Lessons learnt while running the Formula E gauntlet
IN KEEPING with our focus on Formula E racing, this week we take a look at the BMW i Andretti Motorsport team, which is contesting its first season in the ABB FIA Formula E Championship.
The team’s engineers gain more experience with every race weekend and aim to incorporate their findings in the development of the BMW iFE.18 and the preparation for the next races.
Here are the top three things the team learnt after a scorcher of a race in Chile a couple of weekends ago:
1) NO CHANCE IN QUALIFYING GROUP 1 António Félix da Costa (POR), winner of the opening race in Ad Diriyah, took to the track in the first of four qualifying groups in Santiago – a fact that left him with no chance. The track conditions were so difficult that no driver in group one qualified higher than 13th. As of group two, which included Alexander Sims (GBR), conditions allowed faster lap times. Sims was able to match the pace of Sebastien Buemi (SUI), who set the fastest time in group two, in the first two sectors. Only in the third sector was there a substantial difference in times. Sims eventually qualified ninth. As the groups are decided by positions in the Drivers’ Championship, the best-placed drivers are faced with the most difficult conditions. This is intended to make the race even more exciting.
2) HEAT MANAGEMENT PLAYS A KEY ROLE In Chile, the teams were faced with extremely hot conditions. During the race, the air temperature was approaching 40 degrees Celsius. This put the focus on the battery temperature. Thanks to a good energy management strategy, BMW i Andretti Motorsport was able to stick within the temperature limits of the Gen2 batteries. While energy is usually the restricting factor at Formula E races, this time it was the battery temperature in the heat of Santiago. 3) THE NEED FOR PRECISION IS ESSENTIAL One particular challenge for the team this season will be adhering to the mandatory limits in a wide range of areas of the car – for example, energy consumption, battery charge level, brake temperatures and tyre pressures. High-precision work is vital, both from engineers and the drivers, as infringements and the slightest discrepancies are consistently punished with penalties.
The next round of the ABB FIA Formula E World Championship takes place in Mexico City on February 16.