Unless they sound good or find a way to pass each other, electric racing cars are due to fail
Heard of Formula E? It’s an FIA-backed race series due to start next year, with 10 two-car teams racing on mainly urban circuits.
Which all sounds nice in theory - 198mph single seaters racing past iconic landmarks in Rome, Rio de Janeiro, and possibly London, Beijing and Los Angeles should the appropriate deals be struck with the relevant authorities – until we get to the elephant in the room.
Noise. Surely the sound of the engines is at least half the fun of watching racing? Formula E is talking about creating a synthesised noise, but I’ll eat this blog if they find a way to replicate the scream of a V8 Formula 1 engine, or even a Formula Ford.
I had a first-hand experience with an electric racing car this week when I drove the Nissan Leaf RC. It was impressively stiff and handled beautifully, but its high-pitched drone and whirr from the electric motor sounded rubbish.
It wasn’t especially quick either; the torque characteristics of an electric motor might lend themselves nicely to impressive acceleration, but there’s no extra shove in the mid or top range. This doesn’t exactly bode well for passing.
Nissan seems to have realised this too, quietly dropping plans for the one-make race series that the Leaf RC had been destined to appear in in the US and Japan. The noise – or rather lack of – is privately cited as a big reason why.
So, is Nissan onto something by confirming what we all knew already? Or will Formula E be a success and have me reaching for the salt and pepper?