What drivers see when going from 0-60 mph in less than 1 second

We hear lots about cars which can do 0-60 mph in no time at all, a Formula One car can do it in about 2.6 seconds but there are many others which are even faster.

One of those is the custom-built electric car Mythen, which was able to hit the speed in less than one whole second.

In the time it takes all the cogs and components of a watch to move one hand a minuscule distance, this car was able to be travelling at 60 mph (100 kmph).

The record was set by students from ETH Zurich and Lucerne University of Applied Sciences and Arts, who spent the better part of a year working to build a car which could achieve the feat.

The previous record had been set at 1.461 seconds by a team from the University of Stuttgart in September 2022, but they absolutely obliterated it.

YouTube/ETH Zurich

With their goal of beating 1.461 seconds laid down they wanted to 'really do it in style' and that's just what they managed.

Weighing just 140kg, the Mythen is pretty nimble and was designed to make the most of ground effect.

With everything centred around getting as much power down on the road as possible, driver Kate Maggetti was able to take the custom built car from 0-60 mph in 0.956 seconds.

"It's like being on a roller coaster with a really, really fast start," driver Kate said of how it felt to suddenly be going so quickly.

"You feel the tension and a kick."

Impressively enough the car is pretty adept at stopping in a hurry as well, which is handy when it can hit 60mph in under a second.

YouTube/ETH Zurich

As the old adage goes it's not the speed that kills you, it's stopping very suddenly, so it's fortunate that the Mythen is made for such drastic changes in speed.

The students made everything to do with the car, which was made of lightweight carbon and aluminium honeycomb.

It had 326 horsepower but being so light and well designed means it makes the most of its power and can reach frightening levels of acceleration.

Yann Bernard, head of motor at Academic Motorsports Club Zurich (AMZ) said: "Working on the project in addition to my studies was very intense.

"But even so, it was a lot of fun working with other students to continually produce new solutions and put into practice what we learned in class.

"And, of course, it is an absolutely unique experience to be involved in a world record."

Topics: Cars

Joe Harker

Joe graduated from the University of Salford with a degree in Journalism and worked for Reach before joining the LADbible Group. When not writing he enjoys the nerdier things in life like painting wargaming miniatures and chatting with other nerds on the internet. He's also spent a few years coaching fencing. Contact him via [email protected]

@MrJoeHarker