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Mahindra Racing has shared positive feedback about the early testing of the GEN3 Evo car.
Rigorous testing of Gen3
The team has rigorously tested their GEN3 Evo car over thousands of kilometres. Particular focus has been dedicated to the new GEN3 Evo features, including innovative Hankook tyres, all-wheel drive, a re-modelled body kit and an updated front powertrain.
So far, most of the testing time has been fulfilled by Jordan King, Mahindra Racing’s Reserve and Development Driver. In a statement released by Mahindra, he explains how a rigorous approach to testing will help the team best understand and innovate the GEN3 Evo vehicle, combined with learnings from the previous GEN3 car.
“Progress has been very good, but as always, there is more to be done,” shares King. “We had a few teething problems at the start with everything new on the car, but that’s to be expected and is, in many respects, the first priority when we go testing, to resolve those.
“Now we’re able to test everything more rigorously and push it to breaking point. The main goal at the moment is to get mileage, push the machinery to the limits and see what it’s capable of. I think we’ve achieved all of that.”
“So, a lot of our work at the moment is trying to understand that, optimise it and work out where the performance lies. We’re almost re-visiting things we’ve previously done on the GEN3 car to check whether they now work with this new car, or we need to adapt and go in a different direction entirely.
“I’m enjoying the process, it’s been interesting and, because the development has happened so quick, it’s a very cool programme to be a part of. You make a small change and the result on track is huge, it’s not like testing an established car where it’s refining and making tiny adjustments or optimising a setup.”
Upon its launch at the Monaco E-Prix in April, the GEN3 Evo became the current fastest accelerating FIA single seater car. The GEN3 Evo is capable of 0-60mph in 1.82 seconds, 30% faster than a current F1 car.
A significant step in car development
A varied package of technical upgrades will bridge the gap between Formula E’s GEN3 and GEN4 eras. Performance improvements will be drawn from various features, estimated to perform 2% better across the board than the outgoing GEN3. The GEN3 Evo’s new Hankook tyres will bring 5-10% more grip than their Season 10 counterparts.
A re-modelled body kit – which can be observed sporting Mahindra Racing’s testing livery – will bring aerodynamic improvements, ensuring the cars are even more robust and aggressive, ready for more of Formula E’s distinctively close-quarters racing.
All-wheel drive (AWD) is another striking change, which will be available to drivers at the start of each E-Prix as well as during qualifying Duels and each driver’s mandatory Attack Mode activations.
This has implications for the team’s approach to testing, as Jordan King explains: “There’s quite a lot we’re now able to do with the front powertrain, so that’s been consuming a lot of our time. We also have new tyres to understand, and those two aspects together change a lot in terms of how the car behaves.”
Technical Director pleased with progress
Mahindra Racing’s Technical Director, Josef Holden, agreed with King’s positive feedback on the initial GEN3 Evo testing: “Generally, pre-season testing is progressing strongly.
“Out of the 16 days we’re entitled to as a manufacturer from Formula E, we’ve parallelised how we work with reliability and performance testing, especially where four-wheel drive is concerned, because that’s such a major factor and change for Season 11.
“So, whereas normally you’d focus on reliability first, and then move on to performance, we’ve had a 60-40 split on those. Having said that, we’ve already completed thousands of kilometres on our race-intent hardware.
Hitting our targets ✅
Our Technical Director, Josef Holden, delivers an update on Season 11 testing ?️ pic.twitter.com/wlLhAF2hug
— Mahindra Racing (@MahindraRacing) August 20, 2024
“In comparison to the same stage in testing ahead of GEN3, which everybody knows had a difficult gestation period, we didn’t even have that race-intent hardware with us until the combined Valencia test. If you take the energy management system we were running, that was also new and delivered to us in Valencia.
“Realistically, we’re significantly further ahead than we were before. From the test days we’ve run so far, we’re averaging 500 kilometres a day, which is among some of our best testing to-date. Now we just need to take that through to a track against our competitors, as on a private day, you’re only able to compare to yourself. We’ll see where that puts us.”
A better season ahead?
Indeed, having faced performance challenges with their GEN3 car, the Mahindra Racing team’s positive outlook on testing suggests a significant difference between this and last year’s testing experiences.
The ability to run race-intent hardware in advance of the pre-season testing in Valencia has been a particularly significant change. The team will seek to leverage this, particularly after their Season 10 performance culminated in more robust results in the Berlin, Shanghai, Portland and London outings.
Mahindra Racing brought home their season-best result during Round 15 of Season 10, securing 22 points during the first race of the London E-Prix, with P4 for Nyck de Vries and P5 for Edoardo Mortara. With positive feedback already emerging from this initial testing, the team will be aiming to build on their momentum from the end of last season as Formula E embarks on the GEN3 Evo era.
After a promising start to the Gen3 Evo era, the team will now look to push their car to its extremes. Continued iteration and testing will help Mahindra Racing anticipate and expand their car’s performance capabilities, while informing software and hardware elements which can be further adapted in the run up to Season 11.
The testing process will intensify for all Formula E teams in the coming months. The first public test of the all-new GEN3 Evo will come in early November, during pre-season testing at the Circuit Ricardo Tormo in Valencia. After that, Season 11 will kick off in style in Brazil, with the Sao Paulo E-Prix taking place in December.
Featured Image Credit: Lou Johnson Photography