Formula E has come a long way in less than 10 seasons. The series has made two astronomical leaps in electric vehicle performance and has driven the revolution with the jump from GEN1 to GEN2 and then to GEN3.
While the ABB FIA Formula E World Championship is only nine seasons old, the technology on the track is constantly evolving and has undergone revolutionary changes in that nine-year period.
In Season 1, in 2014, Formula E ushered in a revolution with the all-electric open-wheel GEN1 car, the first of its kind in motorsport.
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Era Leap
In the short nine years since then, Formula E welcomed the next technological shift with GEN2 in season 5. More power and nearly double the usable energy capacity, effectively doubling range despite its battery having roughly the same size and weight as its predecessor.
From GEN1 to GEN2, in addition to a big jump in energy capacity, the pace and performance also increased a bit. Power output jumped from 150kW to 200kW in race mode between season 1 and season 7, with ATTACK MODE producing an additional 10kW and the qualifying mode increasing power to 250kW.
This reduced the 0-100 km/h (62 mph) sprint by 0.2 seconds, which was reduced to 2.8 seconds, raising the top speed to 280 km/h (174 mph) from 225 km/h (140 mph).
For season 8 and GEN2’s swan song, power was increased to a base of 220 kW and the ATTACK MODE reached the peak power of our second era at 250 kW or 335 bhp.
Season 9 saw Formula E’s third big leap and the GEN3 era, with the new car, previewed and launched at the 2022 Monaco E-Prix, taking to the track for the first time at Valencia in testing that same year.
The 2022/23 campaign saw the culmination of eight years of world-class electric racing and everything learned by Formula E teams and engineers came to the track: it is the pinnacle and intersection of high performance, efficiency and sustainability.
The new GEN3 is lighter, smaller, faster and more sustainable than its predecessor, and incorporates a number of cutting-edge features intended to inspire and inform major automakers about their next moves in the consumer car market, while demonstrating that no compromises need to be made in an electric race car.