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Formula E in transition: the manufacturers in season 3

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Since Formula E’s inception in 2012, one of its main aims was to entice major auto-makers. In this extensive technical feature, e-racing.net takes a look into what the fans can expect to happen in season 3.

The series did well to attract French giant Renault’s backing, not only for the season one car, but also becoming a constructor in Season 2. Now, with Season 3 starting later this year, major automakers such as DS and Jaguar have signed their names to the series. But it is no mean feat attracting such engineering giants; companies need to be able to justify such large investments, guaranteeing not only brand exposure, but also relevance to the organisations’ road vehicles. In this article series, we hope to uncover and clarify the intentions of each manufacturer, and what they hope to gain from their respective programmes.

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Renault were the first manufacturer to really put their weight behind the series. This includes hard cash, as evident in their Season 2 powertrain. It is rumoured that Renault have spent tens of millions of euros developing their Renault Z.E. 15 which features an innovative Carbon-Fibre Reinforced Polymer (CFRP) casing and a two speed ‘manual’ gearbox. The overall system architecture was designed by Renault’s EV experts along with their Renault Sport division. They focused heavily on how to improve efficiency while constantly ‘leightweighting’ throughout the design process. Partners include Zytek, who manufacture the motors and much of the system electronics, and Sadev, who make the gearbox. In the opening three races of the season, it’s been clear that Renault Sport have created a car which handles well and could deliver the goods for Buemi this season.

EVs are an important part to Renault’s business; they are currently Europe’s largest seller of EVs and are part of the Renault-Nissan alliance, who have placed substantial bets on the success of the electric car. Nissan are expected to soon announce an affordable long distance EV, to rival GM’s Chevrolet Volt and Tesla’s up-coming Model 3.

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ABT Schaeffler Audi Sport is an interesting team, as it concerns three players, all of which are working towards one entry. ABT have a long racing history, and have been tuning VW-group road cars for many years. They bring with them a wealth of expertise, and it’s clear they know how to set up a racing car. However, their prior experience of electric powertrains is near to non-existent, hence why their partnership with German manufacturing company Schaeffler has been such a good complement. Schaeffler are one of those companies, where you’ve probably benefitted from many of their products without ever knowing it. They are traditionally known for manufacturing precision bearings, for the automotive industry and other specialist applications – they even manufacture the centre bearing of the London Eye. However, the company has recently been expanding into the world of e-mobility, developing innovative hub motors for a converted Ford Fiesta, as well as complex motor-clutch systems for hybrids. It’s a credit to them, how well they’ve done so far at creating such a high performance motor. Their Formula E programme helps them prove their worth in the wider automotive space, showing they are the go-to people for auto-makers who want to enter the EV sector without investing substantially into in-house R&D facilities.

But then into the foray, comes VW. The auto-maker half-heartedly entered the series by attaching its ‘Audi Sport’ badge to the ABT entry, though in reality have had little to do with the series. In Season 2, we were thrown off even more, by the company deciding to put their ‘VW’ logo on the side of the cars and on driver overalls, as part of their ‘strategic partnership’ with the team. However, they have had near to no role in the development of the Season 2 car, leaving their position in the series all a bit… odd. VW Group have recently increased their electrification efforts on three of their core brands: VW, Audi and Porsche. It would make sense for them to show-off their EV prowess in the series, and since the ‘Dieselgate’ scandal, VW have promised more than ever to invest in the electrification of their product lines. But, with Schaeffler doing such a good job so far, where does this leave VW? Would they replace Schaeffler when they feel the time is right, or work alongside them on future powertrains? Or is this all one big marketing stunt, with VW’s aim just to attach itself to a good cause without really wanting to invest the time and money?

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Andretti tried valiantly to get their 2015/16 challenger on track, but encountered numerous software and hardware issues, which eventually forced them to revert to the Season 1 McLaren package. Their sights were set high, with their proposed system featuring a complex carbon fibre gearbox, as well as planning to potentially utilise TE’s ultra-light aluminium technology to create motor winding and cabling that could in theory reduce weight by as much as 50% compared to traditional copper. Nevertheless, for EV newbies Andretti and TE, along with start-up Houston Mechatronics, it turned out to be a task too great. However, using the lessons learnt from their Season 2 efforts, Andretti have redesigned their system and are almost ready to send it off for homologation.

Andretti clearly have a point to prove, and as one of the biggest names in motorsport it would certainly look good on the outfit if they managed to crack this new automotive age. It would also be a big coup for Houston Mechatronics. The company is formed of a number of ex-NASA employees, and a big project like FE would be a great thing for the company’s CV. As for TE, though a large part of their entry is from a marketing standpoint, by demonstrating its sensors and technologies in high-performance scenarios they could show themselves as an innovator and market leader. It could also open the door for them to add new EV-specific components to its portfolio.

