A Nissan team will join those from Audi, BMW, and Jaguar among factory-backed entries in the Formula E racing series come the 2018-2019 season. Nissan announced its future participation just as the all-electric motorsport is preparing to kick off its fourth season of racing on December 2 in Hong Kong with a field of 10 teams and 20 drivers.
The FIA-sanctioned racing series kicked off in 2014 and immediately attracted talent such as former Formula 1 drivers Scott Speed, Nelson Piquet Jr., and Lucas di Grassi. The lightweight electric race cars can produce up to 295 horsepower. Due to the vehicles’ limited range, each driver is allowed to jump into a fully charged second car midway through the race.
That all changes for the fifth season in 2018-19, though, as the series is adopting a new chassis design and a new battery pack that will allow teams to go the full race distance on a single charge. While the chassis and battery packs are standardized throughout the field, teams can homologate their own electric motors, which will be permitted to produce 335 horsepower in the fifth season. Mercedes-Benz and Porsche have also announced their intentions to field Formula E teams, but not until the sixth season in 2019-2020.
The FIA’s hope is that the bigger battery packs and non-standardized electric motors will spur development of real-world EV technologies by independent manufacturers—and generate more interest from racing fans.
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