FIA Formula E has launched their GEN3 Evo car ahead of this weekend’s Monaco E-Prix, the spec machine the all-electric series will use for the next two seasons.
Unveiled in Monte Carlo on Thursday, FE and the FIA have revealed the car will make several significant strides ahead of the current GEN3 car, and not only does it boast a significant amount of impressive stats, it also achieves significant sustainability goals, further enhancing FE’s commitment to continuing its reputation as the most sustainable major sport on the planet.
Amongst a plethora of various technical details, FE have said the GEN3 car will:
- Be the fastest-accelerating FIA racing car in the world, going from 0-60mph in 1.82 seconds – 30 per cent faster than a current Formula 1 car
- Have performance upgrades which equates to approximately two seconds a lap quicker around Monaco than a current FE car
- Have more ‘robust and aerodynamic’ bodywork that promises closer wheel-to-wheel racing
- Boast all-wheel drive which will be available in qualifying, race starts and Attack Mode
- Have new Hankook tyres that guarantee five to ten percent more grip
FE says that this will make GEN3 Evo the fastest Formula E car in history, reaching a top speed of 200mph, “designed for world-class racing on any track”.
This suggests that FE could, in the future, move towards purpose-built circuit racing, but when asked about this possibility, CEO Jeff Dodds told Motorsport Week: “Traditionally, Formula E has been a street circuit championship, and then it became a kind-of city circuit championship, so it was going to either circuits that are very near the city centre or street circuits.
“If you look back to first, second and third season, you couldn’t race GEN3 cars on most of those tracks, they couldn’t take the car, and if you look at some circuits like Rome and London, they’re right on the edge of what the car can do, so this year, we’ve introduced Tokyo – traditional street circuit – Shanghai, which is going to be on the modified version of the GP circuit, and then we’ve got Misano.
“I think as we go forward, our ambition is to keep our DNA of racing around the biggest cities in the world, in street circuits or circuits very close to the city, but we feel it’s really important to have different types of racing, which are described by people as peloton effect races, but they’re wider, bigger circuits, where there’s much more overtaking, much more strategic two thirds, and much more dynamic last third as everyone knows where they are in energy.
“I’d still like to see a few of those, but definitely not a majority, which needs to be a tight, wheel-to-wheel street style racing, but you’ll see the odd race like this.
“I think it’s going to be fascinating what all-wheel drive and a bit more traction does for those races, and I can see it making a huge difference in qualification.
“If you have a dusty track like Diriyah, a bit more grip on the tyre and all-wheel drive fundamentality changes how that feels to drive on, so it will open more options for us.”
President of the FIA Mohammed Ben Sulayem said “The FIA and Formula E have been working hard on the development process of this new GEN3 Evo race car, which represents another significant leap forward in electric racing technology.
“I would like to thank both FIA and Formula E teams for the hard work which underlines our shared commitment to pushing the boundaries of sustainable motorsport, while delivering competitive racing.”
