When it unveiled the all-electric concept automotive, NASCAR was at pains to emphasise that it likely would never be a Cup Series platform or race within the Daytona 500. So why construct it?
For a series that prides itself on being true to its roots and the oldest school of racing, the multibillion-dollar sanctioning body has recently shown what it’s able to in relation to innovation – something that wasn’t common in a series that only introduced fuel injection a dozen or so years ago.
A race on the Los Angeles Coliseum? Proven. A brand new generation of cars that eliminates the necessity for teams to construct their very own chassis? Proven. A street race in Chicago? Proven. Racing a production automotive within the Le Mans 24 Hours? Proven. What's next?
Well, NASCAR has partnered on a battery electric vehicle (BEV) project with Formula E title sponsor ABB, a world leader in electrification and automation, after being steered down that path several years ago on the request of three OEM partners — Chevrolet, Ford and Toyota.
Unveiling of the ABB NASCAR EV prototype
Photo: ABB United States
ABB is a founding partner of the NASCAR Impact initiative, the sanctioning body’s platform to advertise sustainable electrification. NASCAR said it’s “committed to the historic role of the internal combustion engine in racing,” but can also be committed to decarbonizing its operations and reducing its carbon footprint to zero across its core operations by 2035.
The concept automotive was built by NASCAR engineers liable for the Next Gen automotive and the Garage 56 entry within the 24 Hours of Le Mans. The four-wheel-drive automotive has a Crossover Utility Vehicle (CUV) body produced from an eco-friendly flax-based composite.
It has been tested on the track several times and boasts three STARD UHP 6-Phase motors (one within the front, two within the rear) that deliver power on to all 4 specially designed Goodyear tires. With a liquid-cooled 78 kWh battery, the regulated drivetrain can produce 1,000 kW at maximum power. Regenerative braking converts kinetic energy into usable energy, making the automotive suitable for road and short oval tracks.
“The combustion engine has a long, long way to go, whether it’s sustainable fuel or hydrogen,” said John Probst, senior vp and chief racing officer for NASCAR. “And then there’s the electrification through hybrid.
“They drive hybrids [in IMSA racing]. Today now we have a battery electric. I'm not sitting here and saying we're going to announce a series. That's not what that is about. We built this automotive. We put it on the track. That's what we're about, science.
“We’ll have a story to tell when we learn. And we’ll be in the driver’s seat wherever the future takes us. If you look at the landscape, one thing is clear: change is accelerating all around us.”
Unveiling of the ABB NASCAR EV prototype
Photo: Nascar Chicago
Pat DiMarco, Ford Performance manager of NASCAR and analytics, emphasized that this was a small-scale motion on the OEM’s part.
“In the Daytona 500, the internal combustion engine will last a lot longer than I will,” DiMarco said.
“This [electric] experience may be good, may be bad, depending on the way you have a look at it. It's the unknown. We must work through it. And that's it.
“It's educating and getting feedback from racing fans, is this something they want? Is this something they like? And is this something we as OEMs want to continue?”
Kevin Harvick believes the concept has no future at NASCAR's highest levels
Photo: John Harrelson / NKP / Motorsports images
According to former Cup champion and current FOX commentator Kevin Harvick, the reply to that query wasn't clear even before the automotive's premiere.
“I really think the push for electric vehicles came from the manufacturers when NASCAR started this project,” Harvick said on his Happy Hour podcast this week. “And electric vehicles [sales] aren’t any longer doing in addition to they did at first of the project.
“It’s great to see that you’ve gotten something, but I believe NASCAR was thus far along within the EV project that the manufacturers were promoting it, and at one point they were saying, ‘Everybody build three of these cars and do some demonstration races,’ but I believe when the EV [push] left and the producers said, “hey, we're not going to do this anymore.”
“And so NASCAR is stuck in this electric vehicle, where they can show some things, but that's the only thing that excites me about it. But I can tell you this: There's no future for NASCAR in electric vehicles.”
Unveiling of the ABB NASCAR EV prototype
Photo: ABB North America
Harvick admitted that the project could probably have some potential outside of America, perhaps becoming a platform that could possibly be utilized in a touring-style series or attract manufacturers outside its orbit. But he also thinks NASCAR’s electrification story can be rather more prone to be hybrid-based, much like the trail its sister IMSA SportsCar Championship has taken with its premier GTP class.
“I appreciate the effort and I understand that there are other things going on on the other side of the world,” he added. “But anyone who thinks that that is going to be a hit… First of all, on oval tracks, you won’t get very far. On road tracks, it’s probably doable.
“I wouldn't spend any more money on it. Now, maybe we'll have a hybrid? We could charge the battery and do some safety laps, sure. We have to keep up with the manufacturers' technology. But all-electric? No way.”
Unveiling of the ABB NASCAR EV prototype
Photo: ABB United States
It's a sentiment DiMarco agreed with to some extent: “Can we race for half-hour, 45 minutes on a brief track? Yes. Is that a protracted enough race to do something? Probably.
“Nitro Rallycross [which uses a battery-powered SUV-bodied platform, which it calls ‘Group E’] and a few stuff related to world rallycross [where EVs battle with ICE cars] run short races to present people time to look at. Do you would like to go to the Daytona 500 [with EVs]? No. You won't be running as long on a mile and a half track as you’d [currently].
“But, you know, it's just a matter of seeing where the technology goes to dictate how we as OEMs in NASCAR are going to implement it.”
Unveiling of the ABB NASCAR EV prototype
Photo: ABB North America
Application
Think of this launch as NASCAR taking a prototype to the New York International Auto Show and even the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas. It's an idea automotive, just as Polestar, Hyundai or Volkswagen might debut at these flashy shows to gauge response by way of styling and public appeal.
“You see this a lot with OEMs. They put prototypes of cars out at car shows, gauge the reaction from fans and decide if they want to go in this direction or another,” Probst said.
“It’s also how we can work with them and explore where we want to be. The entire powertrain landscape in general is in an incredible state of change.”
And that's the purpose. You probably won't see a Polestar, Hyundai or VW on a NASCAR track with a pushrod V8 anytime soon. But if there's no suitable platform for them to have a look at, then there's no long-term wiggle room for them to maneuver.
NASCAR has a loyal trio of OEMs operating in Cup, Xfinity and Trucks. But the tripod is simply strong until you rip your leg off, and waiting for Dodge to return probably isn’t essentially the most sensible long-term business model.
But going all-electric wouldn’t be sensible – who remembers the one-brand Jaguar I-Pace eTrophy that supported Formula E? But in fairness, the FE, celebrating its tenth season and boasting DS, Jaguar, Mahindra, Maserati, Nissan and Porsche, continues to be the very best within the series.
Formula E has proven to be a hit, attracting many manufacturers to its global open-wheel all-electric racing series
Photo: Simon Galloway / Motorsports images
Think of it as a high-tech fishing expedition with an eye fixed on the longer term. OEMs are fickle because they must sustain with market demands. And the direction of mass-market powertrains might be as uncertain because it has been because the internal combustion engine outpaced horse-drawn carriages, steam power, and the primary electric cars greater than a century ago.
Let’s not forget that NASCAR also owns IMSA, the sports automotive sanctioning body that’s currently flooded with manufacturer support. And why? Because IMSA offers attractive class platforms that higher meet the needs of world OEMs. And manufacturers love platforms because they supply stability for his or her multi-million dollar investments that repay in automotive sales.
Only time will tell if this automotive is totally useless or if it’s an important thing to occur to NASCAR in years… And if market forces do indeed demand a hybrid powertrain in NASCAR’s future, you’ll be able to at all times make the case that it’s the lesser evil of electrification!
