Formula E: New power trains, manufacturers next steps in electric revolution
While a new era dawned in 2014 with the launch of the world’s first fully electric racing series, Formula E is set to reach new heights later this year with the next evolution in technology for the rapidly growing single-seater championship.
The FIA revealed last month the list of eight manufacturers that will build unique powertrains beginning with the 2015/2016 season, the first step in the opening up of regulations towards a potential step of a Manufacturers’ World Championship.
The change marks a significant departure from the championship’s current spec electric motor, inverter, gearbox and cooling system package in its Spark-Renault SRT_01E cars, which debuted less than six months ago.
“We would like Formula E to be the place where [technology develops] for the electric car,” said Formula E CEO Alejandro Agag. “For that, quantifying manufacturers is essential. We were extremely, positively surprised when we had eight candidates to become manufacturers. We were expecting maybe two or three for Season 2.”
While details were released just a few weeks ago, the manufacturers, either all in-house team efforts or directly linked to existing Formula E squads, had begun work on the units late last year on an accelerated development curve in order to meet the aggressive homologation deadline this summer.
According to Andretti Formula E team principal Roger Griffiths, who is heading up work on the American team’s powertrain, it marks a welcome challenge for the multifaceted organization, which takes on the role as manufacturer for the first time.
"It's a really exciting time to be involved in the technological development of the motor and the power control, inverter and obviously the battery systems,” Griffiths told FOXSports.com. “Technology is moving so fast, it's almost like a space race to try and keep up with it. That for us is very exciting.”
Griffiths, who joined Andretti last year after tenure as technical director for Honda Performance Development (HPD), said they’ve taken the proactive approach to develop their own technology instead of relying on other manufacturers or teams to provide systems to them.
Each manufacturer, by the rules, is required to have the capability of supplying up to three teams in the series, with a cost cap also imposed for selling units, although there is no budget limit for developing the powertrains.
It’s understood the initial investment for manufacturers is in the multi-million dollar range, which has undoubtedly resulted in a give-and-take approach for some organizations.
"We don't have limitless budgets,” Griffiths said. “We have to think carefully about every dollar we spend and we have to spend it wisely.
“There are solutions out there that technically might be better but we have to look at it realistically and say, 'Can we afford this?' If I spend all my money in this one area, that means I can't look at any of these aspects.
"Maybe I wouldn't get a better motor or better inverter if I spend all my money over here, but maybe there's more to be gained in other areas. If I go all in on a motor design, and it doesn't work, that may be a challenge.
“We've had those discussions and I think we've come out of it with a technical solution that's a significant advancement of where we are today but also balancing the risk of failure.”
While Griffiths said they’ve been working with partners in the electric machinery industry with technology not currently available to the public, there are others, such as Indian automaker Mahindra, that hopes to have a direct correlation from the road to the racetrack in just a few years' time.
"For us at Mahindra, the motor we want to put in next year's Formula E car, we want to put it in our road car in 2017 or 2018,” driver Karun Chandhok said. “It's a full on race-to-road program. We produce electric cars and I think Venturi is the really the only other one [in the series] that currently produces electric cars. For us it's quite exciting.”
The ex-Formula One driver and sports car star doesn’t expect the influx of new technology to change the strategy on track, but does see a big advantage for those able to capitalize with the development of the powertrains, which is limited to only 15 test days until the start of Season 2 in the fall.
"We drive what we're given and we make the most of what we've got,” Chandhok said. “What will be really interesting is the technology when testing. How we use those days and how useful those days will be to optimize what we've got I think will be hugely critical. Whoever can do a good job in those 15 days will hit the ground running.”
Each of the eight manufacturers is expected to receive a test car, a fifth chassis in the case of existing teams, by the end of April for on-track development. Additionally, due to the different components in the rear-end, all cars must be crash tested and homologated by July 1.
"Right now, time is the biggest challenge,” Griffiths said. “There is a six-month window where you fundamentally have to do all of your design and development and prove the concept. It's unbelievably tight. When we did the [HPD] ARX-03b LMP2 car, it was 18 months [of development]. And we are literally investing in technology that is not available to anybody else."
While manufacturers have the option of running all, or some of the current powertrain and gearbox, all teams will remain with the current Williams Advanced Engineering-developed batteries, which are enforced series-wide until being opened up to development beginning in the third season.
The next step after that will come by Season 5, which will hopefully see the use of a single car per driver instead of swapping cars mid-race due to the current inefficiencies of battery technology.
What won’t change in the short-term is the Spark-assembled chassis or aero package, which Agag said should remain the same to instead focus on advancements in powertrain and battery technology in the budding championship.
“The manufacturer in Formula E is the one who does its own battery, its own motor and inverter, or the whole powertrain,” Agag said. “They don't need to make a whole car or chassis because we want to focus on what's important for electric cars. Next year we will start to see different powertrains and different technologies and this is definitely a great step for the championship."
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