The Engineering Behind Formula E - How It Works

The Engineering Behind Formula E - How It Works. How does a Formula E car work? We’ll be breaking down the science and strategy behind the battery, the motor, the transmission, the tires, the aerodynamics, the suspension, the brakes and regen, the cooling system, and of course the very unique aspect of the sport of having two cars per driver, swapped mid race.
The 170 kW (approximately 230 HP) electric motor used in season 1 of Formula E was developed originally for the McLaren P1 supercar, and at its development it had the greatest power density of any automotive electric motor in the world, with 8 kW per kg. The regulations are now open, so teams can use more than one motor if they’d like, and develop the motors themselves. While the power output can never exceed 170 kW during a race, you can alter the efficiency of the motor, meaning you’ll be able to run flat out longer than other teams if your motor is more efficient. With the weight of the car, including the driver, at just 900 kg (or under 2000 lbs), the cars can hit 100 km/h in just 2.9 seconds.
Big Thanks to Formula E for having me out to the event and sponsoring this video, and thanks to my network partner GarageMonkey for helping arrange this opportunity!
Check out these links for more!
Formula E Channel - / fiaformulae
Formule E on FB - / fiaformulae
Fia Formula E - fiaformulae.com/
Garage Monkey - garagemonkey.com/
And don't forget to check out my other pages below!
Facebook: / engineeringexplained
Official Website: www.howdoesacar...
Twitter: / jasonfenske13
Instagram: / engineeringexplained
Car Throttle: www.carthrottl...
EE Extra: / @engineeringexplainede...
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[@aleblanc3547]

The good thing is, it's pretty quiet. The bad thing is, it's pretty quiet.

[@SuperScottCrawford]

+A LeBlanc shhhh! what?

[@johnathanchow9360]

it actually sounds like those big rd cars like Traxx

[@nosafetyswitch9378]

+A LeBlanc to the driver it sounds like he is driving a spacecraft. Even a small electric motor, when used in automotive sounds awsome to the driver. Different from IC motor but awsome.

[@ytxstream]

+A LeBlanc Believe me it isn't quite at all if you hear it in person

[@SuperScottCrawford]

ytxstream quite, indeed.

[@DJ_Dett]

One of the really exciting parts to Formula E is how the sport will help drive development for better electrical vehicle technology.

[@Ngontih]

They should really get rid of fan boost

[@Exevium]

+Rad I don't know. It sort off creates a hype, yet I don't feel it really does that much during the race. Compared to DRS it offers hardly any benefit and it only lasts 5 seconds. I say, if it doesn't hurt the sport, it can only benefit from it.

[@BunkerBlog]

Only thing I don't like about Formula E. Popular drivers get an unfair advantage.

[@projectjt3149]

And benefit it it does because fan boost is really marketing. Fan Boost makes people want to know more about the drivers, who are the first, and not last, things that get people involved with Formula E. Not to mention, it makes the teams extra competitive in attracting attention and keeping their heads cool so that they have a better chance getting the Fan Boost. TL;DR More attention, more competition, more fans, more money. Win-win.

[@Crlarl]

The technologies that get developed for Formula E should improvements in consumer cars. The tire wear, electric motors, batteries, etc.

[@joshkiej6601]

+dimmddr1 well, they don't really develop batteries since they all use the same, but there will be great innovations in tires and electric motors

[@shi01]

+The Real Santa Claus Well, that's just partially true. It's true that the teams don't develope the batteries by their own. But the Batterie supplier has to meet the requirements given out by the FIA. And as Jason stated in the Video, the Batteries they plan to use in 2019 should have twice the capacity of the Batteries they have now. So there is a development in the background.

[@TodunOlusola]

Carl Siemens they do

[@Huntracony]

FanBoost? so that basically means the most popular people, and those are generally the people that win, have a better chance of winning again. That seems like a shitty system.

