Formula E reveals new, lighter and more powerful ‘Gen3’ car

Formula E

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Formula E have unveiled the third generation of the car that the series will race with from the start of the 2023 season.

The next generation of Formula E car, which will be introduced into the series for the upcoming 2023 season, was presented in the principality ahead of this weekend’s Monaco EPrix.

The Gen3 car will be lighter than the current Formula E car, with a maximum power output of 350kW, capable of a top speed of over 320kph (200mph). It will feature two powertrains – one at the front and rear – which will more than double the regenerative potential of the car compared to the current model.

The new car will also feature no rear hydraulic brakes due to an additional front powertrain with more energy in races generated under braking.

Sustainability is also a key focus of the new car, with the sport claiming that the batteries that will be used in races will be reused and recycled at the end of their life. Tyres used will be made of 26% natural rubber and recycled fibres, while Formula E says the recycled carbon fibre from current-generation cars will be used to help produce parts of the new cars.

Formula E CEO, Jamie Reigle, says that third-generation car “represents a leap forward for motorsport and electric mobility.”

“The Gen3 disrupts and challenges the conventions of motorsport, setting the benchmark for performance, efficiency and sustainability without compromise,” Reigle said.

“Together with the FIA, we are proud to reveal the Gen3 to Formula E fans and demonstrate to the wider sports industry how elite sport, high performance and sustainability can successfully co-exist in the Formula E World Championship. We cannot wait to see how our teams and drivers push the car to its limit in 2023.”

FIA president Mohamed Ben Sulayem said the design establishes new standards “both technologically and environmentally.”

“I am delighted to see so many leading manufacturers already signed up to the championship’s next era and await Gen3’s competitive debut in season nine with great anticipation,” he added.

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Will Wood
Will has been a RaceFans contributor since 2012 during which time he has covered F1 test sessions, launch events and interviewed drivers. He mainly...

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40 comments on “Formula E reveals new, lighter and more powerful ‘Gen3’ car”

  1. Proesterchen cannot login because the login captcha is broken
    28th April 2022, 17:53

    What’s that mess behind the roll hoop supposed to be?

    1. Techinacally it is called messy roll hoop.
      but it may be just the “best” solution to the fact that an eletric powered racing car does not need air intakes.
      So they could integrate the roll hoop on it. They just add that “solution”

      1. Very wrong they need a big airintake as the speedcontroller generates more heat then a F1 engine (outsideskin ofcourse) and that need to be cooled or failure is certain.

    2. It’s a fast recharge point.
      They’ll have pit-stop with super fast recharge to make races longer.

  2. thanks for not showing the other pictures – the car seems awful.

    1. Tbh it’s hard to actually see what it does look like. Car and background seem to merge. Maybe my aging eyes…

        1. Looks much better in the video. Like a cross between a gen 2 car and an imperial star destroyer.

          Also I think these show cars end up looking a lot better with the team liveries rather than the generic livery.

    2. It is really ugly. It would be the ideal design for a cartoon in the early 1980s. Those vertical stabilizers seem really useless, while the front wing’s lack of detailed surfaces confirms that cartoonish look.

    3. Frankly gen2 proved to be a catastrophic car for the series. Gen2 solved many of the big hurdles but the show has been awful with it.

  3. Open wheels is good for a an “open-wheel” racing series.

  4. Anon A. Mouse
    28th April 2022, 18:05

    I’m not a form over function person, I could even find appeal in the “thumb nose” era of F1, but wow does this thing look simplistic. The angle of the front wing endplates, the arrowlike nature of the entire car, it looks very much like a futuristic take on a F2/F3 car, and I don’t think I mean that as a complement. That said, if it’s a good chassis for racing then that’s all that matters.

  5. Looks weird & is rear wing-less. Reminds me of a soapbox car.

  6. RandomMallard
    28th April 2022, 18:38

    I don’t mind the look of the car. Not the nicest design in the world but I don’t think it’s inherently ugly.

    I just hope they can actually utilise it on more proper race tracks now.

    1. Absolutely this – proper racetrack with proper sight lines so we can see the cars rather than city tracks that look like they are driving through a tunnel of steel all the time. Thats the only thing that puts me off watching the sport.

  7. Chris Horton
    28th April 2022, 18:41

    Well. First impression is it looks very basic, as has been said above, like a futuristic F3 car.

    I’m impressed with the 200mph, but wouldn’t like to be a driver actually doing that in one of those.
    So it’s all wheel drive too? Not a fan of that concept at all and seriously hope F1 never follows suit.

  8. That looks horrible!

    Looks like it has way too much bodywork in places where it’s not needed.

    1. You are all going to eat your own words. Looks far better than gen2 even if it has a bare bones aesthethic, best of all it can regen and it is actually decently fast, gen 2 had a menacing look but it drove like a golf cart.

  9. This article needed to be written by @hazelsouthwell.

    I Am Dissapoint Son.

