Jaguar Land Rover has revealed plans to join the FIA Formula E Championship in autumn 2016.
The company will use the EV race series as a testbed for future production powertrains, including motor and battery technology.
The move marks a return to motorsport for JLR since the company’s ill-fated attempt at Formula 1 between 2000 and 2004 under Ford ownership.
“Electric vehicles will absolutely play a role in Jaguar Land Rover’s future product portfolio and Formula E will give us a unique opportunity to further our development of electrification technologies,” said JLR’s group engineering director Nick Rogers. “The championship will enable us to engineer and test our advanced technologies under extreme performance conditions.
“It is my belief that over the next five years we will see more changes in the automotive world than in the last three decades,” continued Rogers. “The future is about being more connected and more sustainable; electrification and lightweight technologies are becoming more important than ever as urbanisation continues to increase.”
Jaguar will draw on its existing relationship with Williams Advanced Engineering to develop the EV powertrain for its car, following the joint development of the C-X75 PHEV concept car. The company will announce further technical details and information on drivers ahead of the beginning of the third Formula E season in late-2016.
December 17, 2015