Pictured above: E-4 Coupé
With help from the Transport innovation Network (iNet),
Northampton based Delta Motorsport is building five E-4
Coupés - the first of which will be on the road in January
2011. The E-4 Coupé is powered entirely by batteries, which
on average reduce harmful emissions by around 67% without
compromising performance or driver enjoyment.
Delta Motorsport, which was formed in 2005, specialises in the
design and engineering of race cars and road cars for the
motorsport and automotive industry. The company wanted to develop
its high performance vehicles by creating a low carbon vehicle that
would increase both driver performance and energy efficiency of
component parts.
In 2009 Delta Motorsport was awarded a Grant for Research and
Development (GRD) worth £220,000, funded by East Midlands
Development Agency (emda) and the European Regional Development
Fund (ERDF). The grant was used to research, design and build the
prototype low energy vehicle. Following this work, the
company was introduced to Transport iNet Innovation adviser James
Reeves, with whom Delta Motorsport began working on producing the
demonstrator product, the E-4 Coupé.
James Reeves from the Transport iNet, said: "As a complex area
with new and rapidly developing niche technology, Delta Motorsport
needed support and guidance on the best options available for
continuing to build their own vehicle - now dubbed the E-4 Coupe.
We have given Delta Motorsport a range of support and advice over
the last year, for example providing it with extensive research
into new and developing low carbon technologies to assist the
project in its continued build. We've also been able to help Delta
Motorsport create a business strategy and introduce them to
industry bodies. As a result the company is now continuing to
develop innovative parts and systems for the E-4 Coupé,
which will minimise the weight of the vehicle and optimise
aerodynamics and mechanical efficiency."
Nick Carpenter, Co-Founder and Technical Director of Delta
Motorsport, said: "The investment in Delta Motorsport from the
Transport iNet has provided us with a significant understanding of
how we can build the E-4 Coupé to a world class standard.
Green vehicle technology is still very much a developing area and
the support from the Transport iNet has helped us create solutions
to a wide range of problems, answering questions we didn't even
know we would find. Without having the expertise and support from
the Transport iNet, we would have never been able to develop the
E-4 Coupe to the standard that it is now.
"The support it has given us at the CENEX LCV events over the
last two years has allowed us to make a name for ourselves with
leading industry bodies and delve deeper into potential areas that
we could work in. The financial support we have received has also
been a tremendous support, allowing us to give our vehicle an even
more competitive edge. We look forward to our continued work with
the Transport iNet."
Delta Motorsport founders Nick Carpenter and Simon Dowson had
been researching and developing low energy vehicles since 2000.
Following the establishment of Delta Motorsport in 2005, both were
keen to continue developing this to find a way to build more
lightweight, sustainable vehicles with increased system efficiency
and improved aerodynamics.
The Transport iNet is funded by East Midlands Development Agency
(emda) and the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF). The aim
of the iNet is to share expertise and stimulate the research and
development of new products, services and processes through free
consultancy support, access to funding and research support, events
and other activities.