Laboratory of High – Speed Automobiles (LSA KhADI)

This Laboratory was founded in 1953. One of the founders of this laboratory was Vladimir Nikitin, who was famous racer not only inside the Soviet Union but also around the world. The main purpose of the life of Vladimir Nikitin was to create the fasters car in the world. This idea of creating race cars became the purpose of laboratory and has been continued by students of Nikitin throughout the years.

The first car created in LSA by students was KhADI 2 in 1961. The body of the car was made of fiberglass. It was for the first time in Soviet Union when fiberglass was used as a material for car body. This technology was improved and used in majority of our cars.

KhADI 2 

For example KhADI 3 - the smallest racing car in the world was made by the same technology. You can find information about the car and our university in the Guinness Book of Records. This car participated in competitions to set land speed records in salt lake Baskunchak. It is a famous lake in Russian where competitions to set land speed records took place in 1960’s in Soviet Union. For example a famous Speed Week are still take place in salt lake Bonneville in United States. The fastest cars in the world compete there.

KhADI 3

Another famous car which was created in our laboratory is KhADI 7. Nowadays we are restoring this car. To create it Nikitin and his students – colleagues have used airplane wing as a material for car body. Also they used engine from helicopter in this car. The highest speed of this car – 400 kilometers an hour was recorded in airport near Kharkiv in 1968. It was the fastest car in Soviet Union which officially set the record of speed. It set the 4 records that were higher than world’s records of this time. After this car Vladimir Nikitin started a new more ambitious project - car with engine from airplane.

KhADI 7

Name of this project was KhADI 9. This time Nikitin used engine from fighter plane "MIG 19" he expected that this car will make absolute land speed record - achieve land acoustical velocity. It is almost 1200 kilometers an hour. This car was finished in 1981 but unfortunately KhADI 9 has never participated in race and official result was not recorded. It happened because in 1980’s there were not tires that can be used for such speed and no track long enough for a test drive in Soviet Union. Even automotive federation of United States invited "KhADI 9" to participate in record race in US but it not happened either. Anyway the main contribution of this car was and is valuable experience of people who built this car. The story of KhADI 9 was shown in action movie in 1983 which was popular in Soviet Union.

KhADI 9

In 60s closed-circuit race get very popular in USSR. One of the Nikitin's ambitious  student - Vladimir Kapsheev decided to create a special car for this competitions. The name of project was "KhADI -8". There were two variants of the engine for this car:  eight-cylinder V engine which Aleksey Siryatskiy, Vladimir Nikitin and they partners created especially for race cars and high modernized engine from GAZ 20. KhADI -8 participated in car race in 1968 when it was crashed and then  in 1972 it was modernized in the next model - KhADI 10.

 

KhADI 8

KhADI 10

The automobile federation of USSR decided to close race track on saltlakeBaskuchak after car incident with one of the Nikitin's car - KhADI 4 which was burnt down during the race in 1963. Since this time all records heats was moved to airport of military academy in Chuguev, Kharkiv region. The distanceof the new track was less than 2000 meters that’s why it can only be used for  classes of speed records half a kilometer and one kilometer with start 'from one's place' and 'at a go'. This new condition inspired students of LSA to create a new sprinter – dragster. It was KhADI 24, KhADI 26, KhADI 27, KhADI 28.

KhADI 4

Unfortunately only KhADI 24 had a chance to make an official speed records. Last competition to set Land-Speed Records in USSR was conducted in 1984.  During the competition KhADI 24 made 4 all-soviet speed records. In 1987 KhADI 26 and KhADI 27 Unfortunately only KhADI 24 had a chance to make an official speed records. Last competition to make Land-Speed Records in USSR was conducted in 1984.  During the competition KhADI 24 made 4 all-soviet speed records. Dragsters KhADI 26 and KhADI 27 was  displayed on International Fair in Plovdiv and Exhibition of Economic Achievements where their creators  won silver and bronze medals. The last car for speed record which was built in our laboratory was electric dragster KhADI 28 that had engine from electric- torpedo. This car was  filmed in documental movie about speed cars in USSR.

KhADI 24

KhADI 27, KhADI 26

KhADI 28

First electric race car in Soviet Union was built in this Laboratory in 1972. Its name is KhADI 11. Our students have a lot of ideas how design of electric cars and they created 4 more models during 1980's. KhADI - 13, KhADI 21, KhaDI 23 Almost all of them used starter-generator from battle tank as an electrical engine.

KhADI 11

KhADI 13

KhADI 21

KhADI 23

For more than 50 years in the LSA it was created 34 projects of racing, sports and touring cars. 42speed records have been set, 16 out of these 42 was higher then world speed records. For over 10 years those sportsmen, who usually take part in close-circuit races, have been placed at All-Ukrainian championship. This time in our laboratory ware build a new race cars KhADI 29 in 1992 you can find it in the main hall of our university, KhADI 31 in 2006 and KhADI 33 in 2010, and now we are finishing  our new car.

KhADI 29

KhADI 31 KhADI 33

KhADI 33 was built in cooperation with Germany partner of our university. Back in time one businessman from Germany decided to create an international soviet-Germany racing team to participate in Formula One World Championship and our university was invited to join this project. The first step to this ambitious goal was to create two simple cars for Formula 3 Euro Series. Unfortunately, it was the last step of this project, but we saved this contacts and in 2000 our German partners donated an engine and gearbox for creation a new racing car with open wheels  which usually named formula.

KhADI 33 creation

The new focus area of LSA is to create an eco-cars. First of them, KhADI 32 used liquid nitrogen as a fuel. Besides that in 2010 student’s team of Laboratory of Speed Automobiles created Khadi 34 and became the first team from Ukraine and Post-Soviet Union countries which took part in the international competition Shell Eco-marathon. The student’s team of Laboratory of Speed Automobiles has became the first team from Ukraine and Post-Soviet Union countries which took part in the international competition Shell Eco-marathon. For this purpose the special energy efficient car KhADI – 34 has been developed. All construction solutions being used in KhADI – 34 aimed to achieve high results in fuel economy. 3 Times the team LSA-KhADI took part in international competition among students Shell Eco-marathon  which taken place at EuroSpeedway Lausitz in 2010, 2011 and in Rotterdam in 2013. It is possible to drive 575 km on one liter of gasoline on "KhADI 34"!

reporting оf AP about our team:

Aleksandr Chernyshov