Filippi appreciating differences in Formula E car

[vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]

NIO’s new recruit Luca Filippi comes into Formula E with vast experience in petrol-driven racing cars, but is already recognising the adaptations he needs to make if he is to be successful in the all-electric series.

The Italian spent seven season racing in GP2 before moving stateside to IndyCar for four years and now faces a new challenge as he tries his hand at Formula E.

Speaking at pre-season testing, Filippi acknowledged the high standard of the field and believes it will be difficult to adapt to the demands of an all-electric racing car.

“It’s tough! It’s difficult because first of all the level is super high in terms of drivers and teams so really it’s not easy at all and it keeps growing and keeps getting harder, which is nice,” said the 32-year-old.

“Also from the driving point of view the car is not easy, it’s different from any other formula. It’s heavier and the electric motor has a different delivery with a lot of torque and also the tyres definitely are different. They are narrower and the fact that they are closer to a road car tyre is good for the development. It is impressive how consistent and how good it is for a treaded tyre, as it’s difficult for a slick tyre to be that consistent, so they [Michelin] did a good job.

As with most drivers who pilot a Formula E car, the most noticeable change is the sound emissions from the powertrain, which is substantially difference to the combustion engines that Filippi has previously driven.

“For sure the sound is the first thing, as when you get in the car it’s strange that you don’t correlate the sound to the speed. It’s not just the intensity of the sound but the fact that from low revs to high revs a combustion engine changes its sound so you get used to it.

“It’s quite difficult in a Formula E car as you lose one of the senses that gives you a reference to where you have to brake or how fast you are, so this is strange. In terms of power delivery our powertrain has a very nice curve, so it’s not a big difference, it’s like an engine with good torque and power.

“The other thing is that you don’t have the fuel consumption, so you don’t have the difference of the car that in the first lap it’s very heavy then gets lighter, which obviously in other series’ affects the balance of the car. Some very radical differences!”

Coming into the series as a rookie is tough, a fact that Filippi is remaining realistic about as he strives to learn as much about the series as possible before making any predictions as to how his season will pan out.

“It’s very hard to say, but it would be great to be in the top ten. Looking at the field and the drivers that race in this series, most of them with multiple years of experience, that would be good.

“The main thing is trying to understand how fast we are over a race distance as we can see whether we are competitive in the qualifying simulation, which is good because potentially it helps us to try and start the race from the front of the pack. But we also have to understand how our energy consumption is compared to the others, which is very hard to see in testing.”

The Italian finished by praising the working relationship that he and team-mate Oliver Turvey have already established and believes that the technical prowess of the Englishman will help drive the team forward.

“For sure he is very experienced, but also a very methodical guy so it’s good for me to have a reference like this. I think we will get along well together as we are quite similar, he is very technical so when we discuss things we understand each other and have the same target, which is to improve the car and get good results. It’s a good combination.”

[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]

Images courtesy of Rajan Jangda

[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row]