[@yourlifeisagreatstory]

+Huntracony haha yah! For every 100 "Like's" of Facebook, .455 kJ is added to the car; and for every Hug a driver receives by a female on race day, .80085 kJ is added. The driver with the least amount of "Like's" and hugs receives a Driver Insurance Capped Kilojoule (known as D.I.C.K.) This allows the driver to receive the average kJ boost of the second and third place fan favorite. All the drivers line up in position, and the least popular driver has to go to the back and take the D.I.C.K. from behind. A previous handicap known as a Progressive Enhancement Neutralizing Insurance Set-up was used but was found to hurt drivers in the long run of competition. -Edit- I honestly thought that you were joking! I thought/figured FanBoost was some kind of performance enhancer (Like some kind of fan that used to increase power/speed.) After posting my reply I did a google search to find out what it was, as I just now discovered Formula E to begin with, and found out that it really was a fan vote system to benefit a drivers performance. I get why they are doing it, but it is a bit off putting whenever any driver is giving a benefit that others aren't, especially if that reward is based off of votes of likability.....

[@yourlifeisagreatstory]

***** Because I was using 1kJ as the base, as well kJ always being used as the measurement.

[@rasseranch9393]

your comment was awesome. xDDDD

[@TheNosyGamer]

ugh I hate the fanboost idea. Everything else is unique I guess

[@4lairr]

I'm glad they post these races online and I hope that continues. Not the fastest cars but the racing is competitive and exciting to watch. It will be awesome to see the tech changes over the coming seasons.

[@RobWhittlestone]

Very insightful - great video, thanks! All the best, Rob, Switzerland.

[@EngineeringExplained]

+RobWhittlestone Thanks Rob! It was awesome to get behind the scenes and shoot this sport. They were super open about media presence, and I had some great chats with engineers/drivers. It's fascinating how unique the strategy is behind it, as a result of it being electric.

[@RobWhittlestone]

Engineering Explained Is the idea that the technology advances gained in racing, getting an edge over the competition drives innovation which will then spill over into mainstream automotive design? Like Tesla on steroids? I mean, having Tesla performance and 800-mile range would be the holy grail, wouldn't it? ATB, Rob

[@joeperez-marchese1213]

This is awesome. Never heard of Formula E until now. This might become even more popular than Formula 1, since combustion engines are on their way out, and electric is the way of the future.

[@lwwells]

I'm actually super excited about the future of this.

[@thought1212]

+Luke Wells me too. should really help the tech for us consumers and be fun to watch.

[@alexisthemexican]

Same here. I find this really cool

[@Jaqen-HGhar]

You got your video posted on Jalopnik, not sure if that's happened before for you but wanted to say congrats. More publicity is always a good thing. Awesome video, I was hoping you were going to be a COTA. It's a great track from the times I've gone but I've never seen a race there just events.

[@EngineeringExplained]

+Brandon Ottinger (Jaqen H'ghar80) Awesome! Could you share the link with me?

[@Jaqen-HGhar]

Engineering Explained Sure thing, It's actually under "The Garage" but it's just a side blog of Jalopnik and it's on the main page. I actually saw it cross posted on Gawker or io9 I think. thegarage.jalopnik.com/these-five-cheap-mods-can-actually-turn-your-car-into-c-1771419775

[@antoniocorreamartin6059]

golpeó pellejos ññ. Pp0jhJsknj1skslslsñwñpffhj

[@just82much72]

another great video EE... I thought I had a broad understanding of vehicle technology but since subscribing a year or so ago I have learned so much more especially in regards to automotive technology and mechanical functions! thanks again for your insight and hard work. it must be hard work doing what you do! thanks again. your loyal follower. .... -Mark

[@SGM260190]

Nice i8 safety car.

[@__Leon__]

+SGM 26 i saw one yesterday

[@kuronosan]

How terrible is Fanboost?

[@qwesx]

+Gregory Sherman In the past it didn't seem to give anyone an actual advantage. One of the drivers actually complained that using it wastes too much energy in the long run. Also I think in Long Beach one driver tried to use it to overtake the car in front - which failed. So it's not as strong as people might think. Still, I am still very sceptical about this Fan Boost thing as it puts popularity over racing skill. However, I still prefer Formula E to Formula 1, it's just more interesting because of the narrow street courses. There's always a fight for the better position whereas in F1 it seems they just drive in circles for two hours and rarely anyone actually overtakes. Maybe it's also because the Formula E cars are much closer together in regards of power.

