The series will end the season in New York City July 29-30, and the Jaguar team hopes at least one more US date will fill one of the two “TBD” slots on the calendar in April and June, possibly a race in or near San Francisco.
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The Jaguar driver lineup is low on star power, but it’s certainly a qualified trio: Adam Carroll, 33; Mitch Evans, 22 and the youngest driver in the field; and reserve driver Ho-Pin Tung, 33, who may be the best-known to USA audiences, having driven sports cars and Indy cars. The race marks Jaguar’s official return to global motorsport following the demise of its unsuccessful Formula One team in 2004.
“As the first premium vehicle manufacturer in Formula E we are proud to be back in top-level motorsport”, said Gerd Mauser, the Chairman of Panasonic Jaguar Racing.
The announcement was made at Jaguar’s heritage site, where they launched their maiden voyage into the all-electric series, which sees the first single-seater motorsport campaign for Jaguar since they left Formula One in 2004. Launching a Formula E effort allows it to compete in a form of motorsports that should prove relevant to road-car technology.
Further Formula E race experience comes courtesy of reserve driver Ho-Ping Tung.
When can I see the Jaguar I-type in (silent) action? We do know that Jaguar Land Rover is handling the car’s powertrain development, wherever the components came from, although it won’t provide naked images of the back of the vehicle (where that powertrain is) until closer to the start of the 2016-2017 Formula E racing season.
Formula E features past Formula One drivers like Sebastian Buemi of Switzerland, who won the title last season, German Nick Heidfeld and Brazilian duo Nelson Piquet Jr and Lucas di Grassi, but the standout feature of the series is undoubtedly the cars.
Interestingly Jaguar also named Panasonic as its technology partner moving forward, and that makes sense as Panasonic already makes the HUD units in Jaguar road cars.
In a statement Gerd Mäuser, Chairman of Panasonic Jaguar Racing, said: “Today marks a new chapter in the history of Jaguar Racing”.
“This is a key part of our product development and a key part of our future”.
Driving for Jaguar for the next season are Adam Caroll and Mitch Evans.
Jaguar’s auto is not entirely its own-we previously reported that the chassis is provided by Dallara, and the batteries remain spec components-but the drive system is unique.
“It’s something we’ve been hoping and asking for, it would mean a lot for us to have the race series here and take people to it and actually see the real vehicle in life”, Scrimshaw said.
Moreover, Jaguar says its aims are to “change the perception of EV technology” and also to inspire a new generation of motorsport fans.
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Ho-Pin Tung said: “I believe that Jaguar’s entry to the series is a significant moment for the FIA Formula E Championship”.
