The inaugural Formula E season is well underway, but already organisers are preparing for the next championship. At the moment, all 10 teams are using identical electric vehicles (EVs), but the plan is to let them tinker with the design from the 2015/16 season. Now, thanks to the Federation Internationale de l'Automobile (FIA), we know the eight manufacturers that'll be on the starting grid later this year: ABT Sportsline, Andretti, Mahindra, Renault Sport, Venturi Automobiles and Virgin Racing Engineering are set to return, while newcomers Motomatica and NEXTEV TCR fill out the rest of the field.
Missing from that list are Amlin Aguri, China Racing, Dragon Racing and Trulli, all of which are competing for the current title. It's unclear whether they've chosen to drop out, or the FIA deemed they weren't up to the challenge of developing bespoke parts next season. Sponsoring one of the identical Spark-Renault racers is a little easier than developing a custom car, after all. The drop in participation could be short-lived, however, as the FIA says it expects more manufacturers to join from the 2016/17 season onwards.
Once the 2014/15 championship wraps up in London, manufacturers will be able to experiment with the car's powertrain, which includes the e-motor, inverter, gearbox and cooling system. The teams are being restricted to a specific portion of the vehicle, but that's intentional: the FIA wants them to focus on technologies that will benefit the larger EV industry, rather than car aerodynamics. In the third season, those freedoms will be extended to the batteries, in the hope that drivers will be able to use a single car for an entire race from year five. Notably, competing teams must also be willing to sell their components to rival manufacturers. The FIA will set a maximum cost so engineers can learn from one another and to ensure no manufacturer is priced out of the championship. Although it could lead to short-lived advantages on the track, the FIA hopes it will accelerate new EV breakthroughs that can be passed on to consumer vehicles.
[Image Credit: AP Photo/Rodrigo Abd]
Filed under: Transportation
Source: FIA
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