[@husky701rider9]

+qwesx what ls fan boost?

[@Carlisho]

+qwesx The power thing is actually true, one thing I hate about Formula 1 is watching only RedBull, Ferrari and Mercedes/McLaren win the races because of the better engine and extra power. The other teams dont even get a chance to try. Formula E in the other hand, power is the same, meaning that everyone has a chance of winning and the race is actually based on driver skills and managment, making the sport way more interesting.

[@leepuckett9706]

+CarlosG 0619 The reason why Mercedes, Ferrari, and Renault Engines win races is because those teams spend countless of millions more than any other team. This money goes is used towards more than just the engines, but also aerodynamics, mechanical grip, etc. It is not a surprise that they win, they simply put more resources in. This causes innovation which trickles down to a car you drive every day (abs, traction control, etc.). Racing is not about just driver skill, it's also about the car. Look how boring stock series are, aka. Nascar, and how attendance has dropped so much in the past year. Anyone can win regardless of how much time and money you put into it; you are rooting for the drivers now and not the car. Racing has lost it's appeal.

[@picnicking5884]

This was really well put together and concise, thanks for making it :)

[@jonathancano6387]

I'm a new fan/spectator for formula E. Your video was a great presentation of the various engineering facets of the sport. Thanks.

[@pinkdispatcher]

Fascinating. I didn't even know this existed. It should be on TV more.

[@sojinnzero]

I wasn't ever much into Formula 1, but I could get into this. With all the equalizing regulations, it seems to bring back driver skill to the forefront. I think driving legend Ayrton Senna once said that his most beloved memories of racing were back in his go-cart days due to it being strictly driver vs driver

[@Quintinohthree]

+Amman Ashani Don't forget, that's 150 kJ you don't get for free either.

[@SuperScottCrawford]

haha! that shot of the three overheated cars was great! imagine a race ending like that - 3 cars 'racing' towards the finish line. i can't wait!

[@KiwiPowerNZ]

Not allowed capacitors? That sucks, these racing teams will help develop the technology, and the thing we should be developing is capacitors, not just batteries and motors.

[@MrStuart21]

Gotta change -

[@Folsomdsf2]

Would you be surprised that.. not really? It's a materials problem that is far outside the scope and budget of the teams.

[@Spetsop]

This is a great chance to start developing electric car technology at a faster pace! Amazing!!!

[@6Twisted]

Fanboost? What's next, throwing banana peels on the track? I thought this was supposed to be a sport, not a political match.

[@areexseven4015]

Banana peels? Where are the turtle shells also?

[@mark33545]

sprinklers, double points, elimination qualifying, oh wait

[@banddude121]

+6Twisted Fanboost doesn't help at all. Drivers have used it in the past and the gap barely closes.

[@uncreativename9936]

+Are Ex Seven I'd support that

[@jasminebanares5555]

+6Twisted As much as I hate fanboost, I gotta say that all other aspects of Formula E is just great. The racing is fantastic and the level of fan access to the sport is unbelievable. All races are free and on their website.

[@simplyyourtube]

So excited to hear you did a video on formula e. Underwhelming degree of information and media out there on this sport. It's highly entertaining for the way the cars run and now I can explain it even better to my friends. Congratulations in regards for working with FIA for this video.

[@stevenslough1515]

BOY !! A lot of information in a very short time. Thanks.

[@avsrule247]

This is so cool! I had no idea it was a thing, thanks for sharing!

[@stapleboss]

+avsrule247 Glad I am not the only one - not sure how I never heard of this but I like it.

[@ant0n1o13]

+stapleboss Its only in its second season, and in season one all the cars were identical. I'm not surprised it doesn't have a huge following yet! As development is opened up and electric cars become more accepted on-road I expect this competition will get a lot more attention.

