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Formula E Unveils Gen 3 Race Cars, They Are Set to Be Faster Than Ever

The FIA has revealed its Gen3 racing car for the Formula E racing series. It is promised to be the fastest, lightest, most powerful, and most efficient electric racing car ever built, if you ask its creators. It will debut in Season 9 of the ABB FIA Formula E Championship.
FIA Formula E Gen 3 racing car 14 photos
Photo: FIA
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The new single-seater has been developed to enable applying performance upgrades through software updates, all thanks to the new operating system implemented in this model. According to its creators, more than 40 percent of the energy used within a race is generated from regenerative braking, which is a lot.

The 350-kW (469 horsepower) electric motor comes with almost 95 percent power efficiency, more than twice what an internal combustion engine can provide. In addition, its top speed is over 322 kph (200 mph), so the racing will be faster than ever.

For the first time, Formula E will have all-wheel drive, and this is thanks to the fact that the front axle has an electric motor as well, which has 250 kW (335 horsepower) of power. Together with the rear motor, the two can have a total of 600 kW of regenerative braking, which is more than double what the current Gen2 Formula E single-seaters offer.

Another premiere is the elimination of rear hydraulic brakes, which makes this single-seater the first of its kind to be without rear brakes because it also has a front motor, and both the front and rear motors are used for regenerative braking as well. However, the front hydraulic brakes have been kept as a safety measure, as well as for additional stopping power.

From a sustainability perspective, the vehicle comes with battery cells that can be reused at the end of their life, or that can be recycled if the reuse will not be possible. The minerals in the batteries are sustainably sourced, and the carbon footprint of these vehicles, even from the design phase, has been optimized to be as low as possible.

The carbon fiber used to make the bodywork of these vehicles will be recycled from Gen2 cars, and all waste carbon fiber will be reused in the future thanks to the adoption of aviation industry tech on this matter. Additionally, all tires used in the series will be fully recycled after racing, and the tires themselves are made of up to 26% natural rubber and recycled fibers.

However, despite all these efforts, the racing will still have a carbon footprint, but Formula E wants to offset it through its net-zero carbon commitment.

Along with Extreme E, these are the two forms of motorsport with the smallest carbon footprint. Mind you, Formula 1 is also working on the latter aspect, but without using just electric motors.

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About the author: Sebastian Toma
Sebastian Toma profile photo

Sebastian's love for cars began at a young age. Little did he know that a career would emerge from this passion (and that it would not, sadly, involve being a professional racecar driver). In over fourteen years, he got behind the wheel of several hundred vehicles and in the offices of the most important car publications in his homeland.
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