Formula E racing series launchedOpen Wheel 

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ECGadget
Eh???
In a nutshell, it's racing with Electric cars. Due to start in 2014, the investors say "we can race in new places".

Many critics have one major concern with this and that is that racing isn't just about the speed. It's about the noise as well as the speed. And as we all know, an electric car makes the most ridiculous hum.

My opinion: I shan't watch it, I shan't follow it, or support it in anyway. I shan't even acknowledge it as a form of racing. I hate electric cars, and I will hate this with a passion.

What are your opinions of this?
 
People have claimed the same thing (don't sound right, won't watch) about the turbo-fours, the V6s, the V10s, the V8s and the like in Formula One... but those people are still watching.

Racing is racing. Being able to watch close, fast and exciting racing without having to wear earmuffs will be a turn-on for some people.
 
I read an article on this on inRacing News and it mentioned that the series will be almost 'open rulebook' besides a restriction on battery weight. This could turn out to be quite interesting but the obvious issue is that one team could completely dominate the season because they have an inherently better car design than the rest of the grid and due to the fact this isn't F1, the other teams may not have enough cash to upgrade their cars significantly throughout the year.

That would lower the quality of the racing somewhat so I hope it doesn't play out like that, I'm quite interested by this concept.
 
I think the Formula E series will be quite interesting and quite boring at the same time. It would be interesting because it would bring new challenges to car manufacturers and racing teams, but boring because I watch F1 for the V12/V10/V8 engine sounds, and watching a Formula E race would be like watching Formula 1 but with the TV muted. Where's the fun in that? I might watch the odd Formula E race, but as long as FE doesn't replace F1 then I'm fine 👍 .
I read an article on this on inRacing News and it mentioned that the series will be almost 'open rulebook' besides a restriction on battery weight. This could turn out to be quite interesting but the obvious issue is that one team could completely dominate the season because they have an inherently better car design than the rest of the grid and due to the fact this isn't F1, the other teams may not have enough cash to upgrade their cars significantly throughout the year.

That would lower the quality of the racing somewhat so I hope it doesn't play out like that, I'm quite interested by this concept.
This is the only problem I see with Formula E. Because the rulebook isn't as restrictive as Formula One, car manufacturers intending to race in the FE series who are also currently racing in the F1 series means that they can take their knowledge from F1 racing and transfer it to their FE cars. The only difference being is that they could use almost whatever they could do to increase performance, while this isn't fair for racing teams who aren't as rich as the top teams, or teams who are only participating in the FE series and have little or no previous experience of open-wheeled racing (assuming that the FE series are open wheeled of course).

EDIT: I just read the rest of the article, and because the batteries in cars run down relatively quickly and because it takes so long to recharge, when a driver comes in for a pitstop the whole car is changed for a new fully recharged one. This would make pitstops more interesting, but I think the only thing you need to do is replace old battery with a recharged one instead of changing the whole car.

EDIT 2: R.I.P True F1.
 
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I wonder if any teams will opt for Closed-Cockpit/Low drag variants. Sure, maybe they dont have the cornering speed, but they could be considerably faster and more efficient on the straights.

I'd love to see someone be cheap and buy an LMP racer off-the-shelf and be successful. Not likely though...
 
I wonder if any teams will opt for Closed-Cockpit/Low drag variants. Sure, maybe they dont have the cornering speed, but they could be considerably faster and more efficient on the straights.

I'd love to see someone be cheap and buy an LMP racer off-the-shelf and be successful. Not likely though...

Isn't Formula E an open-wheeled series :odd: ? And hahahaha :lol: .
 
In a nutshell, it's racing with Electric cars. Due to start in 2014, the investors say "we can race in new places".

Many critics have one major concern with this and that is that racing isn't just about the speed. It's about the noise as well as the speed. And as we all know, an electric car makes the most ridiculous hum.

My opinion: I shan't watch it, I shan't follow it, or support it in anyway. I shan't even acknowledge it as a form of racing. I hate electric cars, and I will hate this with a passion.

What are your opinions of this?

