| Generation 3 | ||
|---|---|---|
| ||
| Car Details | ||
| Manufacturer |  Spark Racing Technologies Dallara
| |
| Model | Gen3 | |
| Designer | TBA | |
| Chassis | Carbon Fibre/Aluminium monocoque | |
| Motor | TBA | |
| Battery |  Williams Advanced Engineering[1]
| |
| Tyres |  Hankook[1]
| |
| Formula E Record | ||
| Début |  2023 Mexico City E-Prix
| |
| Last Race | 2025/26 | |
| Entries | 0 (0 Starts) | |
| Entrants | Jaguar Racing Porsche Formula E Team | |
| Poles | Wins | F.L.s |
| 0 | 0 | 0 |
| First Win | 2023 Mexico City E-Prix | |
| Podiums | 0 | |
| T.P.s | 0 | |
Generation 3 is the initial project name for the third generation of ABB FIA Formula E Championship base chassis, set to debut at the start of the 2022/23 season.[2] The initial tenders for the new specification, which included major changes to the chassis, powertrains, battery and tyres, were opened on 16 December 2019, and would be won by Hankook (tyres), Williams Advanced Engineering (battery) and Spark Racing Technologies (chassis).[1]
The Generation 3 rulebook was set to be implemented for the 2021/22 season, although this was pushed back by a season due to the Covid-19 Pandemic.[3] The final total cost of each Gen 3 car was to be limited to €340,000, including chassis, battery and powertrain.[2] The final design for the Generation 3 was unveiled ahead of the 2022 Monaco E-Prix on 28 April 2022, which gave the final design specifications and performance targets.[4]
For the 2024/25 season the Gen 3 car was upgraded to Gen 3 Evo spec, which saw revised front bodywork, the addition of deployment from the front axle motors, and upgrades to the cockpit and steering to prevent further hand injuries.[5][6]
Concepts[]
The major development goal for Generation 3 would be to implement fast-charging, with an initial plan to allow 30 second fast-charging for in-race pitstops.[2] This came alongside plans to increase power out-put to 350 kW in qualifying/Attack Mode, a reduction in size and weight, and increase re-gen power.[2]
Battery/Charging[]
The initial tender issued by the FIA requested that applicants "elevate the current car’s battery technology through improved energy density, life cycle, power capability and durability".[2] There would also be a requirement to ensure that the battery could be fast-charged at a 450 kW or 600 kW rate, as well as a standardised charging rate at 80 kW.[2] The higher 600 kW rate was later approved by the FIA after discussions with the twelve 2019/20 entrants, with a complete battery system to be cost limited to €250,000 with all parts standardised.[2][7]
Fast-charging was a major goal for the new ruleset, which was tentatively announced by CEO Jamie Reigle shortly after he took the role during the 2019/20 season.[8] The FIA later approved a 30 second fast-charging goal for the Generation 3 ruleset, which would allow partial to full re-charge of the battery during a mid-race pitstop.[2] A combined agreement between Teams, Formula E Holdings and the FIA would go on to approve a 600-800 kW recharge rate for fast-charging, while standard charging was set at 80 kW, and was to fully charge an empty battery within 45 minutes.[7]
Williams Advanced Engineering emerged as the favourites to supply the Gen 3 battery, having initially supplied the battery systems for the Spark-Renault SRT_01E.[9] This came after McLaren Applied Technologies and Atieva, the joint suppliers of the battery systems for the Spark SRT05e submitted separate bids after their partnership disintegrated during the 2019/20 season.[9] Williams were officially confirmed as the battery suppliers for Generation 3 on 1 July 2020.[1]
FE Holdings would later announce that long-term title partners of the Championship ABB would provide the fast-charging infrastructure for the Gen 3, with standardised components for the entire field.[10]
Power output and Regen[]
The Generation 3 concept was to implement regenerative braking systems on both the front and rear axles, increasing the potential amount of energy that could be harvested.[7] The combined target would be 600 kW of regen, with 350 kW generated from the rear axle, and 250 kW from the front, via an MGU system.[7] An initial secondary target of 450 kW was dropped after discussions with teams during the tender process, which agreed to the higher in-put after an arrangement to use more standardised, and hence cheaper, parts.[7]
In terms of power output the Generation 3 tender initially listed a race mode power of 300 kW, while qualifying/Attack Mode would be set at 350 kW.[2] This was later approved by teams after meetings during the 2019/20 season, and hence resulted in the secondary, conservative goal of 250 kW in race mode and 300 kW in qualifying mode rejected.[2] There was also an agreement to maintain a RWD format for the series, rather than adopt a 4WD to reduce costs.[7]
