Flat out into the future

This story first appeared in the November issue of EVtalk – CLICK HERE to download the magazine FREE

Eva Hakansson is one of the fastest women on the planet.

And she’s setting the pace in electrics – clocking 434km/h in her land-speed record setting KillaJoule three-wheeled electric streamliner motorcycle.

What’s probably even more incredible is that the Swedish born Aucklander largely built the motorcycle and side-car herself in a garage.

“I’d rather spend time in the garage than the kitchen,” she quips.

And she’ll certainly be doing more of that in preparation for further land speed record attempts in EVs, including in Australia next year.

Hakansson has crammed more into her 37 years than most people have achieved in a lifetime.

As her first name suggests, she’s passionate about EVs and helping the planet.

“Speed is a great way of showing the potential of battery power, because fast is always in fashion,” she says.

And she says KillaJoule’s other purpose is to show women can be excellent engineers, encouraging girls and women into science and technology careers.

Visitors to Big Boys Toys on November 16-18 can get up close with Hakansson and KillaJoule, featuring in the show’s “Electric Avenue” at the ASB Showgrounds, Greenlane, Auckland.

Husband Bill Dubee will be there too as he shares Hakansson’s enthusiasm, especially as he’s an engineer himself, having worked in research at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.

In fact, it was their shared interests which resulted in their meeting in Colorado where Hakansson added a doctorate in mechanical engineering to her string of academic achievements.

“She’s got more degrees than a thermometer,” Dubee laughs.

The Swedish speedster even wrote a thesis on political incentives for introducing low emission cars back in 2005 when EVs were hardly mentioned.

Hakansson blames a “genetic disorder” for her engineering skills.
Both parents are mechanical engineers and both her brothers are electrical engineers.
Her dad Sven built and raced motorcycles and she learned much of her engineering in his workshop from a young age.

After trying horse eventing for a few years, Hakansson returned to the other form of horsepower and at 16 was riding her first motorcycle, an old 125cc Moto Guzzi Stornello she and her father assembled from pieces together.

The tradition continues with Hakansson – a lecturer in mechanical engineering at the University of Auckland – and Dubee both working on their electric racing machines after hours and at weekends.

While Hakansson is busy teaching computer aided design and engineering drawing to first year engineering students during the day, evenings are dedicated to KillaJoule.
They have a workshop in Albany where they can fit all the equipment brought from Colorado.
And if they can’t find the right gear they will probably build it themselves, like a 3D printer needed to make things like the motorcycle’s “wing” sidecar.

This year they’re even making their own non-pneumatic tyres they dub “KiWieels” to avoid high-speed shredding.

Hakansson gained a sought-after research grant at the University of Auckland, and the new wheels are her official research project.
Two students will develop it further under her supervision next year.

So how did the couple come to be in New Zealand?
It seems the early EV community here already knew about Hakansson and invited her here.
She and Dupee raced an electric drag bike called the “KillaCycle” at Meremere in 2010 as well.
It got to 100km/h in under a second before being retired years ago.

Both Hakansson and Dupee were keen to return, describing New Zealanders as innovative and loving the country and its people.

They came back, possibly for good, around the start of this year.
And yes, they know all about the movie The World’s Fastest Indian, as it has parallels with their own achievements and plans and Hakansson has also set records on the Bonneville Salt Flats in Utah.

They’re now working on an even faster electric bike with the working name “Green Envy”, which they hope to race about a year from now.

The couple also hopes to attend the Landspeed New Zealand Association event at Goudies Road between Taupo and Rotorua on December 2.

Meanwhile, they’re enjoying driving around in their 2013 Nissan Leaf and flying light aircraft (both have private pilot licences) when they can.

“Electric aviation is the next big thing in battery power,” says Hakansson, who wants to be ready when electric aircraft become mainstream.

One of Hakansson’s favourite sayings, and indeed her motto, comes from a 10-year-old girl embarrassed by her mum’s car.

“Gasoline? That’s so last century.”

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