Electric world rallycross future is called Projekt E
The question on how electric cars will be part of the FIA World Rallycross championship now has a clearer answer. Turns out that the Supercars category will remain as the main draw, but a new EV category will complement the race weekend. So you get to see and hear the magnificent 600hp AWD hatchback Supercars, and witness the future of production-based cars during the same race weekend.
IMG, the promoter for World RX series has called this concept Projekt E and describes the move by the company as ‘a pioneer in the introduction of EV technologies to a production-based motorsport series’. That’s a good way to put it although I think that Jaguar has that ‘pioneer’ part covered by its I-Pace eTrophy series.
You can expect the race series to start in 2021- as scheduled previously – even if manufacturer support has been weak. Torben Olsen, managing director of World RX for IMG said, “In terms of the strategy for introduction of electrification to rallycross, we have been in discussions for nearly two years with a number of manufacturers. Ultimately it emerged that the manufacturers were not yet ready to commit in sufficient numbers to make a fully-electric World Championship a reality. However, we believe that Projekt E is a positive step forward to deliver on our 2017 pledge.”
Apart from the amazingly brief teaser video by World RX which shows nothing, the announcement of Projekt E came with… no details of the cars. They will, however, reveal more about the project and the electric cars which will eventually line up on the grid in the coming months.