[@jmarriottc]

Torque vectoring could really get the speeds up, however this feels more like Le Mans than F1 which is interesting. This really highlights our lacking battery technology but hoping it helps advance the science of energy storage.

[@zacksstuff]

I just started watching Formula E last night, and I've already watched (or binged) 4 hours of the stuff. It's really incredible to watch.

[@Nagby3]

big improvement : you can talk and be heard while standing next to the track

[@i-85videos47]

I REALLY like this format of video EE. It reminds me a lot of MCM's "How to Turbo in 5 minutes" video. A ton of concise, high quality, technical information really quickly really without too much explanation makes for a really engaging video

[@DrifterD]

Enjoyed watching this video learning about Formula E. Really cool!

[@shadowpod13]

First time hearing of Formula E. Pretty cool. I wish them the best.

[@ccmaster86]

It's awesome that the Formula series adopted an EV standard. People don't usually realize that consumer vehicles adopt technologies that started out as Formula tech. The research and advancements for efficiency, safety, and battery technology that goes into Formula E, will hopefully be adapted for consumer EVs in the future!

[@superhydrocarbon]

Insanely comprehensive! I rarely comment on KZbin but this was a really fantastic video!

[@palabinash]

The technologies from these cars will be used in production electric cars like we have been doing for combustion cars...

[@Rahhhhhnman]

That was a power of info in a short time, had to rewatch to catch it all. Well done, great info on a part of motorsport that I have been trying to come to grips with.

[@Wolfhound_81]

Wow, really liked that specific Video and realized that opposite to normal motorsport, Formula E could actually be really interesting for me to follow.

[@JoshuaC923]

great racing series, action packed from the start to finish, great video!

[@92813justin]

Very exciting technology. I hope this can improve the electric battery technology faster than ever before. I didn't know they had so many restrictions on their formula E vehicles. Thanks for this in depth video!

[@2stroketurbo]

awesome video. very informative thanks !

[@aftasarden2]

It´s nice you touch different subjects in the automotive world. Good video!

[@donloder1]

Those sound reminds me of a local RC competition I used to watch back home.

[@leandrolaporta2196]

excellent info, i didn't knew the issues with re-gen (e-brakes), very interesting thank you, i enjoy formula E very much, and i think we must support it as the tech developed there, will be on the electric cars on the streets in 5 to 10 years.

[@oliver24x]

Doesn't seem like this will take over F1 any time soon, which I like. I think both should run alongside, but I prefer ICE's in racing. Great video!

[@jaredgarbo3679]

+oliver24x Soon. The motor/engine performance favours the electric motor easily. But the battery/fuel tank technology favours the ICE due to petroleum having Energy density of 12,2000 Wh/kg while battery has only 200 Wh/kg.

[@OhMyKMPR]

+oliver24x I hope it won't take over F1 anytime soon but I definitely hope it will be it's own recognized thing alongside the traditional F1. No doubt the ICEs are the fan's and probably team's favorites just because of the sound and history attached to them and racing in general. As an engineering student, however, I'm very excited to see how Formula-E evolves in the next couple of years. More power, more efficiency and hopefully more recognition is something to come in the not so distant future. There's lots of potential in these little electric motors and lots of experience to be made in electric racing.

[@Exevium]

Nice shot of that Buemi divebomb :)

[@MrImhighoffmusic]

Wow you coming up to 700k subscribers quick you have come a long way.

[@EngineeringExplained]

+MrImhighoffmusic 2016 is the year! :)

[@akonnema]

+Engineering Explained You will probally hit one million this year! Great work.

[@Jorma17]

Outstanding summation

[@HilbertPhilip]

Great video. You're the first one that actually make the Formula E quite a lil bit interesting to me, except for the RC motor sound..

[@Lucid-Visions]

Great video I'm a huge formula one fan when I First saw formula e I thought it was a gimmick but I'm looking forward to it now cuz u explained it

[@11thHrPro]

This was a very good explanation about how these cars work. I'm just getting into Formula E racing and I am trying to learn about the technology. This is incredible stuff.

[@prayerpowersr854]

I am queefed at how you don't have more subs, but other car channels with lesser content have more.