On 1 July 2020 it was revealed that Spark Racing Technologies had won the contract to build and supply the chassis for Generation 3, and would also supply universal MGUs for the front axle.[1] Spark would subsequently sub-contract the front MGU design and development to Atieva, the co-suppliers of the battery system alongside McLaren Applied Technologies for the Spark SRT05e.[11]
Chassis and Weight[]
The tender for the Generation 3 rulebook would include a new standardised chassis for the series, to replace the Spark SRT05e, which was homologated for the 2018/19 to 2021/22 seasons.[2] This was done to ensure that manufacturers would be unable to carry over significant parts from the "Gen 2" ruleset, while also enhance the strength in the chassis to cope with having regen equipment at the front of the car.[7] Furthermore, each chassis would have to have the capability of competing in "up to 18" race meetings in a single season, as well as six days of official testing.[2]
The minimum weight of the Gen 3 car was to be reduced to 780 kg, after the Spark SRT05e weighed in at 900 kg including driver and battery.[2] There would also be considerations into modifying the weight distribution and shape of the batteries, as well as the structure of the monocoque.[2] Spark Racing Technologies were announced as the winners of the tender on 1 July 2020, and were again expected to work alongside Dallara to construct the chassis.[1]
Tyres[]
The Gen 3 ruleset was to use treaded tyres on either 18" or 20" wheels rims, and would have to complete a full race meeting including all practice and qualifying sessions.[2] This was akin to the tenders issued for both the Gen 1 and Gen 2 rulesets, with a focus on reducing rolling resistance and tyre wear.[2] On 1 July 2020 it was announced that Hankook had won the tyre tender, a surprise victory over Michelin whom had supplied the series since its inception in 2014.[1]
Hankook's first tyre design for FE was unveiled on 4 October 2022 having been developed in tandem with the Gen 3 base chassis, named Hankook iON race tyres, which would also incorporate 30% sustainable materials in their design.[12] That unveiling also saw Hankook announced as a full technical partner of FE in place of Michelin, which completely severed the French firm's official ties with the series.[12]
Software[]
Another seemingly minor change for the Gen 3 ruleset would be greater parity regarding software, which had been developed independently by each team since the 2015/16 season.[13] Instead, from 2022/23 manufacturers would be required to give the same software package and updates to their customers, granting greater parity between teams.[13] This was also perceived to be a cost-cutting measure by the FIA, reducing costs for teams to develop their own software, while also simultaneously enabling the championship to place a universal limit on software spending for manufacturers.[13]
Development History[]
The Spark Gen 3 concept design would first run in October 2021, with FIA Formula E's test driver Benoît Tréluyer the first driver to sample the new car, which was just a test of the new powertrain design, rather than a full car.[14] The powertrain itself was not a modified version of the various powertrains then in use with the Spark SRT05e, but was instead assembled from various components from previous suppliers to the series, although these were not explicitly named at the time of the test.[14] The first full bodywork run of the Gen 3 would be completed in December 2021, with Tréluyer going on to complete over 3,500 km of testing before the car's official launch at the 2022 Monaco E-Prix.[15]
GEN BETA[]
Competitive History[]
The Generation 3 made its competitive ABB FIA Formula E Championship debut ahead of the 2022/23 season, with powertrains supplied by manufacturers who entered the Championship.[2]
Gen 3 Evo[]
The Gen 3 Evo would take over as FE's base car for Season 11.
Plans for the Gen 3 Evo were released during the 2023/24 season, with a number of revisions set to be made to the front of the car including the activation of the front motors to deploy as well a re-generate energy.[5] Unveiled at the 2024 Monaco E-Prix, the Evo would include a sharper and thinner nose, a revised and less delicate front wing (and one which evoked the Spark-Renault SRT_01E's Evo design) and new winglets on the back of the car.[5] There were also revisions made to the steering, with dampers added to reduce the force through the steering as a result of impacts, which had become notrious in Gen 3 crashes and seen several hand injuries as a result, while various other optimisations had been made to create a predicted 2% performance increase.[5][6]
