Meet the kids racing electric cars

Would you like to build and race your own car? That's exactly what these kids did! Watch the video to find out more.

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Transcript

Welcome to Rockingham Race Course, and we're at Greenpower 2018.

We're building a bunch of electric cars and riding them round a massive track.

First we've got to build an electric car. 

We first got the car about six months ago. We designed it and, like, planned it all together. 

We have to fix the tyres, put in the engines in the right place and, well, be able to drive the car without crashing. 

It's basically got, like, four batteries in, which are quite expensive. They're about 200 quid each. And then we basically fit them in. We did it all by ourself.

There's a motor in the back that spins a big gear, and that gear spins the back wheels of the car. The front wheels are what turn.

We have buttons on the front of our car on our steering wheel. We have our acceleration, which is a button on the steering wheel, and that is the one which will keep us moving and if we take it off, we'll just kind of coast. 

Racing a car is one of the really coolest things ever. It's kind of intense.

I am one of the drivers today and I'm feeling really excited to drive a car.

Racing with other people on the track … so many people around you, racing with them and seeing them through your mirrors. Kind of scary!

It does, it does feel quite fast. It does feel amazing when you're inside, like, driving it. 

We've learned tons about engineering – building things, making things, getting hands-on really – and this has definitely inspired me a lot more. 

It really has inspired me. Like, maybe I would be an engineer when I grow older. 

A race car driver is male dominated, and to be a girl stepping forwards, driving the car, just be really sick.

When I'm older, I'll definitely drive an electric car, cos it helps the environment.

There's no pollution that goes with it. It's very eco-friendly. Maybe if everyone does this, then instead of cars, we can have race cars!

By the time we're all older, electric cars are going to be the thing, you know.

I'm definitely going to get an electric car.

Yeah, I think I'm definitely going to get an electric car.

© BBC

Discussion

Imagine you can design and build something. What would you make? Tell us about it!

Average: 5 (2 votes)

English courses for children aged 6-17

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