I think it's great. The end of the infernal combustion engine! I will endeavour to keep you up to date at all times! :sly::lol:

Seriously, Motorsport is heading this way regardless of what anyone thinks.

LMP1 in the WEC has hybrid and so does F1 with KERS. It's only going to get worse/better delete as applicable as time passes.
 
I'm not sure what to think of this whole Formula E thing until I see it. On the one hand I'm open to a broad range of motorsports, but on the other hand it does lose something if the cars sound like a cell phone on vibrate. Just the other day I found myself doing a hybrid race in Forza and was scoffing at the lameness of what felt to me like it must have been the most silent race in motorsports history, as the cars barely made any sound aside from occasional tire squeal. I missed the sound of an internal combustion engine roaring. I don't normally look at the tachometer, instead listening to the sound of the engine to know when to shift gears, but I could bounce off the rev limiter all day in the hybrid and not know it without looking at the tach.

Isn't Formula E an open-wheeled series :odd: ? And hahahaha :lol: .

I was wondering about that. I skimmed through the article and didn't see specific details like that. Using the term "formula" in "Formula E" gives me the impression of an open-wheel series, but I guess the term doesn't necessarily have to mean that it's open-wheel. I just can't think of any Formula-Such-and-Such series that wasn't open-wheel.
 
I'm not sure what to think of this whole Formula E thing until I see it. On the one hand I'm open to a broad range of motorsports, but on the other hand it does lose something if the cars sound like a cell phone on vibrate. Just the other day I found myself doing a hybrid race in Forza and was scoffing at the lameness of what felt to me like it must have been the most silent race in motorsports history, as the cars barely made any sound aside from occasional tire squeal. I missed the sound of an internal combustion engine roaring. I don't normally look at the tachometer, instead listening to the sound of the engine to know when to shift gears, but I could bounce off the rev limiter all day in the hybrid and not know it without looking at the tach.



I was wondering about that. I skimmed through the article and didn't see specific details like that. Using the term "formula" in "Formula E" gives me the impression of an open-wheel series, but I guess the term doesn't necessarily have to mean that it's open-wheel. I just can't think of any Formula-Such-and-Such series that wasn't open-wheel.
All Formula __ series that I've seen have been open -wheeled vehicles. In fact I would be very surprised if Formula E isn't open-wheeled.
I think it's great. The end of the infernal combustion engine! I will endeavour to keep you up to date at all times! :sly::lol:

Seriously, Motorsport is heading this way regardless of what anyone thinks.
Pfffff V10 engines please :crazy: :

 
My opinion: I shan't watch it, I shan't follow it, or support it in anyway. I shan't even acknowledge it as a form of racing. I hate electric cars, and I will hate this with a passion.

In other words, the biggest problem with electric racing is nothing to do with the racing at all, it's to do with the perceptions of people who are that blinkered they refuse to even give it a chance...

My opinion: Can't wait. I wouldn't like to see it replace regular racing, but in addition, why the hell not? We've now got electric motorcycling both in race series and at the TT (and if notoriously-picky bikers can take to it, then I'm damn sure car guys can), electric vehicles at Pikes Peak, electric drag racing (there's plenty of drama to the launch even without the traditional noise... possibly more so, as it's a shock to see something take off that quickly!) electric go-kart racing...

And the silence thing is rubbish anyway. No, it's not as loud as an engine, but a high-power electric motor sounds like a spaceship. It's just a different kind of awesome. And speed is speed...

As for the type of racing, I also expect open-wheel. There's been a concept called the Formulec EF01 running around for a few years now, and it's a bit like a Formula Renault or Formula 3-style car.
 
With a mostly open rule book, it will certainly be an interesting series to follow. Here's a couple of Formula E concepts by Bluebird and Fondtech, respectively:


Bluebird-GTL-Formula-E-main.jpg



fondtech.jpg

fondtech-e-11-2-625x351.jpg

47503_370429_550x413.jpg
 
It isn't like this new series is going to instantly replace F1.
Electric vehicles are in their infancy, when compared to internal combustion vehicles. Motor vehicles are moving towards electric power more each year and series like this will only help with development. I will be interested to see how they perform, and who knows ten - fifteen years down the line, this could be the norm for F1.
 
