Some of the world’s top racing drivers – including a Grand Prix winner, an Indycar champion, former F1 aces and up-and-coming stars – have had their first official taste of all electric racing.
The ten teams entered for the FIA Formula E series took to the Donington Park race circuit in the UK last week for the first official test. Everyone enjoyed the speed, handling and grip of the innovative Spark-Renault SRT_01E single-seater.
The car features a Dallara chassis while the powertrain and electronics have been developed by McLaren Electronics Systems and the batteries by Williams Advanced Engineering. As official Technical Partner of the series, Renault is overseeing all the systems integration.
Among those at the four-day test was Grand Prix winner Jarno Trulli who not only owns one of the Formula E teams, but races the car too.
He said: “Formula E is a new chapter of motorsport. It’s absolutely not an alternative to Formula 1; it’s something totally different. But it’s a fascinating project and I wanted to be part of it.”
IndyCar legend Gil de Ferran also had a run. “Driving an electric car for the first time is fantastic. I really enjoyed the car – the torque characteristics of the electric motor [mean] you don’t use the engine and gearbox in the same way you use them in a normal racing car so that was very interesting.”
Because the Spark-Renault SRT_01E produces no emissions, each race in the 10-round global series will take place in cities such as Berlin, Los Angeles, Monte Carlo and Buenos Aires. The opening round will be held in Beijing on 13 September 2014 while the final round will be held in London at the end of June 2015.
Drivers lined up for the series include former F1 stars Sebastien Buemi and Lucas di Grassi, who topped the time charts on the first and second days respectively, along with Bruno Senna, Nicolas Prost (son of Alain) and leading lady racers Katherine Legge and Michela Cerruti.
Find out more from the FIA Formula E website.
Learn more about Renault-Nissan electric vehicles for racing in the following video.
Picture credits: via FIA Formula E
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