[@kevinkiernan9364]

Because humans prefer to be entertained rather than educated. We are a minority, those that sub to an engineering chanel. Please post this video on your Facebook and Twitter pages! The more views he gets, the more subs he'll get, the more money he'll make and the more videos he'll produce, that is how it works.

[@xX_Gravity_Xx]

This is pretty cool. Not the biggest Formula E fan, I like renewable race fuels better, but for something exponentially less expensive, it's pretty cool.

[@celo8019]

Wow this is awesome! First time hearing about this!

[@xbigcat22]

Keep doing videos like this! Loved the snow trucks as well

[@alshanawani97]

As this is an electric car, there would be a lot of excess electricity that flows through the car. How do teams get rid of this electricity? The concept is usually called grounding. In formula student, some teams use a copper mesh to get rid of this electricity. Other teams have thought of using the aluminum core in the composite carbon fiber sandwich structure to do the grounding. How do they do it for formula E?

[@TheRealFobican]

I imagine this to be a little bit as watching huge RC cars that you can sit into and no need to control externally. Seems interesting to test how that will feel like to drive.

[@KishoreRajendra]

Hey Jason, can you make a new video on how Formula-E progressed? As of 2021, they are now not swapping cars mid race!

[@DanielZanSalazar]

That was an amazing explanation. I'm more excited about Formula E now.

[@PhilipX2030]

Looking good! Hope this goes prime time in our culture. 54kW are on the way

[@TheSuburban15]

Thanks for not glossing-over the cost of building induction chargers into the roads.

[@TheShamarski]

when I saw you on the Formula E snapchat story... i knew a good insightful video was going to come from you.

[@janisstrazdins8944]

1:53 electric car advertising oil copany... :D

[@Aliceintraining]

you still need to lube the car up even if it runs off electricity, else the gearbox and diff would break.

[@janisstrazdins8944]

indian oil sells petrol - gasoline

[@saltymonke3682]

Janis Strazdins well, the majority of renewable energy investor are actually oil companies

[@Natuh21]

Pretty good video! keep it up!

[@downundertech596]

To bad they don't show this on free to air tv in australia, I would much rather this than F1

[@Beybladeawsomeness]

Lol what's I've tried watching it, and I almost fell asleep.

[@masonforrest857]

Congrats on 700,000 subscribers!

[@_NoDrinkTheBleach]

Thanks for the info on the series.

[@TheBanzai369]

Definitely looks interesting. Saw it on TV few times,

[@hitardo]

Great work! Thank you for one more amazing video.

[@luipermom]

Very interesting vídeo. Thank you very much for sharing your knowlwdge. I think formula E is a kind of "test bench" for things and technologies we will be in our electric cars in a near future. Keep up the good job!

[@F14Goose37]

I'm sure it was fun to watch and would be fun to work on the teams, but all I can think about is how it just sounds like a pack of golf carts.

[@uncreativename9936]

+Brian Choitz Yeah at first I thought it was kind of cool actually, but its impossible to tell when the drivers are on throttle without an exhaust note :(

[@eugenehvorostyanov2409]

Excellent video. Thank you.

[@GruntW0rk]

Great videos. Love the wealth of information. Keep it up and you will have my sub for life.

[@TechDude207]

I was in the same grandstand! And I actually caught the crash in one of my photos. Pretty good race.

[@EthanHeffernan]

Did you go today?

[@TechDude207]

Nah, have a midterm tomorrow

[@0ExG0]

Very interesting! But i have a question. Is it better to have a big motor and then have the power go trough a transmission and differential or to have 2(or 4) smaller motors one in each wheel?

[@EngineeringExplained]

+0ExG0 That's a question the teams will likely be deciding over the next few years. It's cool because "what's best" isn't known at this point, hence the wide range of transmission gears this season.

[@theevilmeister]

This is cool because there is so much innovations ripe for the taking. The technology is in it's infancy whereas F1 has sort of leveled off in terms of new, exciting engine/aero design.

