Porsche on Thursday became the third automaker to commit to the Gen4 era of the Formula E World Championship, which starts with Season 13 (2026/2027) of the electric racing series.
It joins Nissan and Jaguar, who previously committed to the Gen4 era that will introduce a much faster race car.
Porsche made the announcement in Shanghai where it's competing this weekend at the 2024 Formula E Shanghai E-Prix. The automaker confirmed it will extend its current commitment to the sport by a further four years, taking its participation to 2030. The news isn't a huge surprise as Porsche previously announced it was “actively involved” in the design of the Gen4 car.
The Gen4 car, like its predecessors, will be common to all teams, though teams will have even more scope for individual tuning, particularly when it comes to the powertrain. According to Michael Steiner, Porsche's R&D chief, competing in Formula E provides Porsche with more knowledge that it can transfer to its road-going models.
Michael Steiner
“The knowledge from racing flows directly into our sports cars,” he said in a statement. “We don’t develop technology for the sake of technology—it must benefit our customers.”
According to organizers, the car will deliver more power and faster charging capability than the current Gen3 car. Improved safety will be another key aspect. Performance targets include a power output of 804 hp and regeneration capacity up to 938 hp.
Before the arrival of the Gen4 car, an updated Gen3 Evo will be introduced for next season, Season 11 (2024/2025). Formula E quotes a 0-60 mph time of 1.82 seconds, which is 36% quicker than the Gen3 car and 30% quicker than current Formula 1 cars, organizers claim. The Gen3 Evo's claimed top speed of 200 mph is the same as the current car.
Since joining Formula E in Season 6 (2019/2020), Porsche has delivered eight victories and 16 podium finishes out of 68 starts. Its current drivers are Pascal Wehrlein and António Félix da Costa.
