Double Apex attended round six of the FIA Formula E world championship. We were guests of the Nissan Formula E team to learn more about the team, its ambitions and relevance of the series.
The formation of Formula E, over a decade ago, was a big swing by Alberto Longo. He somehow predicted the rise of EVs and thought that an all-electric race series would be an attractive proposition for major OEMs. And he was right. While some thought that F-E would be a flash in the pan, the series has just entered its 12th season. Even more impressive is that it has full FIA world championship status, making it one of just six to have this accolade.
In addition, the series has attracted big names to the sport over time. These include the likes of Mercedes-Benz, Porsche, Mahindra, Citroen, Andretti, Maserati, McLaren and many others beside. The overwhelming interest has come from Europe. However, Nissan entered the series in 2018/9 and remains to this day the only Japanese automaker represented in the field.
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Full Works Team
The exploits of Nissan Formula E began in 2018/9 when it partnered with e.Dams. The partnership resulted in middling results, but helped build a good foundation. Ahead of the Gen3 era, which began in January 2022, Nissan acquired total ownership of the racing outfit, thus making it a fully fledged manufacturer team.
Speaking to Double Apex ahead of round six at Jarama Circuit in Madrid, Nissan Formula E team principal, Tommaso Volpe said: “This move was very important for Nissan as it allowed us to develop a completely new powertrain of the car. For this we used all the knowledge we have learned from our racing and road cars.
“In fact, we were able to make the powertrain even more efficient from what we have learned from our road car division. And Formula E is all about efficiency. Of course, what we learn in Formula E is also fed back to the development of upcoming road cars.”
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The Results Followed
Taking over full control of the team and powertrain development brought with it results. The team started to become a regular front-runner in the series. Podiums and even victories started to flow. Nissan had become a top contender in the world championship series. Season 11, ie last year, the Nissan Formula E Team clinched seven podiums including four wins, and three pole positions.
This allowed Oliver Rowland to walk away as driver’s championship with two races to spare. As a result the Brit’s distinctive red and white single-seater wears the coveted ‘1’ on its nose. The sister car of Norman Nato runs with Nissan’s customary race number ’23’ which represents Ni san in Japanese.
In addition the outfit finished third in the teams’ standings, while Nissan also earned third in the inaugural year of the manufacturers’ championship. Volpe said: “It was fantastic to win the driver’s title with Oliver last year. Of course this is the big one from a marketing point of view and for the fans. But the goal is to win both titles in the same year.”
Two-way Transfer
Formula E is a fast-paced test-bed for trying out and showcasing new developments in electrified powertrains. “Formula E is the most advanced racing series for software development.” There’ll be a constant tech transfer back and forth between racing in this series and developing electrified road cars with the goal to produce better electric vehicles for customers. This makes it ideal for brands with electrification strategies to show off their latest tech against rivals. And Nissan isn’t going anywhere any time soon.
President of Nissan Europe and Africa, Jordi Vila underlines this sentiment: “Formula E has the most sophisticated battery technology and software of any racing series. It is the core focus of our motorsport strategy at the moment. It is very important for us to compete at this (world championship) level.”
When pressed about the possibility of taking knowledge learned in the series to other forms of increasingly electrified motorsport, Vila replies with a slight smile, “This is a very interesting question. We have learned a lot in Formula E so we can have a track-to-track, not track-to-road, transfer of knowledge into other series. We are focused in Formula E right now, but who knows in the future we can maybe try another series.”
Staying the Course
In March of 2024 Nissan became the first manufacturer to commit to the more powerful and wild-looking Gen4 era. As a result Nissan has committed to the championship until at least 2030. This aligns with the company’s Ambition 2030 long-term vision for electrified mobility. Nissan’s involvement, at that point, in Formula E will stretch to at least 12 years, making it the company’s longest ever motorsport commitment to a World Championship.
Check out video highlight of our trip on our Instagram.
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