Maserati has officially unveiled the first electric racing car in its history, and it’s actually a car that will compete in Formula E.
The single-seater named Tipo Folgore was presented at a special event organized on the streets of Modena, the home of Maserati. The Formula E debut comes 96 years after Maserati’s first single-seater, the Tipo 26 which won the class at the 1926 Targa Florio with Alfieri Maserati at the wheel.
The car is blue with white stripes, the inscription Maserati and the company logo, while on the side there are sponsors and the colors of the Italian flag. The driver line-up consists of Maximilian Gunther and Edoardo Mortara, who arrived in Formula E in 2017 and 2018 respectively.
Like all other Formula E Gen3 cars debuting this season, Maserati’s Tipo Folgore will be powered by electric motors that develop 470 horsepower and allow a top speed of 322 km/h. Despite the greater power, the new car will weigh 840 kg, i.e. 60 kg less than its predecessor.
The smaller battery is powered by improved energy regeneration. Maximum regeneration is 600 kW. The hydraulic rear brakes have been replaced with regenerative brakes and around 40 percent of the energy used during the race will be generated by braking.
Gen3 cars are made from recycled carbon, which reduces their carbon footprint by 10 percent.
The ninth season of Formula E will take place next year and seven car manufacturers have signed up, including DS Automobiles, Jaguar, Mahindra Racing, Maserati, NIO 333, Nissan and Porsche AG.
Maserati plans to use technology, software and experience from Formula E tracks for the Folgore cars on the road.
Pre-season testing will take place in Valencia and the season starts on January 14 at the Autodromo Hermanos Rodriguez track in Mexico. This will also be the longest season in Formula E history as there will be 17 races.