  10. Actually it looks like a formula car that’s placeholder until the real rendering of the car is finished. Like some low-polygon thing to try the racing before we drop the real things on track.

  11. One of the oddest looking race cars I’ve ever seen.

  12. Bit basic aero, it seems like. Otherwise they are making good progress with the tech!

  13. The Dolphins
    28th April 2022, 20:43

    I’d like to know more (technical details) about the aerodynamics of this generation. Given the time spent on optimizing the power train I wonder how much effort was put into aero efficiency and minimizing drag. I hope this was a focus of this generation but if not then perhaps the next? Formula E has the benefit of introducing more radical aero concepts and coupling them with technologies like active suspension to extract full benefit. Another area where efficiency can be gained is active aero.

    Overall though this is a great improvement on a lot of fronts: weight reduction, energy harvesting, increased power/speed, and being conscious of the environmental impact of products at end-of-life.

  14. What a bizarre looking car. It reminds me of the simplistic shape drawings you’d use to start teaching a child how to draw. The overhead shots resemble a paper aeroplane. Sounds like it’s a step in the right direction performance-wise

  15. If those performance metrics are achieved formula E will finally be a top tier series.
    Hopefully it’ll also sway the cars into an actual track or two of racing

    1. Congratulations – 20 comments in and finally someone commented on the technical details rather than the appearance. I was also pretty pleasantly surprised by the performance metrics – that does look like a decent step forward which will hopefully make the cars look more dynamic and also help to differentiate between the skill of the drivers who can handle the higher speeds and those who can’t.

      1. The technical info is a bit light, but it is looking more interesting that the earlier cars.
        No comments on the concept of no hydraulic wheel brakes.? Supposed to be entirely re-gen braking. That should be interesting. Maybe Alex Albon can consult on how that works.
        Another site also mentioned that the bodywork and layout was intended to maximize surfaces for sponsorship / branding.

  16. What’s with the artsy fartsy presentation? Just show the damn car (or at least a good rendering).

  17. I saw a report some weeks ago stating that the teams and drivers were unimpressed with how the car looked with most thinking it looked ugly….. I can now see why.

    Has to be one of the worst looking race cars i ever recall seeing and I’m not saying that as someone who simply doesn’t like Formula E as while not my favourite category around it is a series i watch every so often and can enjoy when i do.

    It looks like the sort of boring, generic, boxey just ugly sort of car you saw in F1 games that didn’t have the F1 license about 20 years ago so had to just throw something together that sort of resembled one.

    1. Take the rear wing off this f1 type car from an old dreamcast game and tell me it doesn’t look very similar.

      https://i.ytimg.com/vi/CuAcmmGmCX8/maxresdefault.jpg

    2. I don’t know if it’s that bad. People will get used to it if the racing is good, though a lot of action in FE these days seems a bit artificial.

      To my eyes the first season Formula E cars were pretty ugly too. Also the first season A1GP cars from 15 years ago.

      More interesting to me is the question of whether they will race at more appropriate tracks. Many of the street circuits on the current FE calendar are too slow and narrow, look awful on TV and don’t do the current cars justice, let alone future 4WD drive cars with even higher performance.

  18. 600kw power combined with regenerative power. It should be heaps faster. I’m guessing between F2 and F3 pace? Should be good.

  19. Lighter with more power, yes please. What a contrarian direction for a modern motorsport series. As for the looks – odd but interesting. As for the presentation – it looks like someone over there is hip to the current design trends compared to that pachinko parlor that was the F1 2022 show car. e.g. https://lemanoosh.com/

  20. Well, I’ll be different and say that’s actually not such a terrible looking car.
    It kinda reminds me of 90’s F1 in some angles, and 70’s in others.

    Whatever – it’s all about the racing with these cars. I have little interest in the technical aspects here, and just expect nothing more and nothing less from FE than decent, competitive and slightly frantic and chaotic races.
    If it isn’t entertaining, it’s pointless.

    1. They tried to make it look as a fighterjet …. looks a bit like a F35 …..

  21. Argh, my eyes!

  22. It looks like the concept car Ford Indigo in the first ever racing game I played – need for speed 2 – back in the mid 90s. Check this out https://www.google.com/search?q=nfs2+Ford+indigo.

    It was a very nimble car and I set all my lap records with it. So, for pure nostalgia, I like it

  23. It’s not a nice looking thing. It somehow reminds me about Audi Quattro S1. On paper they both look fast but when I first saw Quattro S1 it was a lot smaller than I thought. This FE car has the latest technology but it doesn’t look good.

  24. I hate to be critical of a lot of hard work put in by very smart people, doing a job I would love to have by the way, but this styling is…backwards thinking? I seems like a failed experiment by Nissan at the 24 hours of Le Mans.

    All the technicals under the skin are cool as hell though, I hope it races well for the drivers and the fans. Was it Massa, back in 2009, “(I know it’s not pretty) as long as it is fast, I don’t care what it looks like.”?

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