We are rebooting our KERS system after shipping to the US. This requires a special computer, safety grounding, Skype to our engineers in Italy, aux batteries for entire car and will take about 2 hours. (and a lot of Italian rapid fire conversation) Using La Ferrari, P1 and 918 KERS in the real world will be interesting. Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login
I do wonder just how much support initial owners are going to receive and especially the subsequent owners years down the line. KERS systems have the potential to be very expensive nightmares for owners, never mind the ones that will want them as mere garage queens.
Yes. All the time. We're rebooting everything and will then take her out onto the roads of NY. Image Unavailable, Please Login
KERS is Kinetic Energy Recapture System but I believe P1's, La Ferrari's and 918's are all similar to ours (electric vs flywheel storage)
Completely agree, but then as far as the manufacturers are concerned, it is like selling a product with a known longevity issue, you know they will be coming back. And to only one store and at a price they can command.
Went for a long drive today in the rain. KERS works well but on the road there's not enough braking to recharge it so petrol motor has to which takes away petrol HP while it does.
Thanks you very much for sharing those news. I would be very concerned knowing there is one of those high voltage system in an hand made carbon fiber ultralight hypercar. I mean reliability and safety too: what's your experience and opinion about? ciao
Basically your computers decide where and when you charge. At the Ring we generated 50 seconds of 50HP boost just from braking over a 8:30 Lap. (NS+GP) This gave us 12 four second bursts which we used coming out of turns for instant torque before the petrol engine could spool and produce torque. This improved our lap time 15s per lap YOY (12 OA vs 39 OA YOY). On the road without enough braking the Petrol motor will have to charge the system and you will feel it when it's charging. On the street KERS is a gimmick like NOS.
Safety is a real issue both for the driver and mechanics. We have a lot of safety systems that monitor the KERS and shut it down if the Batteries get too hot. Once they do they burst into flames and can't be put out as their burning produces oxygen. I'm sure La Ferrari. P1 and 918 have safety systems built in but personally I'm most impressed with Porsche's system. As for reliability owning any of these when the warrantee runs out will be IMO a total nightmare.
Very much so but for me all of my cars are a continuing process and work will continue. This one is very special.
Indeed, and congratulations. Wonder when the last time was that a current endurance racer took to the streets after winning a championship ...
Interesting. So does it only charge the batteries when the car is in motion or will it say, step up the idle at red lights to bring the system up to full power? If so perhaps you can put something akin to a "turbo timer" on it so you can leave the car running to recharge when you take it down to the shops for milk, bread and ice cream. Then drain them on your way home? A gimmick for sure but one with possibilities.
On the road, I'd figure the software would call for charging at idle (e.g., at stop lights, in place of the dreaded engine shut off feature) and added engine braking under deceleration. But not while underway in steady driving conditions?
Tnx. How similar is your System to the Laferrari one? Hy-Kers system for LaFerrari, hybrid vehicle to come out of Maranello | Magneti Marelli It doesn't sound right that you can appreciate the loss in performance. IMO the gas pedal should be given priority over recharging the kers, which should start only when you step off the gas even a little bit and re-stop as soon as you floor it again. The engine would then be over-revving but you'd still have all the power you're asking for, just a bit more noise and the impression that the engine is loosing power. Is this the case? Maybe just a bit more software optimisation?
