Nissan e.dams has kicked off its ABB FIA Formula E electric street racing championship campaign with an impressive points haul as the first-ever Japanese brand in the series.
Nissan debuted as the newest manufacturer to join the championship with Swiss racer Sebastien Buemi and British driver Oliver Rowland finishing sixth and seventh respectively in the opening round of the series – the Ad Diriyah ePrix.
The Formula E championship showcases electric mobility in major city centers around the world, and Nissan is using the series to demonstrate the performance side of Nissan Intelligent Mobility – the brand’s vision for how cars are driven, powered and integrated into society.
After having spent the past two years preparing for its Formula E debut, the global EV sales leader had to wait even longer to finally hit the track today after heavy rain canceled the opening practice session.
Delays in the schedule resulted in a revised qualifying format being run with the 22 cars split into two groups of 11, instead of the traditional four groups of cars and a separate “super pole” session.
Weekend highlights for Nissan included Buemi qualifying third fastest and running as high as second in the race at the start. Rowland gained seven spots in the race after qualifying 14th and Nissan e.dams finish its debut weekend sitting in fourth place in the points.
Today’s race was not only the debut for Nissan, but it also kicked off the “Gen2” era of the Formula E championship with new cars which feature new chassis, aerodynamics, battery, and powertrain. The new cars have more power and longer range and eliminate the need for the car change which was previously used in the series.
The series also debuted its new “Attack Mode” format where drivers get to enjoy 25 more kW of power for a short period by driving off-line through a section of track to trigger the system.
After Sunday’s test, the Nissan e.dams team and the Formula E series will head to Marrakesh in Morocco for round two of the championship on January 12.
