BMW has registered as a manufacturer for Season Five (2018–'19) of the all-electric FIA Formula E Series. The company has announced that it will prepare for a potential works entry for the series, and has indicated that it has begun development of a Formula E powertrain.
BMW is already involved with the series. It is partnering with the two-car MS Amlin Andretti team, participating in engineering, sharing resources, and supplying BMW factory driver António Félix da Costa. Since season one BMW has supplied official cars for the series, including the i8 safety car, i3 medical and race director cars, and the X5 xDrive40e rescue/extrication car.
At present, drivers in Formula E change cars on the mid-race pit stop. From the outset BMW has said that it would participate as a manufacturer when the races could be run with a single car. It is anticipated that this will happen in season five.
BMW motorsport director Jens Marquardt says, “Since its inaugural season, Formula E has enjoyed rapid development and is now regarded as a high-level racing series. BMW i has contributed actively as official vehicle partner from the word go and has left its mark on the series. Other manufacturers have now followed suit. Everyone involved is delighted to be taking steps to get involved on the sporting and technological side of Formula E. Planning is underway to compete with a works team in season five. This required our registration as a manufacturer. This was completed by the required deadline.”
BMW is one of nine manufacturers that are now officially registered with the series.
FIA President Jean Todt notes, “The FIA Formula E Championship has been going for a little over three years now and already it has established itself as one of the most interesting and innovative racing series, not just because of the actual format of the events but also and above all, because of its technical development. The homologation of the powertrains that will be used from season five is a very significant step because it means the cars will be able to run for twice as long while, at the very least, maintaining the same performance level. This highlights how motorsport can stimulate and accelerate development of new technologies, which can then be applied to road cars and in this case it has even more of a key role, given that at the moment, electricity is one of the more practical alternatives when it comes to finding new forms of more sustainable mobility in the future.”
The next Formula E race will be run in Mexico City on April 1. The series will run on a street circuit in Brooklyn, NY on July 15 and 16. More information on the series and the schedule is available on the Formula E website.—Brian S. Morgan
