Current thinking

In REV29N7, I wrote an article exploring the current state of play of electric powertrains. That was over 18 months ago now, though, and quite a bit of water has flowed under the bridge since then. Both BMW and Audi have recently pulled out of Formula E, no doubt due to European governments constantly talking about banning sales of internal combustion motors post 2030. Consequently, re-visiting this topic is now more important than ever.

In recent times it has become virtually impossible to have a rational discussion about this because the subject of electric powertrains in motorsport and automotive applications has become polarising. I can honestly say I’ve never seen a subject promote such extreme reactions. On one hand you have Utopian optimists who contend that battery-powered electric propulsion will eat internal combustion engines alive. Then you have the those who contend that electric propulsion is nothing more than a false dawn. On top of that, you have the likes of Greta Thunberg et al who will latch on to a solution and stick with it with religious zeal, regardless of the consequences, and woe betide any who play devil’s advocate.

Informed decisions

The purpose of this article is to assess the current state of play with electric powertrains. I’ll present the good, the bad and the ugly. Given how divisive this issue is, my goal is just to present the facts so you can make informed decisions. Unfortunately, this pragmatic approach has been sadly absent in much of the recent discussion about electric vehicles. It’s also time for an engineering grown up to turn up to this discussion.

Before I begin, it might be wise to lay my cards on the table. I’ve written before on a number of occasions on electric powertrains, laying out the basics and then exploring their use in categories such as GT3 and Time Attack. Where this comes from is the development of the ChassisSim Electric Powertrain module. This has been used in Formula E and some other