Meet The First Electric-Powered Rally Car – The Project E
Today, at the Latvian WRX, Projekt E unveiled their first ever electric rally car.
Projekt E will run as a support series to WRX next season using electric technology from the firm STARD (Stohl Advanced Research and Development). The 4-wheel drive, electric powertrain dubbed “REVeloution” (lol) has been fitted to the shell of a Ford Fiesta for the unveiling.
The car looks quite good but a Fiesta rally car is a normality on the rallycross scene, its underneath that counts. The cars are estimated to produce 600 horsepower and 800 ft-lb torque (or 450kw and 1100nm for the nerds) with a top speed of 150mph.
STARD is making the kits so the existing steel-bodied supercar rally cars can be converted to electric. More motorsports are converting to electric, showing dedication to a sustainable future of racing. Formula E and Extreme E are two examples of green racing. Both sports are gaining traction, providing crowds with some of the best racing you can currently watch.
Rallycross is already, in my opinion, the best motorsport to watch. 600 horsepower hatchbacks, legal contact and jumps? How can you not love that? The overtaking is ruthless, calculated and again, in my opinion, more exciting than any other motorsport. This is an exciting time where companies are starting to see the future and develop high performance electric machines.
What do you think of motorsport turning electric? Do you think fans will stick with the high octane, roaring sounds of today’s petrol powered machines? Or is the future inevitably electric? Personally, nothing can beat the sound of a rallycar’s anti-lag system. However, you can’t fight change.
