Tokyo - Members of the Japan Electric Vehicle Club succeeded in driving an electric car for a record 1,003.18 kilometres without recharging the vehicle's battery, media reports said Monday.
The car, powered by a lithium-ion battery system developed by Sanyo Electric Co, was driven for 27 hours at a speed of 40 kilometres per hour at a test on the weekend on a racing course in Shimotsuma in the east-central prefecture of Ibaraki.
Seventeen drivers took turns in the record attempt, the Kyodo News agency reported.
The club broke its own record of last year of 555.6 kilometres and said it planned to ask Guinness World Records to recognize its achievement.
Sanyo is the world's largest maker of rechargeable batteries. The company said this month that it was to supply carmaker Suzuki Motor Corp with battery systems for its hybrid cars.