. The specific results need to be continuous averages. , hope it brings surprises!"

   "I'm optimistic about it!" An Feng said confidently.

  There are several Maserati technicians, a technical director and two test drivers on site. Everyone watched them push the car out, and the well-dressed test driver got on the car, and the sound of starting was very small. The test car started, and after a few rounds to get familiar with the operation, it entered the track.

   This is a challenge, in addition to testing the performance of the vehicle, there are also electric motors, batteries and the overall structure.

An Feng watched it run a few laps, and it performed very well, but it lacked the roar of the car's engine - the electric car has removed this **** link, at most it is the hum of the high-speed rotation of the motor and the friction between the car tires and the ground Sound, less auditory effect.

  An Feng watched it for a while, and found that the test drive process was boring, so he went back to the office with Robert to discuss other matters. There is good news that Amoeba Motorsports has applied for an event: IndyCar. After all, it is a race that tours the United States, so it is naturally easy to apply.

"The race schedule has not yet come out, but we are not the first stop, nor the final stop, it may be between June and July." Robert said, "In addition, F1 and other international competitions are also being applied for. Our track It has been accepted by the FIA."

   "Congratulations!" An Feng said, being able to be accepted by the FIA ​​proves that he has entered the eyes of the FIA, and it also means that the application for international competitions has taken the first step, and the next step depends on the FIA's attitude. Except that the racetrack is not close to a big city, the other conditions are top-notch.

We talked about the race for half an hour, and when we came out, we saw the racing car pitted for rest. An Feng asked and learned that in the racing mode, the test car ran 100 kilometers and consumed 25% of the battery. This time, the test theory can run 400 kilometers, the driving mileage has been shortened a lot.

However, the racing mode is different from ordinary driving. The racing mode is to step on the gas pedal as hard as possible, completely ignoring it. High power consumption is normal. If it is a daily driving, it is estimated that it can reach more than 500 kilometers. For small-sized batteries, the advantage is already Very obvious.

After the test run on the track, use a 1.5-mile straight road to challenge the extreme speed. After passing a high-speed corner, the speed of the test car has reached 180 kilometers per hour. Enter the straight road, step on the accelerator to the end, and challenge the extreme speed of this car...The final speed is fixed at 305 kilometer.

   It was undoubtedly a successful challenge.

  The test vehicle came into the station to rest, the technician directly opened the hood, and quickly disassembled the battery in a live performance. The disassembly of the two batteries only took more than ten seconds, and the installation was almost the same, and the problem was resolved within half a minute. An Feng sees the prospect of electric car racing, and the speed of battery replacement is not a problem.

He wanted to try it with itchy hands at first, but out of caution, driving the test car was dangerous, and its safety factor could not be guaranteed. In the end, An Feng dismissed the idea, the test car was indeed unstable, and it was better to wait until the official model appeared. Then drive it to test on the track.

  …

  Another thing that comes close to Christmas is the shooting show.

It is the second time now, but strictly speaking it is the third time. The shooting show is getting bigger and bigger, and it has gained fame. Some military websites or magazines have published content about the shooting show. The reason is that it is the latecomer who catches the attention.

  An Feng and Mike talked on the phone. Mike said that someone in the gun store wanted to sponsor, and the only thing was to ask for their advertisements in the gun store to cooperate with the promotion in the event. It seems that manufacturers are very smart and know that small costs are exchanged for big profits. However, An Feng's attitude is that if you don't make money, you don't make money.

  He is also preparing. Xiaobai is almost one and a half years old. Although he is not yet an adult, he eats and sleeps well every day and receives training with professional equipment. His body has grown very fast. He is 2.2 meters long and weighs 150 kilograms. Really live with yourself and the wild.

The environment suppresses its wildness, and its high intelligence allows it to know what to do and what not to do, but as a beast, it must have the aura of a beast, whether it is a mule or a horse, it should be pulled out for a walk—An Feng decided to take it with him this time. It's going to Texas, and it's really going to be some hunting.

   Wait until it performs well, or has suffered a lot, and then take it to Africa to play, so that it can truly reflect the kingly spirit.

  An Feng rubbed Xiaobai's head and said, "Get ready for the challenge!"

  Xiaobai let out a deep growl, his tiger eyes widened, and he lowered his body in a posture of pouncing on food, very imposing. An Feng smiled and stretched out the arm covered with the exoskeleton, and held it down: "I hope it won't be a good one by then! Come on, run around with me, find your mother, and go back to have dinner together!"

An Feng, who was wearing an exoskeleton, ran in front, and Xiaobai didn't move behind. After An Feng ran more than ten meters, it jumped out. At that moment, its movements and postures were extremely perfect. Explosive limit speed to catch up with the target ahead.

An Feng had expected it a long time ago, and he also broke out. Using the speed and strength given to him by the exoskeleton, he ran wildly, one man and one tiger, chasing around the vineyard. His blood seemed to be boiling.

In the end, the tiger has the upper hand. An Feng's instant running limit when wearing the exoskeleton is only 50 kilometers per hour, while the tiger with well-developed limbs and aerodynamic shape has the fastest explosive speed of 85 kilometers per hour in the test. It lasted for ten seconds!

  Xiao Bai was side by side with him very quickly, overtaking him in a very short time, An Feng slowed down, and this guy also slowed down, glanced back at him, and proudly wagged his tail and twisted his buttocks to lead the way. Xiaobai sniffed the scent and found Joanna who was practicing equestrianism nearby.

   "Dinner time is coming soon!" An Feng said to her, "Go back!"

   "OK." Joanna gave an instruction, and Gina ran immediately, leaving An Feng and Tiger to follow at a leisurely pace.

  Back to the villa on the top of the mountain, Wu Qian, the housekeeper, came out with a cordless phone: "Sir, Mr. Wang was looking for you just now."

   "Thank you." An Feng took the phone, called back, and got through quickly: "Xiao Lezi, what can I do with you?"

   "I just want to tell you that a friend will come over tomorrow, and I will kidnap ten rich clients for you. How about it, thank me?"

   "That's right, I'll give you a 20% discount." An Feng smiled.

   "The real price?" said the other end.

   "That's right, if you go on, you will lose money." An Feng said, "Should they practice first? Familiarize themselves with the rules?"

"I have this plan, so I will play with them in California these few days, or go to the casino. In short, I will come to meet you in five days, and take your plane for a while, and let a few of my friends increase their knowledge. , How about seeing what the life of a rich man in the United States is like?"

   "Whatever you want, anyway, my plane can accommodate eighteen people." An Feng said.

   "Okay, let's just say that, when the time comes, I will instigate them to play some money-burning projects, such as shooting six-barreled machine guns, and the money will come in!"

   "Hahaha, thank you very much!" An Feng smiled and chatted with him for a few words before hanging up the phone.

  Joanna who entered the room pointed to Xiaobai's somewhat dirty paws: "Wash your hands, or you won't eat tonight!"

  Xiaobai stopped turning to the kitchen, turned around aggrieved and walked outside. Considering the size, there is a sink outside, which can be used by occasional small animals or smart horses. An Feng looked at its back and smiled: "Don't cause any psychological shadow."

   "It's very smart, it won't." Joanna said, "Take off this iron, I don't want to see you still wearing it at the dinner table."

   "Well, Your Lady Queen, I'm just a poor Tiger Two." An Feng shrugged and went back to the fitness room to take off his equipment, Joanna shook her head and smiled.