Drayson breaks electric land speed record - Video

The Drayson Racing Technologies Lola B12/69 EV electric race car hit a top speed of 204.2 mph at a racetrack at RAF Elvington in Yorkshire, England, smashing the previous record of 175 mph set by Battery Box General Electric in 1974. Fittingly, Lord Paul Drayson was behind the wheel.

In order to qualify for the attempt at the electric land speed record, the vehicle had to weigh less than 2,204 pounds (1,000 kg) without the driver.

“What it shows to people is just what the future potential of electric cars is,” Lord Drayson told the BBC. “Obviously, this is a very special racing car, but by setting this new world record here in Britain we say two things. One, it is a pointer to the future -- the technology that we developed for this car will filter down to the cars we use everyday. And secondly, it's a message about how here in the UK we're a world leader with this technology. We've led motorsport engineering, now we're also leading with electric motorsport engineering.”

Now Drayson will turn his focus toward the FIA Formula E World Championship, which starts in September 2014. Eight races will make up the first season, including events in London, Rome, Miami, Beijing and Rio de Janeiro.

The Lola B12 uses a 30-kWh lithium-ion battery to deliver 850 hp with a single-ratio transmission. More technical details can be found here at the Drayson Racing Technologies site.

By Jake Lingeman