With a mostly open rule book, it will certainly be an interesting series to follow. Here's a couple of Formula E concepts by Bluebird and Fondtech, respectively:

*Image Snip*
I've always wanted to be a racing driver, but after seeing the Formula E cars, please excuse me a moment while I rethink my life.
 
The fist one looks pretty sweet.

Whereas the second one ... :yuck:

This is the way motorsport is heading so I'l be keeping an eye on it. If this turns out to be dreadful then so be it but as for now, we don't know, it could be something special.
 
I wouldn't mind watching electric cars, some people criticise electric cars for not producing the noise that a big powerful petrol engine produces but I think there is something cool about something which is almost silent and still so fast. It would be something different to normal formula racing, cars would become gradually slower as the race progresses and the drivers would have to become familiar with using the brakes in different ways if regenerative braking is used. I'm not sure if it will be very successful though.
 
I'd give it a chance, but most open-wheel series are pretty tedious in my opinion. A1 was the only one a managed to maintain interest in other than F1. This could be interesting from a technical point of view though.

Also, arm-chair fans talking about the sounds F1 cars make? F1 on TV sounds like a hair-dryer, and through a decent 5.1 system, it still sounds like a hair-dryer - just louder, especially the on-boards.. like a bee trapped in a drain pipe. F1 cars do totally sound amazing... but only in the flesh.
 
Also, arm-chair fans talking about the sounds F1 cars make? F1 on TV sounds like a hair-dryer, and through a decent 5.1 system, it still sounds like a hair-dryer - just louder, especially the on-boards.. like a bee trapped in a drain pipe. F1 cars do totally sound amazing... but only in the flesh.

Sir you dropped this:

widex-clear-440-f.jpg


F1 cars sound nothing like a hair dryer on TV, and even if they do, at least they sound better than the cars on GT5 :yuck: .
 

F1 cars sound nothing like a hair dryer on TV, and even if they do, at least they sound better than the cars on GT5 :yuck: .

Nope, I'd put F1 cars on TV on a par with GT sound effects to be honest. In real-life, the first time I heard an F1 car it was the Renault R25 (V10), it was going through bridge corner at Silverstone, I got a lump in my throat and it almost bought a tear to my eye, same thing happened with the Jet Car at Santa Pod, and pretty much with Sebastian Loebs WRC car last year at Dyfnant. TV does not do them justice. I sold expensive Hi-Fi for 17 years, including some quite nice TV's, so I would watch qualifying on a Saturday afternoon through some pretty good stuff, and still, it does not come close to real life.

Just my two cents of course.
 
You may hate it, but I think this is sort of a forward evolution of automobiles and motorsport. It was series like the Volkswagen Jetta TDI Cup to show that even eco-friendly series can still produce great racing. I don't see the fact that electric-powered cars somehow doesn't mean good, hard racing. Racers are still going to race hard even if not racing with gasoline/petrol cars. So I'd give this new Formula E deal a chance.
 
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I didn't think sound would matter too much in racing for the entertainment value, then I watched GP3... I think this Formula E concept should be interesting though and will almost certainly attract some big names (Audi and Nissan I'd imagine would get involved).
 
Electric Formula series alongside F1? Sure. But not when they look like this:

47503_370429_550x413.jpg


Hopefully it looks like that for function, and not just for the sake of being different because it's electric. There are too many electric concepts out there that are ruined due to manufacturers trying to make it look wild and different, when it just isn't needed. Tesla is the exception, because their cars look like normal cars.

Surely can't be a serious entry, that one? Unless the nose is full of batteries?
 
Grand Prix
Surely can't be a serious entry, that one? Unless the nose is full of batteries?

Far as I can remember, as I wrote about it at some point, the batteries are low in the chassis, i.e. below the driver - hence the driver sits up high, which makes the nose high too.
 

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