Unveiled at the recent SEMA show was the Scalar Performance SCR-1, a conversion of the track day-orientated Toyota GR86 into an all-electric competition car. Toronto, Canada based Scalar Performance has recognised that there is a market for such a vehicle in many types of amateur motorsport. The SCR-1 has even been approved by the Nevada-based National Auto Sport Association for its (amateur-orientated) Super Touring category.
The SCR-1 has been developed with as engineering partners Hypercraft, which supplies the powertrain and software specialist Ettractive. The 800 V powertrain has a T-shaped bespoke water cooled Hypercraft 65 kWh battery pack taking the original engine bay and extending back through the stock transmission tunnel. The car has a single rear-mounted electric motor and is rear wheel drive with an effective 5:19 gear reduction and an integrated Torsen helical limited-slip differential.
The motor is a 12,000 rpm Hypercraft Stealth Drive married to a Cascadia Motion CM200DZ inverter. Stealth EV is a company that was recently bought by Hyperdrive. Its Stealth Drive is a permanent magnet motor, the entire bottom of which is formed by a oil:water heat exchanger. The motor is oil cooled with a built-in electric oil pump, its self-contained oiling system requiring no external oil lines.
Hypercraft notes that this design provides a considerable surface area for heat transfer and allows for a single-loop cooling system for both the motor and inverter, simplifying the cooling system and reducing the number of components needed. The motor is capable of delivering 468 Nm of torque with a continuous 245 kW / 328 bhp output. By comparison the GR86 flat four offers 228 bhp and about 250 Nm of torque.
This 1380 kg vehicle’s 0-60 mph time, shading that of the 100 kg lighter regular GR86 is quoted as less than 4 seconds. Top speed is 165 mph. It exploits regenerative braking and is claimed to be capable of 45 minutes of competition with a recharge time of less than 20 minutes given a Level 3 charger (those are currently the fastest EV chargers). An initial batch of 10 turnkey racecars is undergoing preparation for mid 2023.