Eco-car ‘Istanbul' to compete in Shell Eco-marathon

Founded by students from Yıldız Technical University (YTÜ), the Ae2 Project Team introduced their electric car "Istanbul" with which they will compete in the 30th Shell Eco-marathon Europe competition in Rotterdam, the Netherlands.

During a meeting that took place in the Otağ-ı Hümayun building on the YTÜ Davutpaşa Campus, the new YTÜ electric car, which aims to outscore its rivals with new technical features, color and design made its debut.

According to a statement, the electric car can travel from Edirne to Kars (approximately 1,600 kilometers) on TL 1 of energy, and it will compete to be one of the most efficient cars in the world.

Speaking at the meeting, Shell Turkey Country Chairman Ahmet Erdem stated that over 100 teams and 1,000 young people from different provinces of Turkey have competed in the Shell Eco-marathon in the last 10 years. He also said that over 200 teams from 30 different countries will attend this year's Shell Eco-marathon Europe, and 20 teams from 17 different high schools and universities will represent Turkey in the competition.

Fatih Açıl, speaking on behalf of the Ae2 Project Team, reported that they will compete in the "prototype" category with their electric car and noted that the Istanbul, which they produced after a disciplined working process, has a new design with its aerodynamic structure and aesthetic.

Açıl said that the electric car weighs 27 kilograms and is very durable thanks to its carbon fiber body. "Our previous design managed to travel 437 kilometers on 1 kilowatt-hour of energy. We aim to increase this efficiency with technical and aerodynamic changes in the new car," he stated. According to data obtained from the test drives, the team targets covering 1,600 kilometers on TL 1 of energy.