Formula E Announces Renault Co-Developed Racecar for First Season

For a series that has never held a race, Formula E has announced that it will use three different cars to race in the last year and a half, but it says that the newest one – the Spark-Renault SRT_01E – will actually be racing next season around the world with the series.

Spark Racing Technology, a company owned by Formula E holdings, has designed the SRT_01E, and DallaraDallaraItaly, 1972 > present3 models
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will actually build them. WilliamsWilliamsUnited Kingdom, 1977 > present37 models
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is providing the batteries; McLarenMcLarenUnited Kingdom, 1963 > present92 models
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is the electric motor and its controls supplier, and RenaultRenaultFrance, 1898 > present189 models
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is helping to optimize everything.

The cars have 268hp (270ps), which will be available in qualifying, but in the race, the cars will be limited to 178hp (180ps) with a limited push-to-pass system that provides full power. At full power, the SRT_01E can reach 100km/h in three seconds and a top speed of 200km/h. Limiting power during the race increases the car’s range.

Spark claims that the car was designed to make overtaking easier, and it has a relatively high ride height because all of the tracks will be on city streets.

The cars have a minimum weight of 800kg, and 200kg of the weight is batteries.

“No-one had ever designed an electric single-seater with this kind of performance, manufactured in short production runs and developed according to a tight deadline.  We factored in a number of constraints, including mass, safety and thermics,” said Francois Champod, Formula E Coordinator at Renault.

The Formula E Championship will have ten, two-car teams racing in ten cities in North America, South America, Europe and Asia. All of the teams have to use the SRT_01E for the first season, but in the future, teams will be able to build their own cars.

Official dates for the races have not been announced yet, but the series plans to have its first season start in September 2014 and end in June 2015. It has confirmed races in London, Berlin, Rome, Beijing, Bangkok, Putrajaya, Los Angeles, Miami, Rio de Janeiro and Buenos Aires.