SR1 EV1 Baja Buggy via the EV West Facebook Page

The awesome team of maniacs over at EV West continues to make innovations in practical electric vehicle performance. They like to use Netgain brushed DC motors with Evnetics controllers to produce motorsports-capable power for a fraction of the cost of equivalent high voltage AC systems. The Netgain motors are based on existing fork lift technology and have are proven performers in the EV community. The SRI EV1 uses two motors like their 700 horsepower E36 M3 Pikes Peak Car. The motors are stacked vertically at the rear of the buggy to work with the VW style transaxle. EV West chose to go with two 1000 amp Evnetics Soliton 1 controllers instead of one 3000 amp Soliton Shiva like in the M3. My guess is that using the two smaller controllers allows better torque modulation accelerating out of turns. They had to turn down the power from the Shiva in the M3 at Pikes Peak because it was breaking the tires loose too easily. The dual Soliton 1’s probably makes it easier to put down power on a two wheel drive vehicle on a loose surface. That doesn’t mean the SRI EV1 is a slouch. It makes 500 hp and 700 ft-lbs of torque with a range of 100 miles. Check out the testing footage: