Formula E has not had an easy time winning over its sceptics since the all-electric championship was launched four years ago.
This is due in no small part to the gulf in performance between Formula E’s relatively immature electric technology and Formula 1’s vastly quicker cars.“They are two completely different categories” FIA president Jean Todt stressed earlier this year. “Formula E has not the performance of Formula 1 at the moment.”
That much is clear. But there is one crucial respect in which even Formula E’s staunchest detractors must give it credit. And it explains why manufacturers like Mercedes and Porsche are queuing up to join in.
Most branches of motorsport have closed off avenues for development. Junior championships are almost exclusively single-make series. IndyCar has a spec aero kit and tightly-defined engine rules.
In GT racing, Balance of Performance regulations ensure no one can innovate their way to an advantage. And some series which do encourage competitive car development have suffered because of it: Look at the state of the World Endurance Championship’s LMP1 category, reduced to a single, dominant manufacturer.
But Formula E, like Formula 1, is intended to push car development forward. And, arguably, it fulfils this at least as well as F1 does.
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F1 has boxed itself into a set of regulations which allow only a certain configuration of V6 turbo with hybrid energy recovery systems, and found no new manufacturers are interested in joining in the near future. Formula E has gradually opened up its power train regulations and this seems to be part of its appeal to manufacturers.
So what has Formula E achieved in this time? Have Renault, Audi and the rest pushed forward the development of battery technology? Have lap times tumbled over the first four years?
Measuring this is not entirely straightforward. While F1 tracks tend to change only occasionally, Formula E has moved between many different venues during its first four years. And the configuration of some tracks have changed too.
So much so there is no single unchanged track the championship has raced on in all four seasons. Here’s how its lap times compared at those tracks which have remained the same for two or three different seasons:
For its first season, Formula E used a fixed-specification powertrain supplied by Spark. From the 2015-16 championship manufacturers were allowed to develop their own parts including the EMotor, differential and gearbox, though not the traction battery.
They responded with a range of solutions. This differentiation has been credited with creating better racing and more variety between winners than in F1, where only three teams have won races in the last five seasons.
The development also led to a substantial drop in lap times between the first two seasons, when lap times improved by around 1.4%. This may not seem like much compared to F1, but keep in mind there is no aerodynamic development in Formula E.
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This is not to say that the progress made in Formula E has entirely been down to powertrain development. Michelin has reduced the weight of its tyres, as motorsport director Pascal Couasnon told RaceFans: “To give more weight to put batteries [in] we – in two generations of tyres – decreased the weight of the tyre by 10 kilos over the set.”
Differences in tyre development mean only the broadest possible comparisons can be made with F1. However consider that in 2015, the second year of its V6 hybrid turbo regulations, F1 lap times fell by around 1.3%, and another 2.5% the following year (when softer compounds were used at several tracks).
But Formula E’s biggest step forward is yet to come. The new season begins in exactly two months’ time and tomorrow the teams begin testing the championship’s second-generation chassis.
Significant gains in efficiency, range and outright performance are expected. Peak power output in qualifying trim will increase by 25% to 250kW. This may prove not merely a step forward for electric racing, but a leap.
Quotes: Dieter Rencken and Hazel Southwell
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Garns (@)
15th October 2018, 13:33
Interesting. I saw FE in 2015 in LA, Long Beach, but after so many years watching F1 I thought they were slow.
But if you watch F1 or a Moto GP around Sepang you will get a much better race in Moto, but F1 is in fact around 30 seconds a lap quicker- you miss that speed when the guys can actually race……. F1 needs some work, hope Ross Brawn can do this.
Adam (@rocketpanda)
15th October 2018, 14:05
Kinda quietly interested in FE.
I think the new car design looks really good, instead of looking like a generic ‘race car’ that it did before. Seems to have its own identity – if that makes sense. Driver quality isn’t terrible and the variety between manufacturer to privateer seems good, and that they all seem reasonably capable of fighting at the front makes it a lot more competetive than F1.
From a technological perspective too I’m pretty fascinated that they’re all purely electric. Obviously I think it’d be cooler if they were faster, but as technology improves these things are only going to get faster. I’m not keen on gimmicks like fanboost, but it’s still early days.
I do think the series could do with some more ‘permenant’ tracks, as mentioned in the article there isn’t really any recurring tracks… and I think it could do with less time between the races – a tighter season would be better than a thin one stretched so long. But again, early days.
Looking forward to seeing more of Formula E.
ColdFly (@)
15th October 2018, 16:48
That’s probably what they hope for, @rocketpanda.
Fans are initially ‘quietly interested’, get more ‘charged’ over time, and become ‘electrified’ later ;)
Robbie (@robbie)
15th October 2018, 18:45
Shocking observation, but shows you’re plugged in to the reality nonetheless. Not re-volting at all. Watt you have said is amp-le. Wire you so smart? I’m positive you’re not negative. What am ion about? Perhaps it’s the electrolytes in your cells.
I’ll see myself out…
ColdFly (@)
15th October 2018, 19:33
💡⚡
Lee1
16th October 2018, 10:31
Are you available for Weddings and Birthdays? ;-)
Alex Brown (@splittimes)
15th October 2018, 14:13
Have FormulaE done the impossible and written technical regs that keep costs down, allow innovation, promote manufacturer involvement alongside privateers and create good racing? It’s a shame that many people can’t see past the Mario kart gimmicks to this achievement. Next season will be the acid test.
MattDS (@mattds)
15th October 2018, 19:59
@splittimes the real shame is that they think they need Mario Kart gimmicks to appeal to the public. You can’t exactly blame racing fans they hate the gimmics, can you?
Anyway, Formula E haven’t opened up development fully. They are only gradually doing that. If ever they get to a similar state like F1, expect costs to skyrocket as well.
anon
15th October 2018, 20:57
@splittimes, not necessarily – for a start, most of the privateers are no longer truly independent, but are now relying on forming partnerships with major manufacturers in order to keep going.
Costs are only really being kept down because the amount of technological innovation is still fairly limited and by hard cost capping (spare parts, for example, have a fixed maximum value). It could be said that part of the reason why it is cheap for the teams is because a number of external costs are effectively being transferred out of the sport and onto the suppliers, most of which are major manufacturers which will write the cost off as part of their advertising spending – so the cost factor is a little deceptive in that respect.
The other aspect is that, right now, the series is still failing to generate any profits – in May, their latest financial accounts showed that, although their revenue increased last year, their costs are still going up quite rapidly, leading to them declaring a loss of £18.6 million. The series may be growing, but those persistent losses means the financial situation isn’t as healthy as it may first appear.
As an aside, I would like to point out that the article does also omit a rather important piece of information about the new cars. Whilst they are more powerful, they are also badly overweight because the battery pack is about 40kg heavier than planned (it was supposed to be 20kg lighter than the old pack, but is instead 20kg heavier) – so the jump in performance might not be quite as large as originally planned.
vjanik (@vjanik)
15th October 2018, 14:14
If i was in charge of F1, instead of the V6 Turbo route (or now with the 2023 revamp), i would have drawn a box in the regulations to say where and how big the engine should be. I would put a cap on power at say 1000bhp (could be debated). Everything else about the power unit would be a free-for-all. If you want to go full electric, go ahead. If you just want a simple v8 or v10 with 1000bhp, fine. Basically anything goes.
Even at low cost you could compete with the top teams because everybody will have the same power. Like in FE now, the emphasis would be on getting the powerunit lighter, smaller and finding new interesting solutions. I bet it would attract manufacturers. And produce good racing. Not to mention the technology that will be developed in the process of trying to produce 1000bhp in the most elegant and efficient way that works best for motor racing. Who knows what we would discover.
BasCB (@bascb)
15th October 2018, 15:30
It would be easier to limit the amount of energy they can put in the car and energy flow towards the engine – state it in KWh and you could apply that to electrical energy or fuel flow of one’s chosen medium – than to actually measure a bhp amout (especially when bhp is an outdated unit of power measurement) @vjanik
The sensible way would also have been to include an obligation to supply the same powerunit to others at a certain price level to keep a check on the spending.
dusty (@dusty)
15th October 2018, 17:26
Off-topic, but, is it? Why?
Tristan (@skipgamer)
15th October 2018, 14:17
Are those average lap times or fastest lap times? And race or qualifying?
I haven’t watched a lot of FE but every time I have it seems like a very strategic (albeit unexciting) format, where often cars that are competing with each other will save their battery for when they feel they have the upper hand to attack. It wouldn’t surprise me if development was more focused on getting the most out of the car for those few laps when it’s turned up as opposed to just being quicker on average around a lap.
KG
15th October 2018, 16:18
The demo by Rosberg of the Gen 2 car looked good. I wish they get rid of those front ‘mudguards’ though. I think the car would look much cleaner without them. I really like the look from the back. If they could race on at least one of the current or former F1 tracks I would be watching.
Actually, if FE develops into some kind of an F1 B/C division for promising drivers or drivers who can’t get a seat in F1 plus retired F1 drivers. For me, drivers and tracks are probably as important as the car. At the moment it’s hard to get excited about it. e.g. It looks like a carpark race at Berlin Tempelhof.
I wonder what be their lap times could be around Monaco.
Kibo
15th October 2018, 18:41
Looks like they had requested to use the F1 Monaco circuit but it was denied by FIA. They’ll have to go for the shorter version.
GechiChan (@gechichan)
16th October 2018, 8:31
Even if Monaco doesn’t really make for a great comparison due to its really slow corners and lack of straights, i still think F1 cars would be 5 to 10 seconds faster.
CarWars (@maxv)
16th October 2018, 23:40
Lol, probably more like 30seconds faster
LEMAYIAN (@lems)
15th October 2018, 16:34
FE is developing and winning fans and manufacturers alike unlike formula 1 which is doing the opposite, but even with its sometimes processional races,the speed at which F1 cars go and the glamour associated with the sport keeps most fans in it rather than FE, including me. But I got to admit that those FE cars look really good.
GechiChan (@gechichan)
16th October 2018, 8:49
the cars indeed look good, but the show is not there, in my opinion. The races are also pretty processional and usually decided by who coasts and saves the energy better, which also happens in F1 but to a far lesser extent. And while i understand that the tracks used now are exactly what they should race on – downtown tacks in famous cities around the globe to showcase the 0 emissions ethos – it feels a bit stale and uninspiring. Even the flagship races like Paris, Berlin (aerodrome / parking lot feeling), NY Brooklin (horribly dusty with boring layout), etc have nothing glamourous or memorable like many races in F1 (Monaco, Spa, Monza, Suzuka, G. Villeneuve, etc). Sure, F1 achieved this over decades of racing, but still, i wish FE would be enticing to watch if it raced on proper tracks.
Lee1
16th October 2018, 10:39
I am not so sure. I have seen some amazing racing in FE. Last year I watched as 2 cars raced each other for the lead with one car pretty much touching the back of the lead car for 5 laps!
As to the glamour. That is generated by both history and money. FE is new it will take time for the tradition to set in. It would help if it had some tracks that stayed the same each year but then I think the early days of F1 were very similar. I think some night races would be great.
ColdFly (@)
15th October 2018, 16:54
I did not know that FE had freed up the powertrain development route for entrants. I thought it was still the full spec. series as how it originally started (Spark something).
Good to read (and smart) that they opened up development in the most interesting part for this series, the powertrain. They should now also open it up for the battery, as a lot of development potential is to be expected in that area (although this could make it much more expensive).
jamt
15th October 2018, 17:08
FE is slower than F1 and I think is an advantage. You do not have serious aerodynamic problems which means that nice racing is very easy/cheap to obtain. If FE get faster then it would have the same problems than F1. So I’m not fully convinced about the future of this category in its actual format.
Robbie (@robbie)
15th October 2018, 18:32
@jamt I don’t think we will see the same concern with FE, for downforce means drag, and drag is not conducive to helping electric cars go fast and have range. Perhaps there will come a day when electric vehicles are that strong and have that kind of range such that they could handle also being pushed into the track, but for now that is not the case, and I would like to think that Liberty is about to show us from 2021 onward that all that aero downforce is a thing of the past if they want to encourage close racing.
BMF66
15th October 2018, 19:59
Won’t be watching. It’s pure cheese.
phpguy
17th October 2018, 18:00
Your loss then.
Frasier (@frasier)
15th October 2018, 22:10
Electric vehicles can be fast, VWs Pikes Peak record shows that, but, and of course there’s always a but, the range is still terrible. Furthermore the white heat of FE competition doesn’t seem to have accelerated development at the rate it needs for meaningful crossover to the real world of road car sales.
The confirmation of why the ICE car has eclipsed the electric car over the past 130 years…
FE is still a great fit for city centres, much like it’s humbler road car equivalent, just don’t legislate to ban the ICE for longer journeys. Oh wait, they’ve already done that… my bad.
Lee1
16th October 2018, 10:54
Being a huge motorsport fan and an Electric car owner I can honestly say that the range is not a major issue. Mine has a range of 120-130 miles and I have had practically zero issues. I have driven long distances with a car full of family, dog, tent and associated equipment and it has all been fine. Day to day I drive 25 miles to work and 25 miles back via motorways and country lanes and then get back home and do all the normal runs I did in my previous petrol car. The car handles great (it has F1 weight distribution and all the weight is very low in the car). Its acceleration is very good for its class and its throttle response is astounding. It is also lovely and quiet so I can listen to my music in without the engine noise in the background and it is supremely smooth and relaxing. In the ice and snow it also is better than my petrol car as I have more control over the throttle and the braking is less likely to lock up the wheels as it is mostly through the regeneration. It is also cheaper than equivalent ICE cars overall.
A range of 200 miles would be perfectly fine for almost anyone (as you should not be driving for that distance without taking a break), however Hyundai and Kia have just launched 300 mile range cars (for cheaper than mine…).
Add to that the new tech in the horizon which could easily double the range and reduce charge times (some of the tech could increase range by 5 times!) and the future is bright and clean. In my mind the Government are being too conservative in their 2040 target and should bring that forward to 2030. Every single person that has driven my car is now looking to swap their ICE cars for an EV and some of those are massive petrol heads!
I could never go back to driving an ICE.
Big Joe
14th December 2018, 12:27
@frasier
It’s adviseable (and law for professional drivers) not to drive more than 3-4 hours at a time. EVs have already acheived that range.
Your comment is way off.
MaliceCooper
16th October 2018, 0:00
They called him Bernie. And he drove the fastest milk float in the West.
gabe
16th October 2018, 0:48
That was a really good article.
Kris Baxter
16th October 2018, 3:49
its not even about the speed though, although that matters, as it did appear as though the cars hit the top speed quickly and frequently. But the lack of noise. Seeing a car whistle by at 200kph is boring compared to a car making a racket at the same speed.
Plus the tracks are boring, shame they cant get on more permanent circuits. I appreciate the street circuits take the fans closer, which I guess is needed when all you hear is rubber on tarseal, but I don’t think I can ever really be a fan if there is no exhaust noise. Silent racing holds zero appeal for me, no matter how good the racing might be.
socksolid (@socksolid)
16th October 2018, 4:22
I don’t think the level of technology really matters at all for car companies when they are choosing their race series. Only thing that matters is the bang for the buck when it comes to marketing. Competing in fe gives a ton of visibility for the relatively small cost of participating. The series punches way above its price tag when it comes to viewership numbers. Which is probably why mercedes for example pulled out of dtm. The costs are just too big for relatively domestic viewership. Fe already compares positively to series like indycar with very similar viewership numbers. And fe does have relatively young viewerbase as well.
Only time when technology matters is if the manufacturer already has some gizmo and they want to showcase it against established brands. Or when they are trying to get into new markets. Back in 80s and 90s audi had their fourwheel drive system which it used everywhere it could. Dtm, transam, imsa… From f1 point of view their focus on hybrid engines is pretty much outdated already. The prius was already on the market in 1997 and as such everybody know that those economobiles exist. Whats the point to enter f1 to showcase tehcnology everybody already knows about. And the costs are insane. Same with lmp1. Fe offers cheap marketing platform where most of the tech is already chosen and made for you. Just write a check and jump in. The main draw of fe is that the car manufacturers don’t need to develop any tech.
The electric car is the exciting new thing. There are not many reasonably priced electric cars yet on the market (tesla is not cheap) but they are coming. When the young fans of fe are finally old enough to buy a car chances are their first car is electric. Which brands they buy? The ones they already know. The ones they saw racing in fe. The only thing that matters about fe is that the cars are electric because the car manufacturers want to make sure the people who buy electric cars know they make them too.
MW
16th October 2018, 10:26
I’ve only seen one whole race, Hong Kong 2017(?) when the track was blocked by an accident where multiple cars ran into the back of the car in front. The feeling I got was like watching Twenty20 cricket compared to a Test match – it felt like it was a few guys not good enough for the main form having a hit and giggle. A hairpin added in for drivers to go stupid at, changing cars mid-race, and weren’t there bumps added to the inside of some corners that bounced cars around? And the lack of sound…
Lee1
16th October 2018, 11:18
The lack of sound is just a conditioning thing. We have grown up with loud meaning fast. Kids growing up now will not feel that as much as they see quiet cars that are fast and this will only get more pervasive going forward.