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The Chinese start up may be reaching for the stars, but are certainly planted on the ocean floor for now. Their Formula E campaign, bar Trulli, may well be one of the biggest let-downs of the season so far. They are backed by wealthy investors, and have been hiring lots of new staff, but their FE programme, which was meant to set the stage for the emerging brand, has instead torn it down and done the opposite. Their mission is “to shape a joyful lifestyle for everyone who touches the things we create. To begin, our family of smart, outperforming electric vehicles will redefine the entire user experience and deliver enjoyment beyond expectation.” After the first four races of this season, reigning champion Nelson Piquet Jr does not seem like he is enjoying himself all that much…

Despite the failure of their dual-motor, single gear powertrain, the will and investment behind NEXTEV could well see their fortunes turn next season. It is looking likely that next season the team will opt for a single motor system instead. Rational Motion certainly have the tools for the job; they are a group of former Toyota Motorsport employees who now specialise in electric powertrains. It just looks as if they all got a bit too carried away with their motor efficiencies and torque levels and more, forgetting that in motorsport weight is key, hence why the car looks so difficult to drive for Piquet and Turvey.

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PSA Group is Europe’s second largest automaker, selling cars under the Peugeot, Citroën and DS brands. Citroën are in the process of spinning off their DS line into a separate entity, with a more premium feel which they hope will compete with the likes of Lexus, BMW, Mercedes and Audi. They are investing substantial amounts of money in marketing the new stand-alone brand as well as opening stand-alone showrooms, especially in China. Therefore Formula E is an important part to their strategy. PSA have previously dabbled with e-mobility, such as their ‘Hybrid4’ Diesel platform, as well as a short-lived joint effort with BMW in 2011 to develop EV technology. They also sell the Mitsubishi-made Citroen C-Zero electric city car, which has had some popularity in Berlin as a hire-car. However one the of the company’s greatest technological achievements recently was the invention of their ‘Hybrid Air’ system, which uses brake energy to compress surrounding air, and then use this air to propel the car forward instead of using a traditional motor and battery. It could see fuel reductions of up to 45% in city conditions.

Citroën’s racing division and Virgin Racing tech-guru Silvian Filippi worked on the overall system architecture, with the experienced Citroën team working primarily on the suspension and differential. The team have also commissioned British firm YASA to manufacture their dual motors. It is also believed a separate manufacturer has created the team’s inverters. Our colleagues from Current-E report this may be Magneti Marelli, however this still needs to be officially confirmed. All-in-all it is clear that DS Virgin have done a far better job with their dual motor system than other manufacturers in the series, primarily by shaving weight more effectively. Whether they decide to keep up their dual motor system next season is yet to be seen, but one thing is for sure: this is a big project for PSA, and they desperately want it to work. It is highly likely they are working on a long range EV, which could make or break their DS brand, especially in China.

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Mahindra Group are one of India’s biggest companies, and to get their weight behind a team was a massive triumph for the series. They not only have their own ‘Mahindra’ car-line, but are the majority owner of Korean motors company SsangYong. However, their business area which is most relevant to their FE programme is the Mahindra Reva brand of electric vehicles. The company’s roots lie in the Reva car company, who created the iconic G-Wiz. Under Mahindra’s ownership, the company has released e2o, a compact electric city car which it manufactures at its state of the art eco-factory. If Mahindra decide to up their EV efforts in the next few years, their FE program could be a good promotor of this.

Mahindra’s first Formula E season was a forgettable one, though their new partnership with Campos, and a conservative yet decent powertrain, has upped their chances this season. They have made some small design changes to the Season 1 package, with McLaren and Hewland still in charge of manufacturing. On paper, their powertrain is on par with, if not better than Venturi’s. In Season 3 it is quite plausible that the team will take more engineering independence, choosing suppliers themselves and going for a design less similar to Season 1’s, maybe going to a three gear solution like ABT’s. This has not been confirmed by the team just yet.

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The Monegasque squad has plenty of prior experience, and may be one of the few teams to manufacture their motor in-house. We have conflicting sources, one saying that the motor was assembled by the company, with the other saying manufacture was done by McLaren. Either way, their setup is most similar to Mahindra’s, with 4 gears and compact, high speed motor. Their gearbox was designed in conjunction with Hewland, and although their current design may be relatively conservative, it has proven well, especially in qualifying so far. The Dragon team have shown good pace with Venturi’s system, often better than Venturi themselves, and although this could be down to the drivers, it also is an indicator of Venturi’s greenness when it comes to motorsport. Their first season was plagued with avoidable mistakes, and in response to this the team has added many personnel in the off-season. Sarrazin’s impressive qualifying in Putrajaya was an indicator of not only the powertrain’s strength, but also the improvements with car set-up.