Elsewhere, FE would allow the activation of the front motor units, dubbed FPKs, for deployment which would mean that in certain scenarios the Gen 3 Evo would be running in all-wheel-drive.[5] The FPK would remain a universal design supplied by Lucid Motors via Spark, and would allow deployment from the front axle during qualifying, Attack Mode and, significantly, during the start of each E-Prix, allowing FE to highlight the car's intense 0-100 kph (0-62 mph) time, expected to be 1.820s.[5] However, while deployment would be increased the actual maximum power output would remain at 300 kW in race mode and 350 kW in Attack Mode.[16]
Other upgrades included updated tyres from Hankook, which were slightly softer and expected to provide 5-10% more grip and use 35% recycled materials and a slightly wider cockpit around the hand area to better protect drivers from impacts.[5][6]
References[]
Images and Videos:
References:
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 1.5 1.6 Sam Smith, 'HANKOOK GRABS FORMULA E TYRE DEAL FOR GEN3', therace.com, (The Race, 01/07/2020), https://the-race.com/formula-e/hankook-grabs-formula-e-tyre-deal-for-gen3/, (Accessed 01/07/2020)
- ↑ 2.00 2.01 2.02 2.03 2.04 2.05 2.06 2.07 2.08 2.09 2.10 2.11 2.12 2.13 2.14 2.15 2.16 Alex Kalinauckas, 'Gen3 car to be quicker and lighter, with fast-charge pitstops', motorsport.com, (Motorsport Network, 16/12/2019), https://www.motorsport.com/formula-e/news/gen3-car-faster-lighter-pitstops/4614026/, (Accessed 18/06/2020)
- ↑ Cite error: Invalid
<ref>tag; no text was provided for refs namedDelays - ↑ 'FORMULA E AND FIA REVEAL ALL-ELECTRIC GEN3 RACE CAR IN MONACO', fiaformulae.com, (FIA Formula E, 28/04/2022), https://www.fiaformulae.com/en/news/2022/april/gen3-launch-in-monaco, (Accessed 30/04/2022)
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 5.2 5.3 5.4 5.5 5.6 'Formula E and FIA unveil GEN3 Evo race car capable of 0-60mph in 1.82s', fiaformulae.com, (FIA Formula E, 25/04/2024), https://fiaformulae.com/en/news/496038, (Accessed 07/10/2024)
- ↑ 6.0 6.1 6.2 Sam Smith, 'What Formula E's changing to tackle spate of driver hand injuries', the-race.com, (The Race, 24/09/2024), https://www.the-race.com/formula-e/what-formula-e-changing-after-spate-of-driver-hand-injuries/, (Accessed 07/10/2024)
- ↑ 7.0 7.1 7.2 7.3 7.4 7.5 7.6 Sam Smith, 'FORMULA E’S GEN3 REGENERATION CONCEPT AGREED', the-race.com, (The Race, 18/06/2020), https://the-race.com/formula-e/formula-es-gen3-regeneration-concept-agreed/, (Accessed 18/06/2020)
- ↑ Alex Kalinauckas, 'Fast-charging idea could bring back Formula E pitstops', motorsport.com, (Motorsport Network, 31/10/2019), https://www.motorsport.com/formula-e/news/fast-charging-pitstop-return-gen3/4589738/, (Accessed 18/06/2020)
- ↑ 9.0 9.1 Sam Smith, 'WILLIAMS LIKELY TO RECLAIM FORMULA E BATTERY DEAL FOR GEN3', the-race.com, (The Race, 16/06/2020), https://the-race.com/formula-e/williams-likely-to-reclaim-formula-e-battery-deal-for-gen3/, (Accessed 18/06/2020)
- ↑ William Dodds, 'ABB to supply charging technology to Formula E Gen 3 cars', formulaezone.com, (Formula E Zone, 16/07/2020), https://formulaezone.com/2020/07/16/abb-supply-charging-technology-formula-e-gen-3-cars/, (Accessed 16/07/2020)
- ↑ Sam Smith, 'POWERTRAIN TECH SUPPLIER PICKED FOR GEN3 FORMULA E CAR', the-race.com, (The Race, 08/01/2021), https://the-race.com/formula-e/powertrain-tech-supplier-picked-for-gen3-formula-e-car/, (Accessed 08/01/2021)
- ↑ 12.0 12.1 'Hankook becomes Tyre Supplier to Formula E', fiaformulae.com, (FIA Formula E, 04/10/2022), https://www.fiaformulae.com/en/news/2022/september/hankook, (Accessed 04/10/2022)
- ↑ 13.0 13.1 13.2 Matt Kew, 'Formula E customer teams to get greater parity in Gen3 era', motorsport.com, (Motorsport Network, 21/02/2021), https://www.motorsport.com/formula-e/news/gen3-customer-teams-parity-suppliers/5450865/?ic_source=home-page-widget&ic_medium=widget&ic_campaign=widget-1, (Accessed 21/02/2021)
- ↑ 14.0 14.1 Sam Smith, 'Formula E’s new Gen3 car completes first test in secret', the-race.com, (The Race, 26/10/2021), https://the-race.com/formula-e/formula-es-new-gen3-car-completes-first-test-in-secret/, (Accessed 11/08/2022)
- ↑ 'Behind the wheel of the Gen3 with test driver Benoit Treluyer', fiaformulae.com, (FIA Formula E, 29/04/2022), https://www.fiaformulae.com/en/news/2022/april/gen3-explained-test-driver-benoit-treluyer, (Accessed 10/08/2022)
- ↑ 'How fast and efficient is Formula E's newest GEN3 Evo car?', fiaformulae.com, (FIA Formula E, 06/06/2024), https://fiaformulae.com/en/news/500924, (Accessed 07/10/2024)