Serpent Cobra-Be electric buggy

Serpent got in touch to show us first pictures of their upcoming Cobra-Be 1/8 scale electric 4WD buggy. With the Serpent Cobra nitro buggy got launched in middle of 2010, followed by the Serpent Cobra-T Truggy in May 2011 now World Champion Billy Easton created another masterpiece, based on his longtime experience in top-level off-road racing. The Serpent Cobra-Be follows the same design philosophy as the nitro-powered Serpent buggy and shares many of the same components as well. The whole central section with battery-slots, speed controller and receiver holder, servo and motor mount, chassis plate, rear wing/wing mount and the body shell are the key design elements of the new Cobra-Be.

Keeping the weight as low as possible, easy access to batteries, ESC and motor, and retaining a perfect balanced and fast car under all circumstances were the main goals in creating the new design. This Serpent/Easton design is not just about replacing nitro elements for electric power, but dedicated design which uses the available space in an optimal way, fully aimed at electric power use and ready to cope with extreme power of today’s brushless motors.

The main eye-catcher are the extremely low laydown longitudinal placed battery packs at each side of the car, being part of the side-guards, securely fastened with a flip-lid, for easy and fast battery changes. The motor is placed in an optimal position in the car, keeping motor-forces and transmission parts/alignment in mind. Sufficient space is available even for the larger speed-controllers in the moulded mount that also integrates the unique vertical positioned steering-servo. The lightweight receiver is mounted in small integrated box on top of the centre differential.

Billy Easton also designed a new lower rear wing mount and a lower type rear to match the low slung bodyshell. The Cobra-Be shares the same shocks, diffs, strong front and rear suspension, the unique angled steering/servo-saver system, ball-raced anti-roll bars, tough carbon fibre shock towers and the extremely durable spring-steel drive-train and wheelaxles with its nitro-sibling. Serpent planes to release the Cobra-Be mid-July 2011.

Source: Serpent [serpent.com]