DUBAI: The FIA has confirmed its choice of suppliers for the Gen4 race car set to debut in season 13 of the ABB FIA Formula E World Championship in 2026-2027.
Formula E is just nine seasons old, having debuted in 2014, but the on-track technology has undergone revolutionary changes.
The tender process saw Formula E and the FIA evaluate bidders on various technical specifications. As with the Gen3, the Gen4’s process saw sustainability take centerstage, covering emissions and resource consumption. Gen4 will be a net-zero race car by design, like its predecessor.
Spark Racing Technology will continue to supply the chassis to Formula E, as it has done since inception.
Podium AT, an Italian company, will become an FIA World Championship single supplier of batteries for the first time.
Marelli will provide front powertrain, extending the Italian brand’s longstanding relationship with the FIA. Bridgestone will provide the tires, marking the manufacturer’s return to an FIA World Championship for the first time in 15 years.
Season nine saw Formula E’s third great leap and the introduction to the Gen3 era, with the new car previewed and launched at the 2022 Monaco E-Prix and hitting the track for the first time in Valencia, at testing, later that year.
The Gen3 is lighter, smaller, faster and more sustainable than previous cars, and incorporates a number of cutting-edge features. It is also the most efficient race car on the planet, with almost 50 percent of the energy it expends recaptured for use through the rear and a new front powertrain, for up to 600 kilowatts total regeneration.
Before the Gen4 debut, the Gen3.5 will hit the track in seasons 11 and 12.
Activation of the front powertrain in drive and use of four-wheel drive in certain scenarios, softer compound, and bodywork tweaks are all on the table as possibilities — with lap times projected to be several seconds faster than is currently possible with Gen3.