Despite being backed by Monegasque property tycoon Gildo Pallanca Pastor, Venturi Automobiles decided to end their pursuit of manufacturing low volume road cars. Now that EVs are no longer a niche, it is difficult for small outfits like Venturi to compete against the big OEMs. That is why the company is now solely focusing on specialist projects, such as its electric land speed record vehicle, and powertrain design and consultation for other companies’ projects. Formula E can be a proving ground for Venturi to demonstrate their abilities to future OEM partners.

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When Jaguar announced they were entering Formula E, many peoples’ ears perked up. The brand has been out of racing for a while, but the TATA owned company does have significant heritage and is especially fond to many Brits, where Jaguar Land Rover (JLR) are one of the biggest employers in the field of engineering. Williams Advanced Engineering (WAE) is the specialist engineering arm of the Williams group, which means it has its feet firmly planted in racing heritage. They have worked with Jaguar on the C-X75 plug-in hybrid supercar concept, designing the battery as well as assisting with manufacture. They of course designed the Formula E battery which is still used by the teams today and this knowledge could be a crucial advantage to the team. JLR have also run many R&D programmes with Electric Vehicles, so it’s a surprise they still haven’t produced a production plug-in car. It’s only a matter of time before the company release their first car with a plug, with an announcement likely in the next 12 months. With the company’s premium image, it’s likely the firm will want to compete with the likes of the Tesla Model S and Porsche Mission E.

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The Dragon team has many IndyCar veteran engineers working for them, and their ability to set up a race car has been more than proven over the first two seasons. So if they are so good at optimising an existing package, then why not simply buy from the likes of Renault and just work towards a solid set up so to challenge for consistent points? Maybe Dragon see something that the rest of us don’t notice, maybe they see a potential motor configuration that they feel could serve them better than anything from existing manufacturers. They ultimately want full control and knowledge of all the parts within their system. Dragon could be seen as being much more of a compiler than an innovator, picking parts from others and putting them together into a cohesive system that will work as a race-car. It is also strongly rumoured that the team has hired ex-Venturi guru Nicolas Maudit to oversee their Season 3 system design.

The other possibility is that Dragon will team-up with a major manufacturer. During the inaugural season, Virgin announced they would become a manufacturer, but it was only at the end of said season they confirmed their entry would be under the DS marque. Ford visited last year’s Miami race, spending a lot of time in the Aguri and Dragon garages. Though it could have innocently been a fun day out for the team, what is more likely is that they were investigating potential partnerships for future seasons. Ford recently announced an extra $4.5 bn investment in electrified vehicles R&D. That’s a lot of money, and indicates the American auto maker’s plans to grow their electric offering, to look innovative and compete with GM’s upcoming Chevy Bolt. Partnering with fellow compatriots Dragon could be the perfect fit for the OEM. This could be the ‘other major OEM’ Alejandro Agag alluded to earlier in the season.

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The Italian auto-parts maker is owned by Fiat and, despite Fiat’s general consensus of objecting all things electric, Magneti Marelli goes against the grain, and in fact have specialised in hybrid systems for a while. They make the majority of the ERS components for Ferrari and Renault in F1, and have a working dual-motor prototype, which was shown to multiple teams in Formula E. However due to the concept’s struggles this season, there’s been little interest. We have learnt from a source close to the company that they have gone back to the drawing board, and will try and pitch new components to teams soon. A possible partnership for the squad could be the likes of Dragon, who will do little in-house R&D and instead will be looking for a supplier of electronics like motors and inverters. Though it’s looking highly unlikely the team will be supplying 2-3 teams in Season 3, as they told Autosport towards the end of Season 1, one thing is clear: the Italians want a piece of the Formula E pizza, and we may see MM’s involvement in future seasons.

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Team Aguri are still not a manufacturer, which is a surprise to a certain extent. Team Principle Mark Preston had said on an edition of the Formula E Addicts podcast, that a big part of his job in Season 2 was to look for a major OEM to work with for Season 3. However it seems this isn’t going to plan, and it’s looking likely that the team will buy Renault’s S3 powerunit, putting into good effect Formula E’s price cap. However there is no doubt Aguri will eventually find a manufacturer to support a self-built effort.

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Having big name manufacturers in the series is incredibly important to the series. Large OEMs are the ones who will invest the amounts of money needed for revolutionary technologies to be developed and trialled in formula E. It is then through this that auto-makers will market their electric powertrain technologies, to us, the consumers, who hope to eventually benefit from the affordable, clean vehicles these OEMs will produce.

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Image courtesy of FIA Formula E Media

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