[@maxeluy]

I saw the first season here on my country (Uruguay - Punta del Este) and was awesome, i am a fan of this m.sport, and its more fun than F1 because the racing it's more unpredictable, BTW great Video as always

[@ssbpd1]

Great video and great explnation of FE.

[@sarbajitdas7659]

Please explain the entire engineering in formula e from its basic to its depth

[@justincharlie4031]

great video

[@nickamarit]

Didn't realize they used radials in Formula E before. Also didn't realize how capable today's radial tires can be used. Are there other tire companies, apart from Michelin, in Formula E?

[@ytxstream]

+Nick Amarit No currently Michelin is the official supplier

[@nickamarit]

ytxstream I was hoping there could be more in the future. As can be seen in automotive history, technology gained from racing usually ends up on the streets over time, so I'd like more chances of that happening and with more variety. Plus, I personally feel that a little bit of competition could help speed up the R&D too.

[@beaudanner]

I really learned a lot. Thanks :)

[@fredericoespinoza]

Very cool , great vid as always man

[@luchito-gj4ih]

What do you have to study to create electric supercars.? Please i am searching from last year

[@WhispersOfWind]

The sound is _cool,_ kinda like the _cell battery._ Sounds of _the future..._

[@badeshka1]

Congratulations on 700k :D

[@skillit32]

Fascinating, I had no idea!

[@mightaymouse]

So they go 0-60 just as fast if not maybe a little slower than an r35 gtr, cool. This looks interesting but it sounds like my racing rc cars lol

[@judgedredd6642]

You should do a video on auto rotation. I dont understand how a helicopter can glide from thousands of feet in the air with no engine and still be able to increase RPM for a final flair to reduce decent. Theres too little info on YT

[@crissd8283]

+Judge Dredd Try smarter every day. Destin just put out a video on this.

[@Island728]

Excellent video

[@fuzzy1dk]

just to put things in prescriptive, 56kWh is roughly the energy content of 6 liter gasoline

[@MaikEletrica]

Very good video ;)

[@Angelum_Band]

Finally the future! Next electric drag racing and the fastest production electric motorcycle in the world.

[@randy109]

My friends and I were big into "slot cars". We put the slot cars away when we were about 13 and by 16 were building 60's Muscle Cars. That was 45 years ago. I'm taking a "Wait and See" attitude towards Formula E. I've been into F1 and NASCAR for many decades and I'm not sure if I'm ready to spend an afternoon watching GIANT "Slot Cars" go round and round. Looks cool, but we had better "wait and see" if people are ready to leave the sounds and smells of F1 and NASCAR...

[@danielbass09]

this is awesome!! i had no idea there was electric racing cars like this! fantastic!! can't wait for another serious electric car company to compete with Tesla!

[@afbrias]

could you talk about the new mercedes formula 1 HCCI engines and how they work? including where ignition comes from compression except on full throttle applications in detail?

[@Ghost96s]

I think it's okay to limit the power output because teams are somehow encouraged to improve the engine's efficiency, which would be great, not only for formula-e but also for the rest of the electric cars industry

[@chandrasekarvenkataramani1843]

Thank you for the informative video !.. Do you have any info on the Motor type and specs commonly used by these cars ?

[@marcelomilani]

Awesome video!

[@cliffordbradford8910]

maybe front engine is the way to go ( so you have more front weight bias) so you can use more regen?

[@skrimyt2484]

It's nice, but still kind of rudimentary compared to the 350+ kW amazingly compact electric motors and rapidly charging battery systems of LMP1s. Granted, they don't use their electric power all the time, so the batteries get time to cool on long straights.

[@MavHunter20XX]

At least they're doing this for accelerated R&D for trickle down technology. However, now that I've actually sat through the video, it shows how much more flexible ICE are compared to battery powered motors need to remain at a certain temperature. I like how some luxury cars are using a type of AWD where the primary drive wheels are ICE while the other wheels are driven by electric motor, however, I'd like to see this more in production cars ranging from $14k to $23 where they are supposedly garner to the masses.What boggles the mind is the continued use of lithium polymer batteries where NimH are more cost effective and better for the environment and don't degrade if discharged completely.